Celica Salon

Tommy, the owner of Celica Salon, is a very up front guy who runs a honest shop. I've known him for a long time, probably 30+ years, back when he was putting clutches in XKEs and rebuilding Spitfire transmissions in a shop in New Jersey. Nowadays, Tommy prefers working on Toyotas and other Japanese cars but will work on just about anything. I was in the auto parts business (for way too many years). I know the compentency and honesty of just about every shop in town (San Francisco) and Celica Salon is near the top of a very short list of repair shops I will recommend.

I found these guys on through this website and I love them! I have an '86 Celica and a less honest place could easily convince me that I need all sorts of stuff done to my car. Tommy recommeds repairs conservatively and his prices are fair. He also takes the time to explain his recommendations and will patiently answer any questions. When my radiator went, he fixed it quickly and even threw in a freebie, fixing the chewed up rims on my wheel wells. I highly recommend Celica Salon!

I lived in SF years ago, but now live in central Oregon. We were in town for a family Thanksgiving, and discovered apres Turkey that our 1997 Honda Accord would start but not stay running. Being from (way) out of town, I checked the Car Talk site for recommendations the next morning, and found these guys were relatively nearby. AAA towed us over to their garage following a failed attempt to get the car running by adding gas to the admittedly nearly empty tank. I had spoken with Tom, the owner, earlier in the morning to see about the possibility of having the car towed there if necessary. He was very friendly and reassuring on the phone. Within 30 minutes of getting to the garage, his mechanics couldn't find anything wrong, so they drove it over to the nearest gas station and put $5 worth in the tank, and drove it back. Turns out that AAA had put maybe a few ounces in the tank and pronounced the problem to be a fuel injection or fuel pump, or fuel filter, rather than lack of gas. But the car had been parked on a steep hill, and it seems that once it was level, it ran just fine. Bottom line, the garage could have easily convinced me that I needed a new (pick any of the preceding), and charged big bucks. Instead, Tom charged me only $25 for the diagnostic time and the gas. That's honesty. They win my vote for any future work needed on a Honda by my friends who still live in the City.

Tom and the guys at celica are the best mechanics you could hope for. They are always upfront and honest, and constantly looking for a way to save you money. They give great repairs and have never done me wrong. We're talking 15 years of great customer service...