Specialty Motors

I made an account just to make this review. I’ll try not to put in too much opinion or use too much conjecture, I think the facts speak for themselves.
Recently my car broke down at a stop light. It stalled out and wouldn’t start back up, gave no response to turning the key, etc, which to me implied that there was an electrical problem. The tow company recommended Specialty Motors for their honesty and their proximity, so that’s where I took it.
When I got there, the guy at the desk agreed with my initial assessment that the issue was probably electrical, and told me they’d take a look at it as soon as possible. Sounds good to me. I waited over the weekend for the call, and on Monday when it came I was informed that the alternator had gone bad and fried the battery, which meant that they both needed to be replaced. In addition I was apparently also due for an oil change and a new air filter, meaning the bill would be in excess of $ 600. At the time I wasn’t able to afford that, so I told them to wait to do the work for a week and a half when my next paycheck comes in.
Fast forward a week, I’m speaking with my sister on the phone and she informs me that her husband can help me replace the alternator, he’s done it before a number of times. Great! So the next day I call up Specialty, inform them that I won’t need the work done. The next day (Wednesday) I go over there, pay the diagnostic fee, and have it towed home. On Saturday my BiL comes over to help fix it, and we spend a great deal of time disassembling the front end. When finally we get the alternator out we take it and the battery over to O’reilly’s and ask for replacements for each. The clerk responds that he needs to order a new alternator, but why don’t we go test the one I brought in, just in case. At this point It had never entered my mind to question the accuracy of the diagnostic I had received due to the recommendation of the tow company, so I was about to decline when my BiL pipes up that it couldn’t hurt, to which I could not disagree.
Imagine my surprise when my alternator passed the test. It was totally fine. I was about to be charged over $ 500 to replace a completely functional alternator. so we bought a new battery and left.
It wasn’t until the next Wednesday that we got everything all the way back together, due to a need to borrow a tool to get the serpentine belt in place. We put in the new battery, and it started up just fine. Also, we checked the oil, and it was fine.
Now, I am not quick to pass judgement, so I decided to drive it for a few weeks before sharing this story with the internet. I wanted to make sure that my car was totally fine before I leave a bad review. My car still works. My alternator is fine. Now, I am glad I narrowly avoided paying a large sum of money for services I didn’t need, but I am also rather annoyed that I had to go three weeks without a car, causing great inconvenience to my wife and I, when all I needed was my battery to be replaced, something I could have done myself in under an hour.
TL;DR: My experience with Specialty Motors has left me with indisputable proof that they are either dishonest or incompetent.

These guys have done a great job with my 1968 Datsun 520 pick up. They’ve been patient and resourceful as I’ve tried to source parts that are nearly impossible to find. Their labor rates are reasonable and are very efficient. I highly recommend this shop. Talk to Dustin, he’ll give it to you straight.

Seriously the only place to go in Seattle for all your automotive concerns from A-​Z. As a longtime Seattle resident who comes from a family with mechanics in it, I can honestly tell you that this is the #1 place to go for quality, fast, affordable, friendly and professional service. They treat you like family here! It’s truly a gem, and Dean is the best — so experienced, professional, and knowledgeable. So lucky to have them here in the city!!!

I badly needed an alignment for my car, so I took it to Les Schwab. They told me I could not get an alignment because my inner tie rod and both control arms needed to be replaced. I called a mechanic for a quote, which they said would be upwards of $ 1600. I took it to another mechanic, who told me that not only did I need to replace my inner tie rod, but pretty much the whole steering system in my car needed to be replaced. He said $ 1600 would be reasonable, considering they would have to take out the engine in my car to replace the steering components. Neither mechanic told me why my steering was badly worn. I called another mechanic, who said to just look at it would cost me $ 100. Ridiculous.
Then I found Specialty Motors. I got an appointment the next day, when they looked at my car for 10 minutes or so, and said my inner tie rod needed to be replaced, but everything else in my car was fine. He also explained that my valve cover gaskets are leaking oil, which is why my inner tie rod needed to be replaced. Less than 4 hours and $ 300 later, Special Motors had my car running perfectly by replacing my inner tie rod and completing my alignment.
I’ve gone 5 years now of car ownership in Seattle without finding an honest, reliable, and knowledgeable mechanic. I am so glad I found Special Motors, who not only fixed my car, but told me why the problem existed. I will be returning to Specialty Motors for all my car needs.
Thanks for listening!

I just started taking my car here and it’s never run better. I mean literally, it has never in the 10 years I’ve owned my ’91 Integra, run this well. And that’s with 287,000 miles on it.
Most shops I go to are pushy and make me feel like I have to get a bunch of work done on my car that doesn’t really need doing. These guys are quick, fair and explain everything in terms I can understand (I’m not much of a car guy).
I love these guys!

I had to create an account just to review these guys. Specialty used to be great, but now they’re not. They’re so not great anymore that their head mechanic left, he being the reason for all the great reviews.
My car’s turbo was in a bad state and I was told by another mechanic, that didn’t work on turbo engines, that I needed to have it inspected, STAT. When I called Specialty, I asked if they knew turbo engines and the man on the phone very excitedly told me yes. I dropped off my car that night, writing paragraphs of info as to what I’d been experiencing, one of which being some odd noises that I was told by the previous mechanic were related to the turbo problem. Specialty called me the next day to tell me that they couldn’t recreate the noises, «but the rest of the car was in great shape!»
Frustrated, I picked up my car the next day, paying the $ 80 labor fee to inspect my engine. As I drove away from the shop, the odd noises that they couldn’t recreate started again, intermittently all the way home. Obviously, they do not do test drives as part of their service. When I left my house a few hours later, the turbo blew. I found another mechanic to look at my car, and lo and behold: the turbo needed to be replaced ($ 2400), the CABS were worn torn ($ 300), there was a leak at the power steering ($ 420), and the valve cover gasket and tensioner gasket needed to be replaced ($ 500). After tax and waste disposal, $ 4000.
Obviously, my car was not in «great shape!»
I called Specialty to ask if they would be willing to refund me that labor cost, but they have yet to return my call.
Save your time and your money. Go somewhere else. Also, their website SUCKS.

I’ve been taking my car (now cars) to Specialty Motors for years now after a recommendation from another person. They’ve always been helpful and informative and done such a great job that I’d never trust taking my car anywhere else.
I’ve moved around Seattle for a while and even when the shop isn’t convenient to get to I’ll still make the drive. It’s always done faster than I expected, and their costs are so reasonable and Dustin, the manager, has never tried to get me to get something repaired that doesn’t need it yet like so many other shops do. That I’m pretty sure I’d feel cheated going anywhere else.

We live in Downtown Seattle, so the location isn’t very convenient to us but Specialty Motors came so highly recommended that we decided to go there. Boy am I glad I did! They were fair, honest and most importantly got the job done quickly and efficiently! What I really appreciated is they took the time to explain what they fixed and how they fixed it. I will definitely go back!

Honest first rate work at a reasonable price. Dustin and Dean run an upstanding shop. What more can you ask for. And no I am not related to anyone who works there. I just take my Eurovan there and my mother-​in-​law takes her bug there for over 30 years.

I LOVE Dean. He has taken care of me for over 20 years. I am driving my 4^th VW bus. He is honest, kind and professional. I only wish his shop was closer to where I am now living. The only issue I’ve ever had in over 20 years is some scheduling issues but other then that, I’d trust Dean with my children! –Boo

I took my piece of junk Mercedes ML320 there when I had it and they took good care of me. As a woman, I am always leery of being taken advantage of but the guy who was working was great and made me feel comfortable. I have a new Nissan and I had been taking it to the dealership but they take sooo long and never cracked a smile at me so I decided why not take it back to my friendly neighborhood mechanic and have them do the oil change for me, they even order me an air filter and told me to come back when my schedule allowed it and they popped right in for me! Thanks guys for your promptness and nice smiles!

Very good mechanics that are both friendly and knowledgeable. I felt like they wanted to help me out not just take my money. The professional prompt service and personable attitudes makes this a great place to get a fix.