Great service. Very open about the repairs required and the cost of completing them. Kept me informed and delivered on time. Great people to deal with and would do so anytime I need. Thanks Bob for your help - much appreciated.

Absolutely amazing mechanics and service. This was my first time going to Kiwis Auto Repair and I felt like I was in good hands the entire time. They were timely, fair and very friendly. After receiving a comprehensive list of things I could do to my car, they willingly went through the items and helped me decide on the work that was truly necessary. They conducted the work for exactly the price quoted and completed the work exactly when they stated it would be finished. They even did a couple things free of charge because they felt it was missed on the initial inspection.I rarely write reviews, but Kiwis should be lauded for their work and business practices. Definitely a fair mechanic who you can trust.

Ive gone to Kiwis a couple times for my Tacoma and I like them. Santa Barbara prices for stuff like this are pretty insane whatever shop you go to (which is why I do most of my repairs). So yeah, I found this place expensive, but thats more the fault of their location than anything.I found the guys over there very trustworthy. They always let me know before they were going to do more work on the truck, and what that work might cost. I really appreciate that. Ive had other mechanics throw on little maintenance repairs and charge me obscene rates for them. I will never go to those places again.Thanks, Kiwis, for the good work!

Top notch service! We noticed a scraping sound under our rental car upon every dip in the road. After getting out to peer underneath (a low-profile Honda Sport), a local saw us and recommended Kiwi’s. We pulled in and they put the car up on the lift & quickly diagnosed and repaired for us. Pleasant and benevolent. I would give them 10 stars if I could!

I owned my own Auto Repair in Santa Barbara Ca! We won “Best Auto Repair” for 20 years straight! When I retired 5 years ago I picked Kiwi Auto Auto Repair for all my family Auto Services. They are always professional and courteous to all the people that I send to them and their prices are really fair...

This is the go to place for general auto care! Every time Ive taken my car here they have fixed issues other auto garages have failed to do. Honest and affordable, I could not recommend this business more!!

When I need car repairs and maintenance, I always choose Kiwis Auto Repair. I couldnt be happier with the work they do, and the staff is friendly, kind and caring. They are the best! Thank you, Kiwis!

Great, efficient service. Will be coming again.

Have gone to them twice for car repairs. Very fair pricing. Trustworthy. Definitely would recommend.

I went into the shop not knowing anything about cars and worried because after driving my sedan on a very gravely road, I began hearing a weird sound when I drove my car. Being new to town, I was also worried about finding an honest mechanic. Luckily, Rich and his team were so kind and professional. They were able to quickly find the issue (bunch of rocks stuck in places where rocks shouldnt be!!!) and didnt even charge me for their fantastic service. I will definitely be coming back when I have a real issue and am so happy to have found a great mechanic so early on in my new Santa Barbara life :) Thanks guys!!!!

I called them for a quote for a hub assembly. They wanted $440, $300 in labor and $140 for the part. He called it a big job. Im traveling and I needed it done. I went to Auto Zone and bought a breaker bar, axle socket, and rented a torque wrench. It took me 30min in the parking lot, and thats hand wrenching, no power tools! What A Joke!

I highly recommend this place! I originally called this business looking for a second opinion. I instantly felt as if I could trust them for a fair price through the conversation. They completed my car problems for a much better price than their competitors, were cognoscente of my schedule, and completed their work in a timely manner. I will be using this shop for all future car services/repairs because of the quality work and people that are here.

Sent my daughter here since I’m 300 miles away. I was sure it was the alternator. Other shops I had to leave it for a few days. This wasn’t going to work. They were able to diagnose it in one day. It was just a battery. Very professional and glad there are shops like this still around.

Santa Barbara is a small town, everyone knows someone who knows someone or they are related to that someone. I felt confident with my decision to go to Kiwis after hearing about the kind reputation and ethics the owner Rich is known for. Going to Kiwis is like going to your friends house to have them work on your car, low-key, relaxed environment. They walk you through everything that is going to be done and explain in non-mechanic terms. All of the employees are kind, clean and always helpful. I will always refer people to Kiwi!!

Excellent customer service. Friendly environment and highly knowledgeable. Service is fast and efficient

I was passing through Santa Barbara and had some car troubles. Everyone at Kiwis was really helpful and they were able to get it done in a really good timeframe as I was supposed to be on the road to my next stop. They were friendly, honest, and did a great job! Very grateful for Kiwi’s in helping me out.

Honesty for a fair price. Excellent service and repair diagnostics.Thanks again 😊

Kiwis explained the issue with my car. Gave me a couple of different courses of action and fixed my car. The check engine light is off and my car runs great!

I have lived in Santa Barbara for the past three years and these are the only guys that I let fix my car. They do a great job and warn you if there is anything you’ll need to look out for in the future. They won’t fix anything without your permission and won’t ever gouge you. If they can’t fix something they have great recommendations as to who can help you. They are also some of the funniest and sweetest guys in SB. If there is anything that needs to be done to your car, go to these guys because they’re the best.

Everyone at Kiwis is fantastic. Their service was quick, straightforward, and effective. I took my Civic in for a check-up before a long road trip as well as some ventilation and brake issues, and walked away with the car in perfect working order for a reasonable price. Highly recommend this shop.

They squeezed me in on a busy day for my overdue oil change which I really appreciated as it was one of the few days I had time to leave my car for service. And they still did the complete preventative service check as well, and let me know they found no other issues.

Theyre outstanding. I have a Toyota pickup and, from driving across the country, its got a lot of miles under its belts - it has been serviced in various places from NH to Santa Barbara, over the course of its life. The best is Kiwis, the quality of the work, the friendliness of everyone there, and the fairness of the pricing --- all that is not always a given! From the smallest, emergency replacement of a rat-chewed wire, to major engine work, to checking, looking for what might be a problem in an old car, to diagnosing what needs to be done to pass the biennial smog tests, theyre great! Thanks, Rich and PJ and James, the Toyota specialist! I am very grateful.Betsy

Being new to town, I was worried about finding a reliable, honest & thorough mechanic. Luckily, I stumbled upon Kiwi’s Auto Repair and have no need to go anywhere else for service. A job well done with friendly service to boot!

Worst customer service and rude owner.I called in to ask for a quote for a specific service before intake my car in. The owner who answered the phone said that he needs to have the car in his shop otherwise “it is not worth his time” to look up the quote for me. Sounds like the owner won’t tell you the rates or the ball park of what you may be spending until after he does the work.

Always available. Efficient and friendly. Who could ask for more?

I have been servicing my vehicles at Kiwis for years.Rich and his son PJ are truly amazing with their knowledge and expertise of EVERYTHING automotive.I could not be more comfortable bringing my car in to this shop.As a woman, I have been taken advantage of too many times. I can promise you, this is THE most honest repair facility you will ever find.Dont wait to be ripped off by an unscrupulous repair shop, go straight to Kiwis, you wont regret it.

I really got to say this is an amazing location. Ill be honest. Its in kind of a random spot, and in a sense you could label the area as not ideal, but their work ethic is really amazing. Not trying to sell me up on anything I dont need, listening to how my car got where it is now, and helping me choose what exactly to do to my car.Plus, they hit me up with a 15% off my total bill which is always nice. If my car doesnt die out in the next year, Ill definitely come through for more work when needed.

I highly recommend Kiwi Auto. They are reliable, friendly and fast. I trust them with all my vehicle needs.

These guys are great. When a repair took a day longer than anticipated, PJ actually loaned me his personal car to drive around. No one does that. They tell you what needs to be done now and what can wait.

Always worth a call. Called them with a very specific alternator problem (need a positive diode replaced), and they directed me to where I can have it done. This kind of honesty and transparency is commendable. Ill be sure to always offer Kiwis work first.

Great customer service and very professional mechanics. Plus their work comes with a warranty on parts and labor. Would recommend highly

As a woman who is not well tuned with auto repair, I went to Kiwis on a recommendation from a friend. Kiwi was direct and no nonsense (in the best way). Rich, the mechanic/employee who primarily handled my car, took the time to shuttle me from the garage and back to it, and he was superbly helpful! He answered my questions thoroughly, explaining many aspects of the repair process to me in language that was clear and without condescension or any attempts to take advantage of my unfamiliarity with cars. I am confident that I will come back to this auto repair shop again and again.

Wonderful company! Full of friendly and competent people that dont make you feel like you are being taken advantage of. They went above and beyond to find out what was going on with my car- I will definitely be back next time I need work done on my car.

I love these guys. The most honest mechanics I have been to other than my uncle. :) thanks for having great morals and great skills with cars!! I will never go any where els. My boyfriend also uses then because of the great job they have always done on my car. :) plus they are truly friendly!!!!

Trust these guys, they’re the most honest people I e ever had service a car

Fantastic service, quick easy and affordable. My car had needed an oil change bad, quick phone call and I was in and out within an hour. They even refilled my wiper fluid which was a plus since I always forget! Will return

This is an amazing honest auto shop I couldnt ask for anybody better. They got right to the problem And save me money I went to another auto shops and they were saying that I had more problems then what they found So they are totally worth it.

I first went to Kiwis about 6 months ago. I started up my car first thing in the morning. And heard a strange sound, Then lots of smoke came pouring out the front of the car. when I got out to look,there was a huge puddle of oil on my driveway and lots of stinky smoke. Now I know absolutely nothing about cars. My neighbor came out and said to try his mechanic, kiwis auto repair. Had the car towed in, and Rich explained that they need to clean up all the oil first, because everything was dripping and they would not be able to see where the leak was coming from. P.j gave me a ride to work. about 2 hours later Rich called and said they cleaned up the mess refilled the engine with oil and when they started the engine he said the oil was pouring out from the oil filter. Which he said was under pressure from the oil pump, and instead of going into the filter and back into the engine it was pouring out onto the ground. The rubber seal on the oil filter failed causing this big mess. So for the price of an oil change and the engine cleaning, my car was good again. Now he could have told me anything and charged me big bucks, because I know nothing about cars. But he did not, I have gone back for a few other things since then, nothing major until yesterday when I stopped at a stop light and went to go on the green light, my car just sat there with me revving the engine. had it towed in. Clutch decided to quit working right there, After talking with Rich i realized from the questions that he was asking that the clutch had been warning me for about a week and i ignored it. Just got the car back tonight. Boy does it ever run good again.I highly recommend them. just a bunch of great guys working there.

As a woman, I believe I can trust them to give me a fair deal. Super nice, family run!

My wife took our car in to have the check out a malfunctioning oil level light. They didnt fix that but told her that our car needed new front brake pads and rotors. There was no pulsing or squealing so she declined. I just got around to having a look (several months later). The pads have at least half their life left and the rotors are barely worn at all. On top of all that, there arent actually any New Zealanders working there. Im not impressed.[update]...and now theyve responded saying there was almost no oil in the car. That is a complete lie. We know how to use a dipstick (I used to be a motorcycle mechanic). There was plenty of oil, and the oil light still comes on intermittently regardless of the oil level. Thats the problem we wanted you to address. You did nothing about it. You replaced the rear brake pads (not squeaking yet but worn), not the front. And you told my wife that the front pads and rotors would definitely need to be replaced by the next oil change.So, you failed to address the oil light issue that motivated us to bring the car in (probably the sensor in the oil pan, but weve just decided to ignore it and use the dipstick), and you tried to sell us on unnecessary front brake work. Now youve passive-aggressively posted my wifes name and lied in your response. ...and you called her just now and admitted during that call that it was the rear brake pads you replaced - contradicting what youve posted here. I worried initially that one-star was a bit harsh. Im not worried any more. Youve earned it.[update again] Your initial response said you replaced the front brake pads, but youve changed that now. The fact remains that you did nothing to address the oil light, tried to sell us on unnecessary front brake work, and you are now falsely claiming that our oil levels were low. A Kiwi would call this pretty average customer service. (Contrary to the actual definition of the words involved, pretty average means crappy in NZ).

I recently got a used car that hadnt been serviced in a while so based off of the good reviews on yelp I went to these guys to see if anything was wrong. I dropped the car off and they gave me a ride back to my house. They ended up replacing the valve seals and serpentine belt for a fair price. They even went through and fixed any loose parts in my engine for free. All of this repair took only one day! Overall these guys were friendly and great to deal with. I will definitely go back if I need any repair on my car.

We take 2 cars to Kiwis. They keep our cars running and have great service!

Over the years, we have taken our vehicle into Kiwis Auto Repair for everything from routine maintenance to major repairs. On every occasion, we have found that they combine expert service with reliability and affordable pricing. In addition, Rich, P.J., and the entire crew at Kiwis are always a pleasure to deal with. We wouldn’t think of taking our vehicle to any other shop in Santa Barbara.

Rich and his guys are honest and give a realistic quote of what is needed and what can wait. They dont try to upsell or fix whats not needed. Very trustworthy and stands behind there work. I recommend them to all my friends in town.

Great service!

Arrived unexpectedly to Kiwi’s with immediate car issue. PJ and Phil got right on it and provided friendly and competent service. So thankful to them to get me on my way so quickly.

We are a non-profit in town, and KIWI does a great job keeping all our vans up and running. Budgets are always a concern, but they make it work for us each and every time. From simple oil change to starting problems to regular maintainance, always good advise and trustworthy. Highly recommended.

Rich has been a great mechanic, and he is an honest businessman as well. Multiple times hes recommended against unnecessary repairs that other shops have tried to sell me on, and hes friendly, cost effective, and thus far has been extremely competent. When his estimates come in the lowest in town and yet he gets the work done well, you know hes doing something right.

Richard and the staff are the best at what they do and get you in and out fast and friendly! 6 stars!

Best mechanic in town. I have been using Rich for over 10 years. Straight up guy.

I got really fair quotes and quick service for my Subaru. They even offered to drive my home of it needed it! Looks like i found my new Santa Barbara Mechanic!

Most honest car mechanics you can get here in Santa Barbara

Had a starter issue with my 2015 Honda Fit. This shop fit me in right away and saved me a few hundred dollars from what the dealer quoted me. Great experience!

My wife and I are headed south on the west coast (in LA now) and we ran out of gas in the Los Padres National forest about 20 miles shy of Santa Barbara and the dreaded check engine light came on after I refuelled, I limped onward to town and googled for mechanic, called a few who wouldnt even do a quick scan to check what the code was without an appointment, I rang Kiwi up and PJ just told me to drop in and hed take a look at it, 7 minutes later the code was cleared, (it was just a fuel lean code from running out of gas) and we were on our way, he didnt even accept payment for his time!! If thats how you treat an out of towner, theres no secret to why you have so many happy customers! Never had a trip to the mechanics be so pleasant before!

I enjoy working with them.

I have an old Lexus and was having problems with my CD player, the eject button wouldnt work. PJ got it to work for me, but Rich warned me that it was old and any time the car overheated I could have that problem again. Rather than try to make any money off me on that he just suggested I consult with the car stereo guy up the street, and only charged me (quite reasonably) for the oil change I got there. He was completely fair and completely honest, even with an out of town guy like me (who for that reason is highly unlikely to be a repeat customer).

Clean (for an auto shop), kind and competent service. Just be aware that the entrance is actually on yanonali.

Rich is super helpful and patient. We had a host of problems with the car, and Rich went the extra mile to make sure the car was fully repaired and like-new.

Exceptional

Phil is great, he’s worked wonders in the Volvo’s owned by my family in the past!

Rich is amazing; when my car broke down, he jumped in to help me!I highly recommend him: he is fair, honest, and wants to get the job done correctly.

Great people, great shop, this is where you want to go in Santa Barbara for Auto Repair.

Horrible CS...