Autoexcel, Inc.

An honest mechanic with integrity? Previously thought to be a fictional creature. Reveal Boris: courteous and professional, fair with his pricing and an excellent diagnostician.

Coming here for years. Always honest about what needs to be done, what is optional but recommended, and what I can do without, and lets me pick what to actually do. Boris is very knowledgeable, quick, flexible, and is willing to explain everything thoroughly. Good little waiting room to boot.

BORIS could not be any better. He is professional, courteous and always available and above all… very competent! There is nothing that you ask Boris that he is not willing to do. If he does not know he goes on line and looks up about your car and solves your problem. Boris just solved a problem with a child car seat that was stuck in my car… got it out without any damage!
Car wise he is tops! Don’t ever hesitate to take your car here… you will not be disappointed!
Frances Brannigan

My wife was referred to this shop by a trusted co-​worker/​engineer. I would like to also refer this place without hesitation.
Our first service: my wife was more than apprehensive about going to a mechanic alone because she was afraid of being taken advantage of. Our car was fixed quickly and the price was very reasonable. Autoexcel took care of the car very well and stress free for my wife.
We have needed a few repairs over the years, and I have only had great experiences. The thing I appreciate most is that Boris is willing to work within our budget and is able to think of creative solutions to keep costs low. The dealership would have happily charged for step A, B, and C, when Boris goes directly to step C (no hidden charges or ‘unexpected’ broken parts). Very much appreciated, and happy to know of this resource.
Knowledgeable, fair, honest, quick…

I’ve been with Boris for the past 6 years. He is by far the best mechanic I’ve known. I take my Jetta in for everything including oil changes as it’s well worth every penny. He is extremely honest about what you need or will need for your car. Every oil change he gives the car a look over and will bring you over and show you what might need attention. If he changes out a part he will save it and show you what went wrong with it.
A few years back he recommended that I need to change my timing belt soon. I got busy with everyday life and forgot. Well, my timing belt broke and cost me more money but it only built more trust in Boris. I used to go to the Jifi Lube stations for oil changes but after an experience there I brought my car to Boris and he found that one of the stations had stripped my oil pan bolt when changing my oil. Boris takes pride in giving you the best service possible. I’ll never let anyone else look at my car.
My Jetta is getting up there in mileage and part of me wants to buy another VW or Audi just so I can continue getting amazing service from Boris.
Do yourself a favor and call up Boris, you will not be disappointed.

These guys are amazing, service with a smile, awesome work and low prices! I took my girlfriends truck here and they did a great job and were way cheaper than any other place quoted, I recommend them to everyone.

Boris is the best in the business, his speciality is Volkswagen and Audi, but he knows all European vehicles. This guy is the most honest and professional I have ever met to work on my car. He tells you straight up if your car does or does not need something. He is a gentleman of the auto industry. I wish everyone was like him. He will do you right. Thanks Boris. Ciao

Expert knowledge, flexible schedule, no upsell, reasonable rates, clear and thorough answers to my questions. Those are qualities I expect from a good mechanic and Boris nailed it. He’s a nice guy who is patient and will do the work you need but not try to weasel any more in.
The shop is cleaner than most I’ve seen and while small is organized and capable.
I went in for a regular service but asked Boris to look into some things. Others I didn’t mention as a kind of test. Thankfully Boris got some stuff all sorted. Others, like my warped rotors and hesitant engine, he either said wait for it to get worse or totally missed.
The waiting room is next door to the shop so you can’t watch the work being done but I suppose you could walk over at any time if you wanted to check in. There was no wifi so for those of you who need it you’ll have to go offsite.
Small issues but I’ll definitely go back to Autoexcel the next time my car needs work.

This is my second time for service at AutoExcel and I can say that the service is awesome! Boris definitely knows his stuff and will not oversell you on anything you don’t need. Prices are reasonable and the service is exceptional. Never any hidden surprises and the work is always done when he says it’s going to be done. Boris even had my car washed by the time I picked it up!!! Now that’s great service.

This is my second auto service (45k) at this place. The price seems reasonable and the service is trustworthy. The owner is honest, and very knowledgable on VWs. The waiting room is small and comfortable… Free water and electricity: D (wall plugs)

There is no better place in the Greater San Diego area for good, honest, quality VW work. I bought a used 2001 Jetta that had the Service Engine light illuminated. The previous owner (original owner) told me he’d repeatedly tried getting it repaired, even at the dealership. Autoexcel was able to find and fix the problem and did it at a good price.
Also, there were multiple other issues with the car (none bad enough to keep it from safely operating). Boris reviewed each of them with me and offered his honest assessment of the value in completing each repair, considering the expense versus the age/​mileage and intended use of the vehicle. He gave his assessment then left the decision to me with no pressure.
I’ve spent two decades trying to find an expertly skilled and respectable auto service. I may start buying only VW now, just so I can take all of my vehicles to Autoexcel. Very refreshing to see an honest, hard working business. This is my first Unilocal review.

I’m somewhere in the middle with this garage, good guy and definitely knows his stuff just a bit expensive…
Pros:
definitely knows his stuff and all about cars, and is well qualified to look at your car
Will not undertake the work without asking you
Will review the work required and explain everything that needs doing and how much it will cost
Labor is reasonably priced
Helpful and very friendly
Cons:
Charged $ 100 just to diagnose the issue and price it up
Tries to sell you a non manufacturer upgraded gas pedal for better performance
In between:
Only uses manufacturer parts — Could be seen as a pro or con depending on your preference and the age of your car but for me manufacturer parts are just not worth it for the age of the car (Why pay 50% more for a part which will last 10 years instead of 5 when your car will probably only last 5 years more?!)

We loved working with Boris. During our 4 years in San Diego, Boris was the only guy allowed to touch our Audi! He is honest and reliable and tells you exactly what you need and what you don’t need done.
We have since learned the hard way that you can’t take your Audi to just anyone. We wish Boris was here to help us out in Florida too. In fact, when we moved here we called Boris to get his opinion on the work we had to get done and once again he gave us the exact information we needed. This guy knows what he’s talking about!

Boris knows Volkswagen’s. Brought my 04′ GTI in for a new O2 sensor (front). Boris knocked it out quick and for $ 130 less then the dealer wanted. He also gave me a ton of other great info. Any question I had, he had an answer for it.
This is my go to vw shop from now on.

My better half had to bring our 2008 VW Jetta 2.5 in for rear brakes, and was very impressed with the service and pricing he got from Boris. It’s a one man operation, but high quality and doesn’t try to rip you off.
As well as the good price and quality work, he was done sooner then he estimated to boot. We will be taking our car to him again in the future.

I now have 114,000 miles on my 2003 Jetta and Boris continues to be a great help.
He recently replaced both of my radiator fans and during the process, he noticed that a previous shop (see my other reviews on Unilocal to find out which one does such horrible work) had incorrectly installed my new radiator hoses. He came up with a solution that saved me from future problems without having to replace the entire hose again.
He also buys, repairs, and sells used VW cars. If you’re looking for a used VW, check him out — I’d feel much more assured buying a used car from him than someone on Craigslist or even a local dealer.

I tried Import Auto Specialists when I first arrived in San Diego. They charged me $ 750 to do some work to «fix» the engine light on my VW beetle.
The engine light came back on 2 weeks later for the same code and it also developed a coolant leak — don’t know if that was related to the earlier maintenance
Looking for someone better I searched Unilocal and came up with Autoexcel.
I called on Friday and Boris had some time to look at it. He did a careful inspection of the car. Found a couple of things that the import auto guys hadn’t noticed and gave me a quote that was almost exactly half what the import auto guys wanted to fix the leak.
He had time to fit it in that afternoon so he dropped me back to work (in his car) then fixed the beetle.
He finished the work when he said he would and picked me up from work (!!). When he picked it up he had cleared the engine code (for free — and explained that it probably wasn’t necessary to fix the cause) sorted out the low engine idle (for free) and done the work he had planned.
The car is running very well.
Best auto repair experience of my life, great guy.
He also showed me the components he had removed from the car and explained why.
His knowledge and enthusiasm for german cars really comes over.

spent an hour online reading reviews of places to take my wife’s 2001 beetle for service. Went with Boris at Autoexcel and it was worth the 20 minute drive. When I arrived I told him I needed to get an oil change and new brakes. Upon looking at the breaks he said they were ok and didn’t need changing, I told him about a «wobble» when breaking and he locked up his shop and Boris and I went for a test drive. He said it was the rotor, He let me watch the whole process until my short attention span gave in and then he showed me to the waiting room where I got to choose from several vhs movies to watch. I went with Black Rain a pretty awesome cop drama. Boris was great, very honest, very quick, and informative.

Took my VW there, Boris is as honest as they get. He gave me the lowdown on what was wrong, and what was going to go wrong in the future. He admitted that the car would run fine for a while with no repairs, which a dealership would never do. No frills shop, very knowledgeable, and honest, highly recommended.

Great experience. Honest & Affordable.
Highly recommended.