Autowerke

.

unknown

unknown

We are extremely happy with the work Dave, his lead mechanic Andy and the rest of his staff performed. We have been customers for several years, always receiving high quality service. It has been a couple of years since we took one of our cars in, (two BMWs in the family), but this is because they fixed everything so well last time there was no need. It was however time for BMW inspection 2, tires & alignment, brake flush, power steering flush, differential gear oil change, gearbox oil change, water pump, thermostat & belts changed, fuel filter, cabin filters, and ac recharge. Andy, who worked on my car, is a factory trained technician who is so knowledgable, even dealers don't have guys like this on their staff. I would not let anyone else touch my car (a modified e39 M5-modified thanks to Andy and Dave), and we are taking my wife's car in tomorrow for similar service and will also write a review on that service as well. On an end note, of all of the things these wonderful guys fixed on my car, it is the cheapest service that makes me happiest, AC service-I no longer have to sweat in the car;) Thank you guys.

Autowerk has taken care of my BMW 323 for 14 years, and it still runs like new. I am moving away from the North Bethesda area, and now I have the difficult task of finding another BMW mechanic as fine as Autowerk. For BMW lovers, this is the place to take your car. The really know what they are doing, are professional, and the price is right.

The flex pipe on the exhaust required careful welding and they fixed it. They repaired a loose bumper for a fraction of what a body shop would have charged.

Service is professional and very friendly. Very knowledgeable and helpful. Would recommend to any BMW owner.

This review is more general than that of the last visit. Over the course of some years....they kept that car running better than it was when I first bought it. I brought it to them for routine maintenance and very seldom had issues that needed special attention. They are very responsive and reliable. I will continue to use them for the BMW service until I sell the car.

The owner David Toy kept me apprised of all work and received permission from me prior to work start. He was very good at explaining all issues and answered my questions.

I understand any review below a B wont be accepted so a running detailed commentary perhaps is better than a few summative statements.  I took a chance on this shop as I had a problem which couldnt wait for my regular shop to be free which would be in 2 weeks.  They were on the List, said they were highly experienced experts and could look the same day while i waited.  While the below might look bad, let me point out the positives first - they are known in the area as a BMW/Audi indy shop, and involved in the racing and with the BMW Club for a long time.  They have several bays to work on cars and seem to have the equipment for their work. Their waiting area/shop is definitely not dealer grade but probably average for most indy shops.  They have 2 chairs and a bathroom.
August 21: My online complaint:
"I cant trust them. I am a laughing stock. They are either incompetent or were trying to rip me off. Incredibly (or maybe not) they couldnt figure out that a simple loose or leaky oil cap on my BMW was responsible for all the symptoms that a teenage gas jockey could immediately figure out, . Theres more. They claimed the proposed $400+ repair would take hours and was a lot of work, when it was just simply pulling out the ignition coil and plug.
I went to them when I got wild erratic startup rpms and error codes, immediately after replacing belt and pulleys. After apparently running lots of tests and computer work, owner David and master mechanic Andy said they were 95% sure it was 2 coils and possibly plugs in 2 cylinders which they would confirm and replace for another $400. By chance when I went afterwards to fill up a tire, the gas jockey kid said it might be because the oil cap wasnt on tight and sure enough it fired up without problems when he pushed on the cap. The dealership confirmed it was a simple leaky worn oil cap. David said the cap worked itself loose in the few miles I drove after they saw it. They said its not easy to just change the coils as its a lot of work and the cabin filter and housing has to come off, which is why they wanted $400. Dealership guy laughed his head off - he pop off the plastic cover and said even a monkey could just take off the coils after releasing the plug wire, (and they wanted 1.8 hours to do this...) What they said was true only for the last of the 6 coils, and that wasnt the one affected. Theres more. I had a leak in 1 tire they said they spent a long time looking at but couldnt figure out - local tire shop says it was just a simple slightly loose tire valve.
They were very confident and seem nice, but I caught them trying to pull one over me. David refused to refund the diagnostic fee saying I got good value - several hours of work, and I can come back for a free computer diagnosis later."
After complaining to Angie's List a few days later, on August 28 the owner David Toy from Autoy called to say there will be a full refund as it is not worth it for this amount to have a bad review.  He reviewed the complaint and says he is sorry and wants his customers to be happy.  He says he did the best he could but even the best doctors make mistakes. I did get the full refund that day, and a mailed receipt a day later.  I was surprised they insisted on not refunding even after I told them they will get at least bad mouthing.  Surely they know that if I did the next step which is to sued them in court, not only will I win but it will cost them time, several thousands for attorneys and other costs not to mention ruining their reputation.
In spite of their statement that the error codes will come back, it is more than a month and 700 miles later and theres no code errors and the car runs fine.
As an aside, David Toy said that he as a rule charges less than the dealers do - instead of double the book rate that dealers charges (warning - there are several compilations of expected service hours for virtually any work, for use by insurance, dealers, mechanics and each chooses the ones they like), his shop charges a bit less to be competitive, in part because there's no markup for the commision that dealership service advisors typically get.  Considering both he and Andy his chief mechanic have been around, and are chock full of racing experience -  this whole experience is hard to chalk up as a bad day or inexperience or even incompetence.   I almost brought their we are true experts  line and if I had continued the
repairs as they recommended I would not be the wiser and no one could have known.   Still, with all the crooked or inexperienced mechanics out there, you can be taken for far worse.  It is commendable that this shop quickly did the right thing (even if it did take a push from Angie's List. )
Bottom line:  alls well now with me but you should be cautious and maybe get a second or third opinion.  After this, the shop hopefully might be more humble in the future.

My1999 328 bmw runs better than ever. I take the car in about twice a year for checkups and oil changes and they recommend what is needed. Often they point out things that we need to watch and address at a later time. My car has been in their hands for about 8 or 9 years and I have no complaints. I really trust that they will do only what is necessary and they will do it well and in a timely fashion. The staff are friendly and very attentive. I am sure i would not want to keep this car( at 130000 miles) if I didn't have someone that i trusted tokeep it running and safe.They are the best.
I have not had this experience at other BMW places. Some may be ok but they don't have the diagnostic computer to really check things out when there is a problem.

Pleasant owner and staff, and I have been a repeat customer. However, over the course of five visits with two Audi cars, I came to realize that Autowerk does not offer any great value over service from a dealer. On two occasions, I had to call them out on pricing--they used the "Audi price list" for pricing, but use non-Audi parts--often paying 1/2 of what the Audi parts cost. They explain that using the Audi price list provides for their profit--however I have found that they sometimes charge more than the Audi price, and sometimes overcharge for labor and diagnostic services. I had a month-long issued with a 'check brake' light. Autowerk offered to replaces the entire instrument cluster for $800. I decided not to do the work and live with the annoying light. I went to an Audi dealer for a recall items, and had an oil change while I was at it. The tech spotted the $40 wire problem that was causing the brake light indication and fixed it. After having the same car serviced at Autowerk three times--with the same problem--that could have only been solved with $800--I decided to stop using them. There is no real money saving with Autowerk

We had both of our vehicles serviced at Autoy and were extremely pleased with the work and service. Dave Toy is very knowledgeable and takes time to explain recommended work and pricing. Everyone cringes when that "service engine soon" light comes on, but Dave makes it a pleasant experience, so when that light does come on, we are more than happy to cal him.