Nippon European Motors

Here’s the thing. It all started off really well. Tom seems like a SUPER nice man and I truly think he knows what he’s doing and that he generally cares about his customers and his business. I think that maybe he has a mechanic or two working for him that, well, not so much.
I have a 2003 BMW that I brought in with front CV joint issues, a relatively common occurrence in these cars after 60K miles. Since they are not in one piece as they are in most cars, you must replace both sides/​axles at the same time so that equilibrium is maintained. Fine, that makes sense. He told me up front what he would do, how much it would cost, and he stayed on target for that, and was really nice the whole time.
Unfortunately, he or his mechanics either never fixed it or did it incorrectly, and when I went to Moran Motors in Berkeley very shortly thereafter (for a different reason), they pointed that out to me. I was livid. I also then noticed that they had removed my metal «BMW» license plate frames — the very nice, expensive METAL ones with the BMW logos on them — and replaced them with cheap plastic ones that said the name of their shop on it. I WAS LIVID. Seems petty, perhaps, but they stole my frames from me and when confronted, claimed they hadn’t. How then, to explain that your Nippon frames are on my car? «Oh, uhhh… let me ask around…»
So now I had to deal with getting him to fix the CV joints again — he claimed I must’ve hit something and damaged them in the week between — and get him to replace my frames. Well, after many phone calls and trips back and forth, let’s just say that he only fixed the damaged CV joint (coincidentally on the same side I initially went in about). I took his crappy plastic frames back to him, and waited in vain for the replacements he said he ordered.
I never understood why he would just keep lying, but I eventually gave up and didn’t bother going back. I was so disappointed and deflated since, as I said, all started off seemingly very well. You really can’t trust anyone, such a huge bummer.

I would like to thank Tom and Juan for their excellent service, communication, honesty, and general friendly demeanor.
After a nail punctured my tire for the second time in three months, I was not looking forward to purchasing a new tire. They attempted to patch the tire, and told me that if the patch didn’t hold, I would have to get a new tire. The patch lasted for a few days, then bam — deflating.
Normally this wouldn’t have been such a dire situation, but I was needing to drive ~500 to see family in three days, and boy was I grateful for N.E.M. They fixed my tire in a day. One day. Amazing.
I appreciate their service so much, and cannot praise them highly enough.

Excellent service! I highly recommend this place. Staff was professional, courteous and knowledgeable. Reasonable prices and efficient.

I chose this shop based on Unilocal reviews, and I was not disappointed. Tom was as nice as everyone said he was. He kept me in the loop as the problem was diagnosed, parts ordered, and repair completed. The repair work seems perfect. I have found my new mechanic!

If you are looking for a mechanic, stop here — you’ve found him. Tom is trustworthy, great to work with. he has taken care of all of my cars for years and I’ve never had a problem with his repairs and maintenance. He always lets me know which repairs are important and which ones can wait — and how long they can wait. He’s great at diagnosing «it’s making a funny noise» problems and I never feel like he’s doing unecessary work — in fact, a couple of times his inspections turned up problems that the local dealer claimed to have fix but actually hadn’t. I found Tom after getting HUGE estimate from the dealer. I took it to Tom and he not only did the work for much less without seeing the dealer’s estimate first, but also told me that much of the work the dealer advised what not necessary. He’s honest, he does great work, really cares about his customers and seems to work on every kind of car. Nippon European is the place to go

So I’m driving and then all of a sudden, my car decided to die on the Bay Bridge. I was like ummm car, we are on the ^$#^%#@^$%&% Bay Bridge. You can’t do that $%## over %$#%#$% water! That was the conversation that I had with my alternator. Apparently that’s why it decided to stop working. So I was towed to a random, AAA-​recommended place where they looked at my car and fixed my alternator at a reasonable price (we aren’t supposed to put prices, right?) They even put a new belt. They also included a AAA-​discount. It was scary for me because it was like Russian Roulette for mechanics. And I just had to choose and tell the tow-​truck driver where to go.
The man that helped me was AWESOME. I have serious trust issues when it comes to mechanics. Well, when it comes to life. But he was super helpful and there was another customer that had been going to him for over 25 years. The only thing I’ve done consistently for 25 years is eat meals.
So I took a chance and they worked on my car. He also arranged for a ride to the BART station so that I could get to work in time for my meeting. The car was ready within 24 hours. Yes and YES! I plan to come for my oil change. I love my car! It’s a Mercedes and Nippon specializes in European cars. It’s a 2003 so I’d like it to last until 2033 :)

I couldn’t be happier with the service I received at Nippon. I brought my car in after an accident, but when I got my car back it was in even better shape that when I originally bought it! They really have an eye for detail and went the extra mile to fix little things I had never even mentioned when I dropped the car off, all while delivering at the previously estimated price. I think this is the best alignment job I’ve ever had; the car just feels amazing. I am looking forward to bringing my car back and having all the other little troubles sorted out soon. Thanks, Nippon.

Excellent service and mechanical work! Over 10 years of faithful work for my Honda I am offering a high recommendation to anyone that you can trust Tom and his business!
You won’t be disappointed! He is fair, honest and an excellent mechanic. He’ll make your car work beautifully at the most reasonable honest price! Trust him!

I have particular gratitude for experts who are honest as well as competent, and none more so than for auto mechanics, since I am so ignorant about cars. Each time we move across country and look for a new mechanic, I wonder if we will ever be lucky again. Good news! Tom has looked after our two cars (Toyota Matrixes, one after the other) since we arrived back in the Bay Area in 2007. Last week I dropped by to ask about something and Tom’s sharp eye and habit of scanning the car led him to notice a screw in my tire, which would soon have been flat. He had his guy mend it right there in a few minutes and sent me on my way without asking for payment. Two pieces of luck: 1) that Tom saw the screw, 2) that we found him in the first place. Not luck: Tom’s competence, honesty and simple niceness. If either of us was Jewish I’d call him a mensch: the highest praise (and I’m not sure what either the English or Japanese translation of that is).

Been there three times in the last two years, changed tires, did minor repairs. They did a good job. But I couldn’t avoid the feeling that they are too expensive, and plus they always push for more things to be done. Not all of them are necessary, I feel, and they are not honest about this. It’s just a feeling, I’m not a mechanic and I couldn’t tell for sure. But for me the overall feeling is that it’s time to look for another place.

This is the first time I went to these guys for a very minor repair, fasten the undercover (skid plate) to my car that came off (or forgotten to be bolted on by the dealership that did my oil change!) Juan was very friendly and helpful. The service was quick.
I will consider going to these guys when I need any other work done.

I’ve taken my car here twice. A friend of ours recommended them. I have a Mercedes e500 and needless to say maintenance and repairs can be outrageously priced. My first trip there, I had to have work done on the air struts. They searched around for the best price on parts. Although the entire service was expensive, it was much less expensive than the dealer and I felt Matthew really had my best interest and not the profit of the garage in mind. I recently returned due to the crankshaft position sensor and other issues. Again, the team at Nippon was great. The car was ready for me the same day. This place is highly trustworthy and I won’t take my car anywhere else.

I have been taking all my cars (Lexus, Toyota, Subaru & Ford) to Nippon European Motors since 1997. Tom the owner knows how to work on cars, he’s thorough, does great work, because he listen to customers need and is always honest and up front.
I feel proud to call him my friend and lucky to have a mechanic I can trust!

Tom is exactly what you want in a mechanic. He’s honest, easy to work with, and he clearly takes pride in his work. I first came to Tom 8 months ago when I had a drive axle break and puncture my transmission case. He gave me a quote assuming he could find a salvage transmission. When he couldn’t, he rebuilt the transmission and welded the case and honored his original quote, despite a rebuilt requiring many more hours.
This weekend, I noticed a very slow leak in the case. I called Tom and he patched it. When I asked him how much I owed him, he told me not to worry about it. He takes pride in his work.
I live across the bay in San Francisco, but I’ll be bringing my VW to Tom from here on out.

My family has been going to this mechanic for as long as I can remember. I grew up in the east bay but several years ago my mom moved 3 hours away, yet she still drives her Honda all the way to the East Bay for tune-​ups. When I was in college (an hour away) she insisted I bring my Volkswagen back to Tom any time it needed care. I can’t tell you how many times Tom has told me that he watches over my far as thoroughly as he would his daughter’s, and it’s clear he means it.
The service at Nippon European Motors has always been exemplary and they do great work, but there are a few occasions on which the team at Nippon European Motors have gone above and beyond the call of duty:
(1) A house I was living in a while back burned down in a pretty ugly fire, and my car was stuck directly adjacent to the fire source. I couldn’t get back into the house and therefore had no idea if the room where my car keys were had been severely damaged. I called Tom and he stayed late at work trying to get a rush order for a replacement key from VW. When I recovered my car it was pretty damaged from the heat and burning debris, but Tom’s team checked to make sure the damage was all superficial and that nothing needed repair, free of charge.
(2) After being away for a month, I came home to a car that wouldn’t start. I had it towed to NEM but suddenly it started just fine. Tom was out of town at the time so I was working with his team. Rather than giving it back to me saying that it seems to be fine, they kept the car for several days while they tried to figure out what the problem was, but only charged me the basic diagnosis fee. At the time they didn’t have enough information to figure out what was going on, but they made it clear that if any further problems occurred there would be no further diagnosis fee. An additional problem did come up, which turned out to be unrelated, and they still waived the fee. When the original problem was came up again yesterday (FINALLY with a corresponding check-​engine-​light so they could actually diagnose it), I brought it back to the shop, and Tom figured out it was a faulty fuel injector cable, which he swapped out in 5 minutes and sent me on my way without charging me a dime.
(3) There is actually no point 3 except to say that the service and expertise at this shop is exemplary. Every time I go into the shop they go above and beyond the call of duty and furthermore, I have only witnessed courteous service towards other customers during the (large amount of) time I have spent in their shop. I have no point of comparison because I have never needed or wanted to go anywhere else. When my car finally bites the dust I am buying another European import so I can continue to have the most reliable mechanic I know.

I’ve been bringing my Toyota vehicles to Tom for over 25 years. I found him when I was paying other mechanics to fix a problem in one of my small trucks, and no one could do it. A friend referred me, Tom found it quickly, and I think he only charged me for the parts at the time. That was it for me, I have always felt he was a mechanic I could trust, and that he would never create maintenance issues with my vehicles just to generate $. If he said something needed attention, then it really did. Even retiring and moving to Sonoma County, I still drive down with my Toyota for its regular service. My friends up here recommend different mechanics from time to time, and I just quietly smile, and keep driving down to Tom’s. Never a problem, never an issue, always good, polite, respectful and high quality mechanical service.

This place is AWSOME! My friend got hit by a hit and run driver and was left with a broken tie-​rod in the middle of the intersection. Not knowing who to take it to he had his car towed home. He’s a poor art student and can’t afford a huge fix with all new parts etc. Also couldn’t afford to have to tow it to multiple places to get a quote. Matt from Nippon European Motors drove out to his house in Berkeley to look at the car in the driveway!!! Gave him a fair estimate helped him get his car towed tot the shop, and did the work over a weekend! The final price came in lower than the estimate.
My car had a strange noise when starting that NO ONE and I mean NO ONE could figure out. Not the dealer, not 3 other mechanics. One had maybe an idea but wanted to charge $ 2000 (cause the engine pretty much had to be taken apart — lot s of labor) just to diagnose it and then would have charged me additional repair.
Tom and Matt found the problem, tried to call and talk Toyota into fixing it (it’s a faulty part) and did mega amounts of research on the internet to find the very unusual and very rare problem with my car. Determined that it doesn’t necessarily need to be fixed right now, told us what to watch for and recommended we wait. Changed the oil cleaned stuff up and added an additive to make it quieter. Never charged us for all the research they did, and I don’t think they charged us for all the labor they put into it either… they looked my car over from front to back. Had them also do the 100,000 mile service and it came in about $ 200 less than the dealer. Now it drives so smooth and quiet!
We live all the way in Danville and will be going to Albany to these guys for all of our 4 cars that are now no longer on warranty.
Great working with you Tom and Matt! Thank You!

Tom and Ken are as good as it gets — straight forward, trustworthy, competent, professional, and punctual. They have helped me assess what my car needs over an extended period of time to run well, and their assessments have been spot-​on — I get no sense they’re trying to pinch an extra penny out of me, and simply want to do their work well. I’d recommend these guys to anyone.

These guys were very nice and helped me get my taillight fixed within a few hours of bringing my car in. They stayed below the quote they gave me for fixing an annoying electrical problem that has been plaguing my taillights. They went above and beyond to ensure there would no longer be lighting problems with my car and even fixed the license plate light as an added bonus.
My check engine light had been on for awhile and they checked out what was wrong with it free of charge and told me that it was nothing to worry about.
Now that’s a good auto repair shop.

Tom and his crew consistently repair my car beyond my expectations. The price is fair, the turnaround time is quick and the quality is top-​notch. Most important, I trust their honesty. He was recommended to me by a trusted friend when I recently moved here, and I recommend him to you.