Kontiki Motorcycles

The last time I took one of my bikes in, they broke the plastics pieces that cover the headset and claimed they were already broken (note: I know the pieces were fine because I had recently removed them and put them back on with no problem when changing the headlight bulb). I’m guessing that they either cross-​threaded or over-​tightened them and basically ruined both pieces. It seems like a fine place to go if you have an older bike that needs mechanical attention but I wouldn’t recommend bringing a newer bike here. Big disappointment.
Update: I took the bike somewhere else to get new tires and they noted that the oil level was too low and the battery needed to be replaced. Sloppy and lazy. I think I’ll revise my recommendation to avoid Kontiki all together… new bike or old.

Alex and his team did a fantastic job with my BMW r60/​6 when it got waterlogged. They spent numerous of hours working on draining out the water in almost every compartment and went extra mile in fine tuning my bike. It runs smoothly and better than when it was before I dropped off the bike. And the best part was that they didn’t overcharge me but mere three hours of labor. Kudos to Kontiki.

I took my 1989 Honda Elite Scooter for a fuel line leak and service maintenance. The owner, Alex and his team were fantastic. They assessed my scooter; were timely with their recommendation and quickly performed the maintenance. My scooter is running great. I used KonTiki 10 years ago when I lived in PB and now that I’m back, I will always entrust my scooter to Alex and Michael.

Love Alex & Mike. They worked on the jets for my restored RD400 and likely spent more time than they charged me for and dialed the bike in perfectly. Will definitely take he Yamaha & Street Triple to them for all service needs.

What a great dissapoinment! It being a local shop for me and a small mom and pop place I was really hoping it would deliver. Not even Close! Took my Harley in because it was running a little rough. Thought it might of been bad gas or maybe a short somewhere. They gave me a quote and I agreed and they started work. Then the phone calls started. With each call the problems just kept getting worse and the price kept getting higher. When all was said and done it ending up costing me more than tripple there original estimate. To boot they called me late on a friday and told me I had to come pick my bike right away bcause there was no room for it. So much for customer service. The next day when I took my bike on the freeway the problem still excisted. I paid over $ 400 of work and my Harley still ran like S#@T! From the freeway I took it straight to another shop. They drove me home and had my Harley running great for less than $ 100. Part of me thinks I should of brought the bike back to Kontiki until they got it right but, I know nothing good would of came out of it!

I was cruising down Garnet one day and saw this shop, and the letters KTM painted in the window. I talked to the mechanic Adam who said he was certified to some stuff on KTMs. I took in my 950 to get an oil change and they did a fine job of it, and were very reasonably priced! I can recommend for your basic «I am too lazy to take off my crash guards» service :-)
I like the vibe of the store, lots of interesting stuff to look at.

Brought my HD tire here to have it replaced. When I brought it to him he mentioned the tire might be hard to put on but that he could do the job. Not only could they not put it on they wanted to charge me $ 30. Brought it somewhere else and no problem and cost less.

They are always friendly and always willing to help! They do a great job and at a fair price. I am not sure why so many negative reviews, but from my experience, I will continue to take my Vespa here.

Recently my husband returned to the store due to difficulties with the CHP to register the Benly he had restored because the vin number was illegible. Alex was helpful and wrote up a bill of sale for the engine and offered the matching frame for sale if the vin could not be recovered off of the current frame.

I had a bad experience when I took my bike in for a tune up. After having them service it, I was having trouble with starting. I checked it out back at home, and noticed they FORGOT TO TIGHTEN DOWN THE BATTERY. In other words, they are negligent and careless.
I had a similarly negative experience at Fun Bikes Center.

I rarely write reviews because I’m too damn busy most of the time, but my recent experience at Kon Tiki inspired me to find my ancient login and passwork to Unilocal and let people know about this awesome business.
I have no idea where the few low reviews are coming from.
I took my DL650 VStrom in for a chain cleaning and lube and the guys had me in and out in 40 minutes. I just walked down the street, grabbed a coffee and checked email on my phone-​how many other motorcycle places can you do that?
Not only that, but the owner, Alex, took the time to walk me through my bike and introduce me to the San Diego dualsport scene-​where to find rides, online local resources, that sort of thing.
Next up, I needed a back tire replacement. Dropped the bike off at 3, was done by 4:30. The guys that work there and the owner are true motorcyclists and really care about the work that they put into the bikes. No pretension, no fluff and no b.s. Just honest work and great value. I highly recommend this place.

The only shop in San Diego I trust with my ride. Staff is always friendly and not just looking to sell you something like other bike shops.
Hourly rate is listed right on their website.
Best chance to get get work done is dropping your bike off during the week if you can. Like all bike shops they are super busy on Saturdays.

Excellent service, great work!
I heard good things about Kontiki and recently took my bike in for major tuneup – Alex and the crew were very knowledgeable and the work was done within the time estimated, for the price quoted.
I will definitely be bringing my bike back to Kontiki for future service, this is the best shop in town.

Good place for Vespa maintenance and repair (2003 ET2). I’ve been there twice and have had a great experience both times. First time I had them do a general oil change and tune up, and second time I had them change the drive belt and check out a carburetor problem that was making it run rough. Both times I was out of there in a couple days — much faster than the usual week or two from other places in PB. I’ll be going back again.

This is a good little shop.
They had to order the part for my bike, which took a couple days to come in, but otherwise these guys were really fast and friendly with everything. They called me when the part finally came in, I dropped off my bike, and an hour later they were calling me back again to say the bike was ready to pick-​up. It’s been running strong ever since.
Their prices seemed very reasonable. And the guys working there were definitely cool to talk to and they seemed to really know their sh*t.

Awesome moto mechanics.
I bought a 1996 Yamaha Virago and the front brake was locking up. I brought it to another shop off Miramar, spent $ 700 and they didn’t fix the problem…
So I took my bike to Kontiki and they fixed it for less than $ 50. Since then, I have gotten all my work done at Kontiki and have been extremely satisfied. They have worked on my bike 4 times over 2 years. Every time I went in they did the work right the first time and charged me a reasonable price.
It has been my experience that the gentleman that operate Kontiki are highly competent mechanics, stand up guys, and genuinely nice dudes. They are also, no doubt, legitimate café racer heads.

These guys ripped me off to the tune of $ 1,500. They had my bike for 3 months and 90% of what they did was half assed and had to be re-​done by someone who knew what they were doing. I posted this before but their little stonner buddies had it removed, look for this to be gone soon. AVOID!!!

My initial impressions were not good. You walk in to practically an empty store full of vintage motorcycle stuff. It looks like your uncle’s garage. To be honest, the first time I walked in and waited for service… I never got any. I left in a heartbeat.
However, because I live in PB, I wanted to give it another try. I called in for a quick service on my bike was able to drop it off that day and get it back the same day. Not only did they have a fairly quick turn around time, but afterwards he gave me some good tips as a new bike owner and ways to keep it running top notch. Although the initial customer service could be good, it is still a good place to go to get your bike serviced in the Pacific Beach area.

These guys rock!!! The owner Alex started out behind the counter at age 2 months. He was in the crib while his mother sold motorcycles in the front and his father repaired them in the back. There is probably nothing that Alex does not know about motorcycles. I have been bringing my bikes there for the past 20 years. They do a great job everytime.
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Stopped in with a friend but I also wanted to check these guys out.
Pretty small shop, looks a little unkempt, but the workers were really friendly and made me feel welcome.
Answered all my questions and my friends. Even recommended a good place that does good quality welding.
Not that many bikes for sale though. Worth a look, heard great things about their service and quality of work.