Skf Automotive

I trust Ray enough to sign the title of my car over to him so he could sell it for me while I was moving. Honest and reliable, knows what he's doing

For almost 12 years, SKF took care of my two cars, first a Honda Civic and then a Honda Accord. They are honest, sometimes quite frank, do great work, offer their opinions on whether or not performing certain work is really needed at the current time, and their prices are extraordinarily reasonable. As a woman I was always felt vulnerable with mechanics PRIOR to going to SKF. After going there, I knew I could trust them, and that my older, high mileage, cars would likely not break down and leave me stranded (they never did). What a tremendous sense of confidence and freedom. When I lived in CT, I would have traveled anywhere in the state to take my car to them. If I hadn't moved all the way across the country to Washington state, I would still take my car there. I hope to find someone just as good here in the Seattle area, but I don't know if it's possible to get that lucky twice in a row. SKF RULES ! ! ! Lora

I've been going to Ray for more than 10 years, and I've also sent my wife, my brother, the maid of honor at my wedding, and the guy in the next office at work. Sometimes the work has taken longer than expected, but if he can't finish the work by the time you need the car he'll put it back into driveable condition so you use it until your part arrives or his calendar allows. When you show up to get your car, Ray pulls out the old parts he replaced for you, showing you just what the problem was. Sometimes he gives more detailed explanations with the help of diagrams so that you don't run into the same problem again. I once brought in a geriatric car that he'd worked on for several years and he called me and told me to drive it to a junkyard, that he could fix it but the car wasn't worth the money I'd give him for the repairs. A few small annoyances - he closes shop by about 4:30, which makes it really inconvenient to pick up the car at the end of the day. The neighborhood really sucks - you won't get mugged, but you might need antidepressants when you leave, the shop is inconvenient to any major employer in the city other than the med school, and the streets in that part of town go in odd angles so you'll probably get lost the first few times you go unless you have a good map. And if you bring your car in for a tune-up and you happen to have changed your wiper blades recently, make sure to tell Ray in advance or he'll take off your nice new expensive blades and replace them with cheaper ones, since he assumes his customers won't have thought to change their own blades (this happened to me and the guy at my office) - a funny habit, since he flat-out refuses to engage in any of the bogus practices of other shops that tell you you need hundreds of dollars of repairs you didn't know about, so it' not that he's trying to gyp you. There are buses that go nearby, check http://www.cttransit.com/content/routesNewHaven.asp for routes and schedules, and have exact change. Ray does exactly what you hope from a mechanic. He fixes your car well and won't over-charge you for the privilege.

I went to SKF automotive on a recommendation and felt quite ripped off. My alternator needed a new fan belt because it had been slipping. They checked that my battery and alternator were okay and replaced the $5 piece of rubber which I know takes about ten minutes. All that for only $80. I never went back. Maybe it's the problem of being a woman?? The next six years I went to Todd at Tech Auto.

My advice: make sure you can describe as well as you can what is wrong. He's told me that it makes the transaction infintely easier and not enough people do this! Also, over the time I have bringing my car in, the neighborhood has improved quite a bit. It's not as bad as depicted in the survey. I highly recommend!

I was driving my son, his friend and all their regalia up to school and got stuck with a leaky radiator. On a phone call alone, I got immediate attention, including a review of what my regular mechanic should be doing but isn't, and for $49.00, I got a new hose, a list of instructions on what to do next, some good advice from a mechanic who seems to know his Volvos, and my kid back to school. I will do all my breaking down in the future in New Haven.

I really must add my own review to the mix. I took my car to Ray yesterday for a brake issue. I got the recommendation from this website, and I must say that I could not be more pleased. They accurately diagnosed my brake problem and repaired it the same day. In fact, not only did they make the repair, they checked and replaced some very badly needed fluids. The extra services they performed for peanuts. Additionally, Ray notified me of some problems with my tires, and gave me some excellent advice concerning the upkeep of the vehicle. It looks like I have found a new home, and I would like to thank the other posters on this forum for sharing their experiences. P.S. The neighborhood is not "bad". I finally understood when I drove up. Little broader horizons, my friends.