Clinton’s Auto Service

They weren’t able to fix my issue. I have a major engine problem with my prius. They were honest in their diagnosis that I should take it to the dealer due to the scope of work. They didn’t charge me for any diagnostics.

This place is amazing. I had a great experience there and will recommend it to my friends. I took my SUV in that was overheating to have repaired. I dropped it off first thing in the morning when they opened and it was fix by 330pm that same day. I didn’t feel like I was getting screwed over. They were straight and to the point I felt like.

I have taken two of my cars to Clinton’s over the last 6 years. Paul, the person at the front desk, is fantastic. He always makes sure your concerns are addressed, gives accurate time and price estimates, and communicates in detail about what is going on with your car. He has never pressured me to buy additional services or products, but will let me know if the car is unsafe or in danger of getting worse if an issue isn’t addressed. The repair work has been top notch from the guys in the back, too. When I lived in NY for the last year and a half, I actually missed being able to take my car to Clinton’s reliable, trustworthy shop! I could not recommend Paul or his team higher.

I’m a UW student and had a hard time finding a place to take care of my car around the U-​District after driving up from California. I wanted to makes sure I was getting as much bang for my buck.
I went to Clinton’s after seeing several promising Unilocal reviews and I was not let down! They were very happy to schedule a service for the available times they had and after bringing it in, had my car ready after a safety check within 2 hours. It was quick, painless, and best of all, trustworthy. You could tell! I didn’t feel that I was taken for granted whatsoever, especially due to the fact you could tell I didn’t know a lot about car mechanics. Thanks Clinton’s Auto Service!
You are now my go-​to for any car troubles!

Hands down, Awesome place for auto repairs & oil changes! I have been a customer for the past 12 years, and have had –0– issues.
This is a family run establishment, you will always receive honest complete work, along with honest answers to questions for your vehicle.
As for a reply to Jen P giving this place only 2 Stars? Good luck, .You will NOT find a better place to have your vehicle worked on.

Dang. We’d been customers of Clinton’s for a few years and were fans until today, but have to downgrade our rating and look elsewhere for future repairs. :(We debated whether to write this review, but felt other customers can learn from our experience.
Moral of the story: Do your homework and get competitive bids before agreeing to have work done, even if you’re a regular.
We had our vehicle in at Clinton’s for a scheduled repair. While it was there, my husband got the dreaded «we’ve discovered another problem call.» Because we’d never had anything but good experiences at Clinton’s, he went ahead and agreed to the extra work.
When we got the car back I did some basic research and discovered the pricing on parts was excessive. We were charged $ 170 for parts that cost $ 96 online (same brand). Now, I appreciate that shops have to have a healthy mark-​up, especially in tough times, but paying 75% above *retail* is a problem. I called around and got bids from other mechanics, and their quotes for the parts averaged $ 106, with the same labor cost. If it had been a $ 20 difference I would have chalked it up to a premium for convenience, but a $ 60+ difference was too much.
I called Clinton’s to talk it through (I don’t believe in spamming a business through reviews for this kind of thing — if you’ve got a beef, talk to the business). Paul was unwavering on his pricing, saying he couldn’t get the parts as cheap as I’d found them. He also said if I had purchased the parts elsewhere and brought them in, he’d have charged a different labor rate. While he’s not the only one to do this, I prefer mechanics who charge parts as parts, and labor as labor. I have no problem with mark-​ups, just want transparency on what I’m paying.
To his credit, Paul addressed my questions head on. I genuinely don’t believe he was trying to intentionally scam us — thus the two stars instead of one — I just think his pricing sucked, and we found out too late. Do your homework.

I went here a couple days ago, they over charged for labor and recommended parts that my car didn’t need. They were friendly but they’re the typical car shop that likes to take advantage of customers who don’t know of or are unaware of their cars needs.

Good communication, ok prices, honest.

Paul Clinton has saved me thousands of dollars over the past 10 years of being my mechanic. He has taken excellent care of my prior ancient used car and now does the same for my new car. When I bought this car, Clinton’s noticed a subtle leak on my inspection — saving me approximately $ 2,500 in repair costs that the seller/​warranty covered prior to purchase (and that the dealarship admitted that they wouldn’t have mentioned «because it was so small» if Paul had not put it in writing in his report). This is by far the best auto repair shop I have ever been a customer of.

Good mechanics are so hard to find!
Clinton’s is a gem. They’ve only ever been honest with me, even when I’m willing to pay them way more than they charge me.
My 30,000 mile tune up went very well with no major problems and it was very reasonably priced.

Clinton’s rocks! I’m a single mom who works and goes to school, I don’t have time (or money) to play games with mechanics, or worry about whether or not they are being honest with me. I really love Clinton’s and I am so glad that I found this place. They clearly communicate what is going on with your car, they are honest, and they don’t push any unnecessary repairs on you. There have been a couple of times where my car was doing something weird and I took her in expecting the worst (because she is an oldy) and they discovered it was a really simple and cheap repair. Thank you Clinton’s! I highly recommend this place, five stars!

Clinton’s has been trustworthy for several repairs that I’ve brought into them. I’ve used them for both maintenance (oil change, etc) and bigger repairs (shocks, struts, suspension, etc). They’ve always been great, communicated prices, and I’ve had no problems.

We brought our car in to get an oil change and also mentioned that it had been making a high-​pitched whining noise which nobody else had been able to diagnose nevermind fix.
We picked up the car later that day to find that they had not only diagnosed the problem (low power steering fluid) but fixed the problem (topped the fluid off) and only charged us for the cost of the fluid. The total was $ 46 with tax including $ 37.50 for the oil change.
They were pleasant, treated us well and explained what was going on in plain English. This was hands-​down the best experience I’ve ever had with a car mechanic.

I joined Unilocal just so I could give Clinton’s an A+ rating, because I believe they deserve it. You won’t find an ounce of shadiness with them, nor will you feel like they are trying to sell you something you don’t need. I’ve found everything these former reviewers have said to be true.
Paul is friendly, direct, and honest, and I trust his recommendations. The mechanics’ work is professional, on time, and on budget. And rather than milk a friend of mine for money, as some less honest garages might do, Paul told her that, «though we will miss your business for a few years,» she should just find a new car rather than sink her money into further repairs for her clunker.
I’ve gone to Clinton’s for several years and have total trust in them. As a woman, I highly recommend them to other women who are wary about being ripped off — these guys won’t take advantage of you.

I had never been to Clinton’s before but was recommended by a friend. My car had no power and I had left nothing on overnight. I had it towed there and they called me later that day. He said he couldn’t find anything but a dead battery. The battery was good and holding a charge but could not find anything draining the power. He said for me to keep an eye on it and if it did it again we could do more tests and he charged up the battery. Now here’s the kicker. He said because he could not find anything wrong and was considering this a work in progress, he was not charging me anything! Can you believe it?! Who does that?! Only the best!
Super honest and friendly place. I will be giving them all my business and recommendations.

Big, big fan of Paul and the crew at Clinton’s. When I was first looking around for a mechanic, I asked a bunch of people – friends, gearheads, etc – and when three different people recommended this place, I thought I’d try it. One of the things I like best is that Paul explains clearly what the problem is, what the fix is, how much it will cost and when it will be done. He’s always been on budget and on time. I’ve never, ever felt they were «padding» the project in any way. A completely happy customer.

I’ve been taking my car here for 13 years, and have always been nothing but pleased. It’s a family run business, and Paul treats his customers like family. He takes after his dad Lee, who ran the shop before him. I have never felt ripped off here, and always trust them with my car. Highly recommended.