Old Volks Home

Our 1994 Jeta’s vacuum supply pump was not working correctly. The part alone is well over $ 250. When they looked at the car, the pump was functioning as it should. They could have easily taken my word and blindly replaced the part plus labor. This is why we made the trip from Bodega Bay (~150 miles). We trust them and their work. Thanks guys!

I recently purchased a 71 VW van and completed the deal in Santa Cruz. The seller told me of Old Volks Home. Before we completed the deal, there was some engine work that the seller was covering. The level of service from the initial contact with Librado was top drawer. I completed the purchase and then asked Librado to do some extra work. I like the fact it is a small shop and seems to put out some quality work and service as indicated by the posts. I like the shop!

feel these mechanics are genuine and real. I recently brought in my air cooled westy and Lee and his team were very friendly and honest, something I found is a hard thing to find in today’s mechanics. Lee has been working on these vehicles his whole life, and I feel strongly that he is truly an honest guy not trying to make as much money as possible off you (as I experienced before I brought my Van into Old Volks)

I have been taking my Jetta here for years. These guys are great. Wouldn’t go anywhere else. very friendly.

Until 10 years ago we were regular customers. Lots of repairs to our 71 Bus including a rebuilt engine. All seemed fine for many visits until…
Went to pick-​up and pay for a repair. Don’t remember the details. What I remember is that we had recently replaced (2 months prior) an old part with a new $ 300 part in the engine. When we were checking our bill before paying the parts list included another new $ 300 part. We asked what’s up with that? Tony told us the old part was worn-​out and he’d had to replace it. We KNEW it wasn’t warn-​out, so we asked to see the «old» part Tony removed and replaced. «Oh, I threw it away already. It’s gone.»
We are not confrontational people so we paid but as we were leaving my husband said to Tony. «That part was 2 months old. Sure would have been interesting to inspect it ourselves before you threw it away so completely that it is no longer in the building 6 hours after the repair. Your trash-​man comes much more regularly than ours does.» Tony was stone-​faced and didn’t say a word.
I’m looking for someone to work on my 2001 Eurovan and Tony came up as a possible choice so I wanted to tell this story now since Unilocal wasn’t around back in the day. We have always believed we re-​bought from Tony our own 2 month old part and he couldn’t produce an «old» part to prove us wrong.
Caveate Emptor. (Let the buyer beware.)

While on a short roadtrip, my ’73 Westfalia broke down on the freeway not too far from Old Volks Home. I called them up to see if they had the time to give it a look, hoping to have it fixed up and back on the road as soon as possible.
It only took about 30 minutes for the diagnostic: an electrical issue and a worn out old fuel line. I gave ‘em the go ahead and in an hour it was good to go and running like a champ! Pricing was absolutely reasonable, and service was excellent.
Thank you guys for saving my trip! :)

I would definitely recommend taking your older VW to see these guys. My ’99 Jetta was having issues starting and had loud rattle… Catalytic converter needed replacing. I thought it was having other issues and they said it may be a sensor or two so I had those replaced since they’re at least 13 years old They got everything fixed the next day. My bumper was also coming off on the passenger side, common problem since the splash guard is so low it gets caught on curbs when I park and almost rips the whole front bumper off when I leave a parking space. They did this minor body work without even being asked or saying anything! It had always bugged me and they took care of it. Reasonable prices, great service!

They fix air-​cooled VWs quickly, correctly, and reasonably. Truly, what else do you want from a shop? Librardo knows his stuff. This is the last true air-​cooled repair station around and we have to everything we can to insure they’re around for many more years to come.

My girlfriends New Beetle had a problem with its engine. I suggested that we go here because of the great reviews, and I figured it would be much cheaper than taking it to the dealer, as she usually did.
To be fair, the car was worked on relatively quickly, they identified the problem, it was an issue that had to do with spark plugs an their connectors, and fixed it. All in all it was a couple of hundred dollars for parts and labor.
Now, the one star come because of what we found out later. The problem was a recall. For another unrelated reason we went to the dealer a few months later and threw a random string of conversation we found out. The entire procedure should have been free.
I have taken my car many places, good honest mechanics and schemers alike, but I have never gone to a place that didn’t check the recall list before charging a customer so much money. It’s unacceptable and cost my girlfriend hundreds of dollars.
As someone who is not a mechanic and didn’t grow up under the hood of a car tinkering a way like some of my friends, I find that an honest and trustworthy mechanic who respects their customers concerns no matter how much they know about cars is essential. Sadly, we didn’t find that here.

Cheap Chinese, middle of the road Mexican, or Good ol German… Tony will install it all for a reasonable price in a timely manner.
I’m really glad Tony still works on the air-​cooled models, unlike that other shop that had to change their name although they were really good too.

Recently bought an old bug. Took my bug in to Tony. Now I’m a complete ditz when it comes time to mechanic stuff. Tony was great! He didn’t talk down to me, but explained what was what, and he even put together a list of what needs to be fixed & what its going to cost.
I will definitely be back soon to have more work done on it!

I usually do my own automotive work, but there have been times with my job or an upcoming vacation where I simply didn’t have the time to do it myself and went to Old Volks Home. These guys really know what they are doing, the owner has even helped me diagnose problems that I ended up fixing on my own. I had a brake pad crack and fall apart the afternoon before a vacation. I brought the car in and told him my story and he put everything aside to fix my car. If you’re low on cash, they will even install used parts or parts you bought at Kragen. Their prices are very good as well. Often times the final total comes in a bit less than what is posted on their «menu» (for lack of a better term).