Our Reviews

Always pleasant and on the spot. Superb customer service and work.

As always the service quick and complete. Thx

SUMMARY: Poor quality, high price. They will be nice up front, but when chips are down they will turn condescending, gaslight you, and pretty quickly just stop responding. AVOID. Now let me explain... I was living nearby and Schafer looked attractive because it's big, clean, and they have secure parking lot, which is a big deal in a neighborhood where most garages are pocket-sized and will leave your vehicle on street overnight. They were charming and efficient over phone and got me in pretty quick. They followed up with texts, which shows they're up-to-date, but rest assured the overhead cost of frills like that are passed on to you. Which is fine--I have no problem paying extra for premium service, so long as work quality justifies price, but in this case it did not. Was having intermittent hydraulic clutch pedal trouble with my '96 Tacoma. Problem was tricky because it came and went, but obvious that pedal was not returning to top of throw. Truck still ran fine mostly, but pressure fluctuated and would ultimately fail altogether and strand me without warning. Brought it in and they made silly diagnosis that it was the floormat. A lot of shops will jump to this lazy conclusion because Toyota had infamous (and disproven) floormat scandal years ago, of which I was aware, and I knew that wasn't the case here, but I took a wait-and-see approach. They offered to do a deeper diagnosis, but I'd have to pay extra. They also said I needed $800 in new tires, but I'd had the tires inspected by a tire place and they were OK. I wrote that one off as an honest mistake. (5,000 miles later, tires fine.) Since truck was there, I spent $250 on radiator flush, oil change, and other minor maintenance. I also tentatively scheduled more than a thousand dollars of suspension work to be done at later date (couldn't do it immediately because my parking garage had low clearance and redoing shocks & springs would put me over limit). Soon after I left, got a text offering free oil change--again, no such thing as a free lunch, so you know that kind of perk will not only be reflected in costs elsewhere, it's also a tactic to lure you back so they can find other things to fix. Not long after, the clutch pedal failed completely and left me stranded. Copious research told me it was bad master cylinder, so had truck towed to Schafer & asked them to replace the master cylinder. They turned the job around quickly, but when I went to pick it up, the pedal was still spongey and coming only halfway back up when it clearly should go to top of throw where it engages with an electric switch. Yes, the truck drove now, but pedal was still bad. This is where things started going wrong and Schafer showed its true colors as the kind of operation that leans on technicalities to nickel-and-dime you instead of doing a proper job. (Without getting too technical, I need to point out that clutch pedal is connected to master cylinder by a pushrod, and for system to work, this rod must be properly adjusted. To change master cylinder without adjusting pushrod is like changing a tire without tightening the lug nuts.) I told them the pedal was still bad and they said all I had asked was for master cylinder to be replaced. (Again, you can't replace the master cylinder without adjusting the rod, too, or it will lead to another failure, which it did.) They got very condescending, as if trying to shame me for having the audacity of diagnosing the problem myself and telling them how to do their job. They said they would inspect master cylinder for defect if I wanted, but pedal was out of scope and would cost me extra. They claimed pedal was a matter of feel, which was plain wrong. They also said, again, that deeper diagnosis would cost extra. After going in circles with them for a bit, I renounced them in disgust. Found mechanic who took care to do it right, replaced master AND adjusted rod, and it's been fine ever since, more than 5,000 miles without a hitch. He 100% confirmed my diagnosis was correct, and it was failure to adjust pushrod that led to master cylinder fail, because if rod goes too deep, it compromises seals and air gets in, making pedal go soft. Now that I knew for sure, I contacted Schafer to request a refund. Their only reply was warranty was void because another shop had worked on it. WTF? I wrote back THREE MORE TIMES, giving them every chance to make amends, but they never replied. So, here I am, out $454 on a completely botched job by a business that cares more about bottom line than satisfying their customers. I'm just glad I didn't lose more to them, because given their fee structure it could have easily run to thousands. Nobody's perfect and we all make mistakes, but it's another thing to not acknowledge one's error and to refuse to make amends. I gave them every chance to "make it right," but they wouldn't listen and just blew me off in the end. Horrible experience. I wouldn't even trust them to reinstall that floormat.

Honest mechanics and a very nice waiting area. They will take the time to explain what's going on with your car and what repairs are urgent, or can wait. Seriously these guys are the best.

Awesome service!!!

Service: General repairs & maintenance Positive: Professionalism, Punctuality, Quality, Value

I found Schafer's price to be superior to the dealership when pricing a required 100K mile scheduled maintenance on my 2014 Acura RDX. At the very least it's worth your time to compare price quotes for an expensive service or repair job.

Positive: Professionalism, Punctuality, Quality, Value ALWAYS so transparent and cheerful. An absolute pleasure to take my vehicle in! Service: General repairs & maintenance

They do quality work and the people stand behind there work. The staff at the front desk are pleasant and very cheerful.

Positive: Professionalism, Punctuality, Quality I came in for an inspection and emissions test. I ended getting new air filters. They were helpful and didn’t try to upsell me on maintenance that wasn’t crucial. Honest, fast service and I got an unexpected car wash! I would recommend Schafer’s to anyone. I’ll be back for regular oil changes. Service: General repairs & maintenance

I would highly recommend Schafer's. I've been there 3-4 times in the past year and a half and happy every single time. I've had brakes, an oil change, and an inspection completed with them. My car has always been finished on time and once they even offered to wait there for me after they closed so that I could still pick it up that night as there was traffic. Really great, honest group of people. Nice to have a mechanic in the city who I can trust.

NEW Positive: Professionalism, Punctuality, Quality I came in for an inspection and emissions test. I ended getting new air filters. They were helpful and didn’t try to upsell me on maintenance that wasn’t crucial. Honest, fast service and I got an unexpected car wash! I would recommend Schafer’s to anyone. I’ll be back for regular oil changes.

Positive: Professionalism, Punctuality, Quality Good professional service and they go above and beyond to be helpful even after the work is done. Services: Oil change, Wheel alignment

Schafer's island stop service center

NEW Positive: Professionalism, Punctuality, Quality, Value The team at Shaefer is awesome!! They’re super friendly and do great work. They repaired my wheel and saved me a lot of money by not having to buy a new one with all the additional costs of shipping etc. The owner Michael also gave me a …More

NEW Positive: Professionalism, Punctuality, Quality Good professional service and they go above and beyond to be helpful even after the work is done.

NEW

I took my car for an annual state inspection to Schafer's and was taken advantage of. During my initial inspection there was approximately an estimated $1,200 in repairs that needed to be fixed. I had to fail the inspection and seek another Auto repair because the cost was so high. Following everything they had outlined that needed to be done I had everything fixed for nearly a fourth of the price. When I came back to Schafer's for the inspection they indicated there was an issue with my brake pad (I had just seen them a week prior and this was not recorded). The total cost was going to be an additional $600. I realized they were taking advantage of me and I left, once again having to fail inspection. I found a different local inspector who was so great, made sure everything was fixed and ready to pass - very inexpensive. The employees at Schafer's were condescending. I will NEVER come here again.

NEW The staff here is extremely helpful and communicates properly throughout the process of having my car inspected here. Very enjoyable experience given how crazy the world has been.

Always great service with great prices

I think I finally found a mechanic I can trust. They were so nice and accommodating and they send you text notifications! They let you know what they found and what needs to be done via text so you can see and call them back to let them know what you wanna do. They also text you once your all set and ready to pick up your car. The best part however was that they give you a print out of your alignment and tire health so you get an actual image of your car so you can understand how off your car is. Def using these guys again.

NEW

NEW Very kind, efficient and was done woth my car in a timely manner. 👍🏼

Very kind, efficient and was done woth my car in a timely manner. 👍🏼

I wouldn't go anywhere else. I suggest Schafer's to everyone I know.

Positive: Professionalism, Punctuality, Quality I made an appointment online, they called me to confirm. I called again to see whether I could drop my car off early, they let me know that was fine. I showed up, parked, and walked into their lobby. Two smiling faces, and a great …More

I went for an oil change. The customer service over the phone and in person was super friendly & helpful (name dropping Jennifer for being so sweet). They send you an inspection update over text, and didn't try to push my (minor) car issues …More

Positive: Professionalism After receiving their flyer by mail yesterday, I decided to drop by and see if I could get a new car inspection today.I spoke with Jennifer and found her to be extremely helpful and friendly. Although by appointment only she was able to …More

Outstanding services! They don't miss a detail when it comes to your car, and vehicle safety. Quality service with a high standard.

Great work

Great, reliable service every time. Great detailed reports after an inspection and good communication. Definitely recommend.

As usual, pleasant and professional mechanics.

So let me tell you about this wonderful place I came across by luck. I have been looking for a place to check what was happening to my car after the check engine light came on. I had no clue what was happening as i needed that …More

Positive: Professionalism, Punctuality It was a great experience. They me updated every step along the way.And found a safety problem that I thought was just brakes. Thank you for the care you always take with my car. Services: Steering / Suspension, Oil change, Check engine light diagnostic, Air & Cabin Filter, Tires, Battery, General repairs & maintenance

Positive: Professionalism, Punctuality It was a great experience. They me updated every step along the way.And found a safety problem that I thought was just brakes. Thank you for the care you always take with my car. Services: Check engine light diagnostic, Oil change, Battery, Steering / Suspension, Tires, General repairs & maintenance, Air & Cabin Filter

Positive: Professionalism, Punctuality It was a great experience. They me updated every step along the way.And found a safety problem that I thought was just brakes. Thank you for the care you always take with my car. Services: Tires, Battery, Air & Cabin Filter, Oil change, Steering / Suspension, General repairs & maintenance, Check engine light diagnostic