Subie Independent Service

Gavin Andrus

If you have a Subaru, do not hesitate to take your car to these guys. I have "mechanic phobia" from bad experiences in the past and this place has completely redeemed my faith. They did major engine work on my Outback and did a brake-job on my son's Forrester. Work was outstanding and the price was a fraction of what I was quoted at the rip-off dealer. I'll continue to make the trek out from Santa Monica to get my car serviced and repaired by these guys. Highly recommend.

Peter B. James

OWNERSHIP CHANGE. DO NOT RECOMMEND. I first started coming to Subie Independent back in 2014 when I bought an H6 Outback. Over the years I had a number of important fixes done here, including brakes, suspension, and transmission work. The shop had a reputation as being the kind of mechanics that tell it to you straight, don't upsell you work you don't need or didn't ask for, and were very reasonable in their pricing. In other words, the ideal solution for folks like me who despise dealerships. That is no longer the case. The former owner sold the shop, and the new owner has made it a dealership service department in all but name. I brought my car into have the A/C recharged and an engine oil leak addressed. I was shocked to receive a dealership-style "estimate" in my email detailing thousands more work than the car is worth. When I declined most of the work, and had only the essentials done, they tried to charge me an additional $150 "diagnostic fee" even though I was spending over $700 on work with them already. Only through much protest and argument did the owner agree to drop the fee. Nevermind that the prices quoted for various pieces of work were also much higher than previously would have been expected. I did receive a phone call from the owner, explaining various reasons WHY he made the changes to the business that he did, and I respect those choices as a business owner. But as a client, this business no longer offers me the value it once did, and I have taken my business elsewhere. P.S. The A/C recharge I had done was weak, never restored full cooling to the car, and lasted only a couple months. When I went to a different shop to have it checked, they were surprised that Subie had not used dye in their recharge to make any possible leaks easy to spot. As if I needed one more reason to recommend you go elsewhere. I hadn't posted this story out of respect, but this last bit was the final straw. UPDATE: Regarding the owner's response, I can only speak for what a different service provider told me regarding my A/C system and how it had previously been addressed. I had Subie fix it during a March heat wave, and by summer the system was barely cooling when set on max, when previously it would get very cold set to 72. I did not report the issue to Subie because I expected a painful process to get any resolution, and did not have the time to repeatedly drive out to North Hollywood for service that has now proven problematic. The owner is free to run his business how he wishes, and I wish him the best of luck. Perhaps in this world where people are buying $80k vehicles on 96-month loans, his business feels inexpensive relative to a dealership. But for those of us trying to keep making miles out of older vehicles, there are better options out there.

Perry Chamberlain

I took my Crosstrek in because the shocks and struts were failing and the bearings for the struts that were failing. they quickly replaced the struts and shocks and found out also that my lower control arms bushings were almost gone so they ordered those put them on the car had the car aligned and I picked it up and it drove like a new car amazing ride. They're my new go-to guys for all my Subarus no way I'm going back to the dealerships now they're pros they know their stuff All they work on is Subarus.

Sean G. Rosenstock

I brought my Forester here for its 60k maintenance because as we all know, unless you feel like hemorrhaging money it's best to avoid the dealer. Mark (the owner) runs a nice shop. Victor (technician) was friendly, honest and upfront about the service and what he recommended. He gave some choices in how to approach it and clearly made an effort to save me unnecessary services and charges. Additionally he was outstanding in communicating with me throughout the day...from a couple text messages in the morning with estimates, to a couple of phone calls in the afternoon regarding progress and expected completion time. Finally, when I came to pick up the car, Victor once again reviewed all the services performed with me before payment was made and made sure I was happy with the work. Nothing went over the estimate and though not inexpensive, the price was fair (and still much less than a dealership). The work done here is honest and the parts are what the factory uses. While I purchased an extended warranty obviously there are some things which simply won't be covered. And for those things I have found my go to shop. I will happily be returning here for my maintenance needs.