Backlick Road Service Station (Annandale, VA) Mechanic(s): Mr. Kim, John
4715 Backlick Road , Annandale, VA 22003 (703) 941-9848
Features and Specialties:

Please send us any corrections or additions to the above information. If you have experience with this shop, please add your own review!

Survey results:

They are always honest
They are competent
The repair price is always reasonable
They fix the problem the first time
They complete the work in a timely manner
They respond well when they screw something up
They take the time to explain the problems and necessary repairs
The shop is located in a safe neighborhood
The hours of operation are convenient for customers
They treat male and female customers in the same manner
They are near public transportation (or provide loaners, shuttle bus, rides as needed)

Reviewers Comments:

These guys are great. Honest, competent, and reasonably priced. So honest, they fixed an expesive oil seal leak that they claimed they were likely responsible for when replacing my timing belt months earlier. I never mentioned the previous work when I brough the car in for the leak - they determined it completely on their own researching my service history. They could have easily charged me hundreds to fix the problem and I would have never known. I will never take my Toyota or Hyundai anywhere else.

I would only be repeating what others have said: This is a first rate, quality shop. Mr. Kim runs an efficient opperation and has had some of the same mechanics for the 15 years I have been taking my cars to him. He will work on anything Japenese or Korean, but don't be afraid to have him look at your Ameerican car. He always gives good references. Top Notch. If you live ANYWHERE close, don't take your car anywhere else.

ALWAYS REPAIRED TO PERFECTION. ONCE, MR. KIM REPAIRED MY HEADLIGHT WIRING. 2 1/2 YEARS LATER IT NEEDED IT AGAIN. HE LOOKED UP IN HIS FILES THAT HE HAD DONE THIS REPAIR BEFORE, AND FIXED IT FOR NOTHING ! 2 1/2 YEARS LATER ! HONESTLY TELLS WHAT MUST BE FIXED AND WHAT CAN BE DELAYED.

Mr. Kim's is GREAT! I have taken my Toyota and Honda there. Very honest and reliable, especially when they told me it was time to sell the Toyota, and when they didn't replace the timing belt, even though I thought it needed it. Could have taken me for over a thousand dollars, but acted in MY best interest. John is great...

I have taken my 97 honda accord to Backlick for a couple years now based on reviews I found on this site. They have performed maintenace work as well as minor repairs and each time, I have walked away impressed and greatly satisfied with their work. As other reviewers have pointed out, they are extremely honest, very good about explaining the work performed, and very fair in pricing. Two things that I think really sets them apart (aside from their honesty) is that they will tell you in detail what services you don't need--or at least can wait a while, and they never take more than a day to finish the work. They have thoroughly earned my trust, and I make sure my girlfriend takes her car there for her auto needs and, today, my sister became a customer of theirs as well with her camry. Kudos to John and the rest of the staff-- you will always have my business!

Go here. That is all I can say. What is better than being able to drop your car off and not have any worries. If it is going to cost a lot, they'll tell ya. If it doesn't have to but they could get away with doing the work, they will tell you that it doesn't need to be done. Their work is fast, and all the mechanics are friendly. I have always worked with John, and he has never left me feeling at all in doubt. I can't say enough. If you have a Japanese car, your search should stop here.

I had a strange (at least to me) problem. On rare occasions my '91 Subaru would not start. This could happen anytime. The first time it happened was this past Feb. I got it running by happenstance and took it to my usual repairman. He thought it might be the starter solenoid but while he had it, it turned over on the first crank. He said leave it until it dies, then have it towed in and I'll try to find the problem. A few days ago it died. Since I had relocated, I looked at the Car Talk web site and found Mr. Kim. When I gave the tow truck driver the address. He said, "So you're taking your car to Mr. Kim. He has a good reputation." Well he deserves it! It turned out to be a simple repair and I had the car back the next afternoon. I intend to use Mr. Kim for all future work on my two Japanese made cars.

Great service! The hose to my fuel filter was loose and so I had a fuel leak. They could have told me they needed to replace the hose but instead just tightened it for free. I'm taking my car there from now on.

I took my Camry to two Toyota dealerships and after two weeks of trying to fix my car they both Failed!!! They said they could not correct the problem .. I read on your site about Mr. Kim and John and gave them a try..John found the problem,a burnt coil.. Now it runs great!! By the way I have driving for 40 Years and these guys are the best I have seen!! Thanks fellows...

These people are incredible...honest, economical and competent. They only work on Japanese cars, so my husband said he's going to take the Jaguar logos off his car and see if they will work on his car, too.

They always call and tell me what and why they are going to do and how much it will cost before they do anything. They also will tell me if I really need something done, or if I can waite. I trust them not to do expensive work that is not needed and to do it right. They also have fixed problems for free when they did work on it before that needed follow up. They are also always polite, patient, and willing to work with my crazy schedule.

When my car was dying, they went to extraodinary lengths to keep it on the road, charging my very little (if anything) for my repeated visits. I value honesty--they have told me I don't eed services that other shops (like the place I get my oil changed) insist I need. As a woman, I like to be treated as if I know something about cars--they do--they always explain, yet are not condescending.

These guys are Rock Stars! They did an excellent job and did it for less than what they originally quoted me. I would highly recommend them to anyone!

I go there for gas weekly, one day my dog locked me out of my car. They helped me out without any problem. Great guys, I', going to buy a Toyota next so I can have them work on my car.

Two experiences with these folks: First, I had been driving my father-in-law's 1985 Honda Prelude for a month while my wife and I were looking for a new car. When finished, I wanted to leave the car with him as good -- if not better -- condition than we we got it [for an '85 with 117 k miles, is an EXCELLENT car, by the way]. I took it in, and they gave it a thorough going over. Recommended only the replacement of the head gasket, which they said was leaking, and some belts. Other than that, nothing. And with a car that old, they could have 'found' much. Second, I was considering buying a certain used 2000 Camry. Took it to them for a thorough going over -- costs 40 bucks. They found many, many little problems with the car. They were very thorough, explained with a drawing/diagram in detail the various problems, which varied from a bad strut tower to glazed rear brake pads. One more salient point -- I went to the place after searching on the Car Talk site for a good mechanic close to me. They could not have been better. I plan to use them in relative perpetuity. Joe McCain Fairfax, VA

These guys are good. For months, I've been having a problem with my 1987 Honda Accord. It wouldn't restart while the engine was warm. Over the course of a month, I took it to four highly recommended repair garages (a couple were Honda specialists). But none could tell me definitively what the problem was. They each, however, suggested it might be the fuel pump. An expensive repair. But they weren't sure. Finally, I took it to Backlick, which is out of the way for me: an hour and a half by subway and bus. And within a day they figured out the problem. A temperature water sensor, at one-fifth what a fuel pump would have cost. Like I said, these guys are good. I didn't have to wait days for an appointment (I called in the afternoon, and took it to them the very next morning). They worked on it the very day I dropped it off. I don't know how they are with cars other than 1987 Honda Accords, but I'd still recommend them.

Had my 1989 Honda Civic Si (170K miles) towed in there last week after the Check Engine light came on and it started running REALLY badly. Within an hour they'd called me to say that they figured it was the distributor but wanted to check some more. Turned out to be the distributor and they gave me a price right then on the phone. They had it done by the end of the day, but they called to tell me that after doing a tune-up that the engine was hesitating slightly on deceleration and wanted to look at it more. They were concerned about deceleration?!? Fine with me that they look at it. Had it done the next morning and turned out to be cheaper than I'd expected. What a great bunch of mechanics! By the way, I had the car towed there because I found them on this site and they said they could take it when I called them. When I got there, they had all kinds of cars being worked on. Doesn't look like much of a shop, but they do GREAT work.

I picked this shop because of the earlier comments on this web site, and the comments are all true! What impressed me most is that the mechanic called me to explain everything that wasn't perfect with my car, but did NOT try to sell me additional repairs. For example, they told me I had a little hole in my radiator, but that I didn't need to fix it, but "just keep an eye on it,FYI." This hole has been there five years...and most other shops I've had my car to, if they've noticed the hole, have tried to convince me that I need to buy an entire new radiator. This shop is HONEST, and they take the time to explain everything, even to the automotive-challenged. I'll be returning for sure.

My wife had to take our 2000 Toyota Solara convertible to the Toyota dealership for a CD-player replacement (under warranty), as the next day we were heading out on a longish road trip. As we have the last couple times, we asked the dealership to check our brakes...each time before they had been very honest and told us though we didn't need brakes then, more than liekly we would in the near future. Well, the near future arrived two weeks ago. Though we weren't surprised by the suggestion we get new brakes, we were stunned by the cost: $270+ to regrind the rotors and put new pads on the rear. Remembering this station's great reviews on this website, I called them that morning and asked what sort of estimate they would give for such a job: the polite gentleman told me $130-$170. So I thought, what the heck? The ship told me that as long as my wife could get the car there by 2:30, they could do the job that day. My wife brought the car to them after her meeting and, true to their word, the job took a little under two hours and we had the car ready to go for our roadtrip...and the final cost was $137, only $7 above the LOW SIDE of the original estimate. Additionally, our car has a couple odd rattles we hoped they could fix...the dealership had told us it would be $70 just for them to test drive the car to find the rattles (whose location my wife had already pointed out to them). When she told Backlick about this, the guy laughed and said, "Um, we don't charge to test drive your car." Once we have time to take the car back to them FOR ANYTHING, you can bet we will! Thanks, guys! Oh, I forgot to mention, the staff of the shop were also very polite and treated my wife like the intelligent woman she is, not like the clueless dupe so many car shops seem to believe women to be!

My 1993 Toyota Camry died at a stoplight in Arlington when I was making a road trip. I found the shop on this website, and I think their good reputation is pretty well deserved. They took my car that day and the car was finished the next evening with a much lower repair bill than I expected. For once, I did not feel as if I had been ripped off just because I'm a woman and an out-of-towner on top of that. I would use this mechanic again.

I had a harness wiring problem (frayed wires shorting out, battery drained, etc.) that no one, including the Toyota dealership, Lustine Toyota in Woodbridge, could be troubled with to find or fix. I hate it when repair people just shrug their shoulders! I have a 1989 Toyata Camry LE. It had been an intermittent electrical problem, but finally, it became a full time problem. My favorite garage near my work even threw up their hands...I was disappointed again. Then the state inspection notice came in the mail!! Panic time... This is my kids' car now. I needed it to be safe. I did not have tailights, guage lights, courtesy lights, radio, or dome light. The guys at Backlick couldn't have known how long its been a problem and how many things I have tried to do to fix it. (I am certainly nothing close to a mechanic, just a tinkerer at best.) Then my wife saw their garage listed on this site. I had nothing to lose, but some money and a long commute running up I-95 without tail lights...in the rain! But, we made it...and it turned out that they charged a reasonable amount ($100)to find it and fix it. No sweat. All they said was that they had to check the wiring harness for the beginning and end points where the wires were causing a short and look in between that area. No big deal! All in a day's work. Again, they have no idea how frustrated I was. And, they could have "fleeced me" but they didn't. (I assume I didn't get ripped off...it certainly didn't feel like it after all this time.) They even checked out all the stuff I will need to pass the safety inspection - tire wear, brakes, etc. So, I am definitely going back. Too bad they (and regular neighborhood garages) cannot afford to be an inspection station in the state of Virginia anymore. I understand it is too costly now, but I was ready to celebrate that I could finally take off my state safety sticker from 3/02. Now I've got to wait in line locally on Saturday for a couple of hours to get the inspection due soon. That is a the biggest pain about all this now! Anyway, thanks, you guys at Backlick, but don't let all this go to your head, OK? I may need to count on you again.

Based on recommendations from this website, I decided to get my husband to take his 1996 Saturn there for a thorough check up since we are planning on taking a long trip in the car. They replaced his front brakes and turned the rotors for less than half of what the dealer wanted to charge me on my Toyota. The experience was pretty good, but nothing to write home about other than the exceptional price. Well, a day later my husband is taking our daughter to daycare and when he gets in the car to start it, it won't start. I come from work and we try to jump the car and it doesn't start. We call Backlick Service Station and they drive to where we are and jump his car. He then goes back to the garage where they tried to figure out what could have been wrong, including replacing the battery and fixing a broken brake light. They then decide the contacts were loose, possibly due to them checking the car out, and clean the contacts and tighten them back up. They put the old battery back in because it was fine, and send my husband off without charging for anything. I will be bringing my Toyota in soon for an overdue checkup, now that we've found a garage run by such good honest people.

These gents need more work ....they always seem to be able to get one of my four Subarus in the same or next day.....I highly recommend them. There were times that I thought the problem was much worse and expected a big bill and told them so. They found the problems minor and the repair costs were wonderfully low. The place is small and not at all pretty, but the work is good....can't (or at least shouldn't) ask for more.

I recently came from out of town to purchase a car in the DC area, with my brother's help. We found Backlick Road Service Station on cartalk.com, and I ended up taking three Hondas to them for pre-purchase inspections. John was unbelievable - he explained things to me in a very patient manner, and I was allowed to physically see the problem areas on some cars. As a 25 year old female purchasing my first car ever, I could really trust John and the mechanics there. I would recommend them without hesitation!!!

Although it takes a subway ride and a bus to get out there (or back after you've left your car), and is about 20 miles from my house, I will NEVER go to another mechanic. First of all, they saved me FOUR HUNDRED DOLLARS from what my dealer was trying to charge me for the 30k service on my Subaru WRX. Then, when they finished the job, they called me up to let me know that my brakes had about 5k miles left on them, and if I liked, they would do the brakes as well. They could have lied to me (especially since I'm a woman) and told me that my brakes were shot and needed to be replaced right away. I greatly appreciate their honesty and value. I VERY HIGHLY recommend them.

I have been a customer of the Backlick Road Station since 1981. I have had them work on 4 different Toyota Land Cruisers (including a 1975 FJ40), Corollas, Camry's and an Avalon. I trust their work completely and have had no problems. Note: they do not do state safety inspections or state emmisions inspections.

Well, being totally car ignorant, I relied on Car Talk to find a good mechanic in NOVA when I moved here. Well, we've had GREAT experiences at Backlick. Being car ignorant, I can't really go into detail about how they fixed my car or saved me money, but I do know that everytime I bought my old clunker in there, they tried to save me money by telling me not to fix x,y,z, because of a, b,c. Wow, which mechanic tells you not to spend more money at their shop. But more importantly, after they fixed the problem, the car ran great. At the most important tell- tale sign that I can see, being car ignorant that I am (have you gotten that point yet?), my fiancee who is a car savvy person, one of those guys who used to fixed his college clunker, and one who still changes oil and stuff himself, brings the car to Backlick after I told him how great it is. The garage usually talk to me first, and if my fiancee has any questions to grill them, they usually stick to their story, and can explain all the comings and goings. I would say that if you are a single female driver who needs a good shop, go to Backlick. Tell John I sent you--I'm the owner of the 92 white pathfinder.

They were great- laid it all out in plain speak and I did not feel patronized being a young female. I will take my car back here eventhough it is out of the way for me. I have recommend it to friends with subarus too.

Bill Kim and his shop are the best! Super flexible and very honest. It turns out I didn't need the work done that I thought I did, they kept my car two hours, and only charged me $2.50 to replace a tail light bulb. Plus his wife gave me a ride back to the shop from the local coffee house. I will go there all the time now! It's definitely worth the 25 minute drive from NW DC.

Found them on this site. I called around for the best prices. They gave me the best deal. They also knew what they were talking about. I highly recommend them.

5 Stars for the Backlick Road Service Station! I was sure I needed new rotors on the rear of my AWD Subaru as there was vibration during braking, and the front rotors had already been replaced (by another shop that charged me way too much). I ignored the vibration because I was angry that the front brake job hadn't solved the problem, but when the rear brakes started to make noise, I sought the counsel of the MechanXfiles and found Mr. Bill Kim. Halfway into doing the job, Mr. Kim called me on my cell phone and told me he really didn't think I needed new rotors as there was plenty of metal left and turning them should work just fine. He was right, and he saved me $100 which he could easily have charged me. All told, the repair was less than 40% of the quote from Midas. Mr. Kim is my Main Man mechanic from now on!

Will go to Backlick from now on. I got a price quote for 2 wheel bearing replacements for my 2000 Subaru Legacy and Tiresplus in Merrifield quoted me $900 for both. I decided to call the local Subaru dealership and they quoted me $700 for replacement of both bearings. I found Backlick on a subaru forum and gave them a call for a quote. They gave me an outstanding price of around $425. If I only knew about they earlier in the day I could have saved $275 dollars and gone to a place that actually services Subarus.

I don't use anyone else for Mazda or Honda, period. John or Bill are always willing to take the time and answer all questions. The price is fair but a great value considering the service you receive. They are closed on weekends but I think it makes them happier people.

They're one of the most honest auto repair places I've been to here in Virginia. It took me 5 years to find them!

Took my son's 95 Toyota Avalon which he had bought used a few weeks earlier. It had several specific problems; which they put right at what I consider a very reasonable price. In addition, there was a problem with the a/c, (but which was difficult to diagnose because it occurred on a sporatic basis). After I didn't hear from them for a couple of days, I called them. John explained they were running the car every hour or so; hoping the problem would manifest itself while they had the car. However, the problem had failed to reoccur. John described what he thought was probably the source of the problem; but recommended against any repair unless the problem happened again. A less honest shop could have recommended the work be done immediately--for big bucks. And--they didn't charge for the prolonged testing, which included an hour test-drive, trying to get the a/c to fail.

These guys are awesome. If there's nothing wrong with your car, they won't charge you. If there is, they'll call and let you know specifically what it is, how much (always overestimated) it'll cost and what the problem means. I live 50 miles away and take the train to work, but I'll drive up (if my car will make it) just to take my car to them.

I've used Backlick Rd. Service Station (BRSS) a number of times, and I've been very pleased every time. I found them through this site (had used Pham's, found on this site too, in Arlington before moving to Springfield). The staff take a great deal of time explaining the problems with my '96 Integra, and the price is great. As others have mentioned, they're also great at telling me what must be fixed and what can be put off safely. I brought my car in over a year ago for some maintenance, and they found that my clutch slave/master cylinders were having problems. They replaced both. When that didn't resolve the problems I was having (car revving after shifting when it shouldn't have), I brought it back. They recommended I not drive the car and offered the mechanic's car as a loaner while they fixed the problem. Problem fixed with no charge (something hadn't been adequately wrenched when the job was done). The mechanic's car was fine, and I got to and from work just fine. Can't recommend them highly enough! If you work in Tysons, the Fairfax Connector 401 bus will get you from BRSS to Tysons and back via Gallows.

The only guys I'd take my 92 Toyota Corolla to ... getting ready to take a 2004 Honda Pilot in just for an oil change and to see if they can diagnose a problem the dealer's iffy on. Can't recommend these guys enough, great shop.

I took my 2001 Toyota minivan to them to get my power door lock fixed. The Toyota dealerships in the area wouldn't quote me a price to fix my car telling me I had to bring it in so they could take a look. (Yes, I'm female). These guys gave me a full price estimate over the phone telling me there were only 3 possible things that could've been wrong and then fixed it within their price quote. At the last minute I remembered that my tail light bulb was out and asked them to fix that as well. The dealers would have reemed me for adding something else, these guys fixed it within their original quote. I'll be bringing all my cars here.

I've been going to BackLick ever since I discovered them on CarTalk website about 5 years ago. And so my stories pile up. My favorite one is that I took a year-old 2001 Camry I was considering buying for a look-over, and after a half hour or so, the senior Mr. Kim came out, looked at me quizzically, and asked 'Where you get this car?" I told him from an immigrant from Iran who specializes in buying cars at various auctions and selling them at a $500 mark- up, straight deal. Mr. Kim said 'I got same car. This car better then my car!" They keep still better than Mr. Kim's car. Also, they have a dog, a big German Shepherd that looks like he could eat through a Cyclone fence. In reality he's got the ferocity of the average kitten.

My wife and I have dealt with this shop for 20 years. They are honest, honerable, and have very qualified technicians. The managers take time to explain the problem and try their best to approach the solution the least expensive way to save the customer money. They only use original equipment parts(Toyota, Honda, etc.) unless the car is old and then after-market parts are used with your knowledge.

Knowledgeable and competent. Check Engine light came on and another repair shop seemed baffled by the diagnostic readout. Backlick Road Service identified the issue immediately and correctly estimated the same issue was causing two other malfunction codes determined by the diagnostic check. I'll go back again for any future repairs or services.

We have been taking our cars to Mr. Kim and his son for over 20 years and have the highest regard for the quality and thoughtfulness of the his work. As an example we'll always remember, the first time we took our well worn, but badly needed, Tercel to the shop, to help us keep the cost down Mr. Kim said he would find a used part in good condition to get us up and running. He said "no sense putting a new part on an old car". I tell everyone about all the diplomas he has mounted on his walls of the office - wonderful tributes to him.

Mr Kim and his staff are great. They never do unecessary work and are always quick and efficient. They used to have a great dog there too who made it feel very homey, but sadly he died recently. I'll always recommend this garage to my local friends.

I have referred by one my friends about this service station and took my 99 Honda accord to this shop. My car was giving starting problem and I checked with some other shop where I used to take my car every time, and they said it will cost me around $470 to replace with a new Honda starter and labor. When I checked with this service station, they said it will coat me $380 including labor and parts. YES, like other guys mentioned, they are good, genuine and tell the reasonable price. I also got a good service while waiting for my car to be fixed. I will definitely take my car in future to this service station and also recommend others.

I have a 1997 Honda Accord with 160,000 miles on it. They have done some major repairs in the last year to keep this car running for my daughter. They are friendly, competent and do only the required work, all at a fair price. Highly recommended.

Repairman Bill was very honest. What was thought to be a faulty alternator turned out to be a corroded battery wire connection. We had the bad tested and recharged at one place. We had our AAA tow/mechanic test the system and he couldn't find the problem, but his gauge indicated wacky numbers...so it must be the alternator. We had it towed to Backlick Road Service Station, and the next day after answering a few questions, they performed a bunch of tests. They did they discover that the wire connection had corrosion. The corrosion was hidden from view inside the terminal connection and I even tried to clean it up to test it (everyone knows that is the first thing to check), but Subaru has this weird terminal connector that doesn't let you see the actual copper of the battery wires. Long story short, they fixed our car and only charged us $20. These guys are awesome.

Bill is a great mechanic and a small business owner. My understanding is that his dad started the garage, but these days I see Bill and his wife, Donna. They are personable, professional, and very efficient. I've been with them for 6+ years. My fiancee is a car nut (who used to fix his own car), and he likes their work, too. I've moved to DC but still bring my car to Backlick garage, because they are that good.

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