J’s Garage

My first car when I was 17 was a Volvo. I found Juan when I needed some repairs and he was always so helpful and nice. Such a good mechanic that even after 17 years I still remember how honest and genuine he was to me. He could’ve easily taken advantage of the fact that I knew nothing about cars but he never did. He was always reasonable and if I ever own another Volvo I would go back to him!

I heard my belt squeaking and felt it was loose. I stopped by the shop at lunch time to see how much I would pay to tighten it. He tightened it for me on the spot. I had 2 young kids in the car and I was grateful for his time. This was my first visit, but I will come back to Juan in the future.

I lived in the Windsor Park neighborhood for eight years and used Juan as my go-​to mechanic for that entire time. My wife and I only own and drive Volvos. We know the ins and outs of these cars well; I’m an engineer by training and profession (I built race cars for fun in college). We know that a solid older Volvo can be a great, reliable vehicle, but also that they can be very expensive to maintain if you have to rely on a dealership for repairs.
That’s where Juan has made all the difference to us. Juan is not only highly knowledgeable and experienced, he’s also the mechanic that the local Austin dealer just up the road uses to fix older Volvos, since their in-​shop mechanics only train on the more recent makes and models. We cut out the middle man and went straight to Juan with our repairs.
Juan kept our 1991 240 wagon and 1993 940 sedan running like new. Juan’s service sometimes wasn’t inexpensive, but that was usually because Volvo parts (whether new or rebuilt) are never cheap. Juan always worked with us to explain clearly whether a repair required Volvo-​certified parts or could be done with after market/​rebuilt parts or could be fixed with a simple work-​around that might save hundreds of dollars.
Over the past two years, my wife and I have moved first to Indiana and now to Iowa. I’ve taken our cars to two different Volvo dealers for maintenance during that time. On two separate occasions at two separate dealerships, when the service manager was recommending $ 3−6k in parts and labor, I called Juan to get a second opinion. Juan’s advice saved me literally thousands of dollars in unnecessary repairs with simple alternatives and work-​arounds.
I don’t write many Unilocal reviews. When Juan mentioned that he’d been panned by a couple of reviewers on Unilocal,I felt compelled to share my own experience. If you’re considering buying an older Volvo, take it to Juan for an inspection *before* you become the owner — for a nominal fee, Juan can tell you whether you’re about to buy a vehicle that you’ll love for years, or a clunker that will only bring you tears.

Ive used Juan’s service for many years. Those that had bad reviews must have expected miracles. He just worked on my car and it was half Volvo price. I like the guys at Volvo but that doesn’t help price.

Juan had my car fixed that day at a great price — highly recommend for all future repairs.

This guy doesn’t know what he’s doing except charging you the ultimate. I asked him to check my engine light. He come up with i need to replace my timing belt for 650.00. so, i said let me think about it and took it to another Volvo place and they fixed my e-​vap hose for 42.00 and the light is off and passed inspection. Oh and that shop laughed when told of the light meassage for the timing belt!!!
RUN, RUN FAR FROM THIS PLACE!

I just sold my last Volvo, and second only to missing my sweet 240, I was sad that I would no longer have a shop with a mechanic that knows his brand inside and out and is honest, friendly, and reasonably-​priced.
Juan kept my ’92 240 and my wife’s ’01 S70 T5 alive and well and has done the same for several friends that I’ve referred his way. In fact, I’m thinking of getting a newer Volvo and am actually excited to be going back to his shop.

I’m still not quite sure if I trust that Juan was as honest and as reasonable as others had reassured. My car was just purchased off craigslist for 1,850 in mid may and already had I been experiencing a few problems and thought I’d get a full diagnosis when I got the money but before I could do that the engine didn’t turn one day after work and so I had it towed to Juan’s because I had just gotten refered by some people who have a volvo of their own and are pleased with Juan’s services. I also considered that he had his own garage and specializes in volvos and seemed pleasant over the phone. As soon as it was taken in he mentioned that my tire was about to blow up on me so I felt that since he was so quick to recognize that without it having been there for long that he was gonna be a no tricks mechanic (he showed me an obvious bursting seam I hadn’t noticed). He said he’d take a look and without any official papers being signed I left it there because he said he wouldn’t do anything until he asked. Well the next day he called and said a few things were wrong and it was pretty bad but it is running and he went ahead and changed the oil and the spark plugs. He advised that he wouldn’t recommend I keep the car and that I had already paid too much and unfortunately it just wasn’t a good volvo. This was offsetting because the only problems I was actually worried about before it stopped running was the rpms starting at 3 and the constant refilling of coolant. Everything else was smooth, my prior problems weren’t congruent with what he was describing the car was doing now. When I asked for price of the unauthorized repairs I remembered $ 180, I was a bit annoyed because I had no chance to ask around if that was an appropriate price because he already did it and so I had no choice but was semi-​relieved because I thought he had fixed the car. When I was finally able to pick it up he said he couldn’t be there but that he put my key somewhere on the premises and I could go pick it up and pay the next day. So with an arrangement like that I thought surely everything worked out fine and we both trust each other no problem. When I arrive at the car the hood is not quite closed and could have easily been messed with by anyone walking by it. When I turned the engine and it was wwwaaY WORSE which I couldn’t justify because granted it was running but it had never made such a klunky commotion since I had it and was convinced he made a mistake. So I called him and asked him if he could just fix it please and he made clear that it would be about 2,500 or so in engine repairs. I didn’t want to argue with him because he still came off as a pleasant experienced old timer but I can’t understand why the difference in my car was so drastic from before the car croaked and after he apparently revived it. I mean when I reversed it kicked back and it was just trembling like mad. Also the second time I asked about the oil and spark plug repairs I was told it was going to be $ 220 instead of the earlier quote. You be the judges of this catastrophe, i’m still learning and at this point I’d like to take a class on cars cause I can’t seem to trust any mechanics.

I’m really disappointed after trying this service. I had been recommended by a fellow Volvo owner who had been to J’s prior. Since I had just moved to town, I hadn’t had a chance to try mechanics prior to having a series of no-​start problems. I had taken the battery out and had it recharged. During this minor procedure, I lost a bolt. My roommate took the car out one morning and it wouldn’t start, even with a jump, so I got it towed into J’s Garage based on my friend’s recommendation.
It took him two days before he looked at it and called me back. I realize that he is a one-​man show, but when I had it towed, I specifically asked him to call me before he did anything to let me know what it was and to please check the squealing alternator belts. He replaced the bolt on the battery and charged the battery back up. Of course, the car ran again because the battery was charged… However, I asked him if he checked the belts and he came out with a tub of grease and put grease all over the belts and told me that the problem was the alternator bushings and that he could do this work for a few hundred dollars, I opted out for the moment because I was skeptical.
With a couple of days of the car running fine, I had to drive to Houston. By the time I got there, my battery was barely charged and I coasted into my family’s driveway with little power left. The next morning, my ex, who is a mechanic looked at the car and the whole problem was the alternator belts, which needed to be tightened, but now had to be replaced as a result of the greasing. This twenty dollar fix was way better than a repair that wasn’t necessary that had been recommended and what made me madder than hell was the $ 40 I paid for Juan to put a nut on my battery, which would have cost me less than $ 2 to do myself; not to mention the ruined belts that almost got me stranded a few hundred miles away.
I hope that this was an anomaly, but I will never go back…

Agree with the first reviewer. Juan knows everything about old Volvos, he’s honest and his prices are extremely reasonable. Good experience every time. The only downside is it’s not really near anything if you have to wait there.

The only Volvo shop I’ve used in Austin; Juan’s labor rate beats the other Volvo shops in town hands down. Don’t expect a swank waiting area or anything, just expect very competent service done by an experienced tech who is budget sensitive and won’t try to pull one over on you. Call ahead and make an appointment, it’s a one-​man shop.