SF Bay Area - South Bay Mechanic Recommendations?

[hyuan]

Hi, folks.

I know it's been at least 10 years since I've posted, but I'm back and my car is still alive at 162K+. Lots of adventures and at one point I had every hose in the car replaced but she still runs generally well thanks to Don at Hilltop in the early days and Foreign Affair since. However, Foreign Affair's mechanic that worked on NSXs retired. I've had some really bad luck taking the car to Acura Dealerships but I am open to it.

Does anyone in the South Bay have a recommendation? I absolutely love Don and it would be nice to see him again after so many years but I'd really like to skip the one way drive of at least an hour if I can avoid it. Any advice would be really appreciated!

 

[I_M_Legend]

I'd like to know as well in case something comes up.

 

[fastfwd]

Does anyone in the South Bay have a recommendation? I absolutely love Don and it would be nice to see him again after so many years but I'd really like to skip the one way drive of at least an hour if I can avoid it.

Not what you want to hear... But I'm in Los Gatos, and whenever my car needs service i drive past hundreds of Honda/Acura mechanics at dozens of indie ships and dealerships to take it to Don.

 

[hyuan]

Okay! I haven't seen the man in 19 years. I hope he still works on the cars himself.

 

[fastfwd]

Okay! I haven't seen the man in 19 years. I hope he still works on the cars himself.

He does, although he also has a couple of good mechanics.

 

[natcc99]

Welcome back to the Forums and it's awesome that you're putting miles on your car.

Similar to you, I also went to Foreign Affairs back in the days before their lead mechanic retired. Since then, I have been taking my car to San Carlos Solutions. https://www.scautosolutions.com
Ask for Kenneth or Andrew if you decide to call them. Feel free to ask around; they have serviced many NSXs in the Bay Area.

Good luck and hope to see you around on the streets.

 

[hyuan]

These are great recommendations. I really appreciate it and it is nice to see that folks are as friendly as ever. Almost all of the old forum posters from my time have left it seems. As for my decade plus update...

My car's plates are LEFT2F8. It looks mostly stock but over time the plastics started to fall apart. We're pretty lucky in the Bay Area to have Euro Boutique in Fremont - he ended up replacing many of the internals with carbon fiber. I also did the retrofit on the original stereo through Willman's Electronics and worked with Euro Boutique to install that. So if you do happen to see me, the inside will look stock-not stock!

And yeah, the car isn't a show car but I think it looks in great shape. I did respray the front end a decade ago and the ceramic does a good job of protecting what's left of the original paint. Overall, it's an amazing car. I'm 50 now and I've owned the car since I was in my 20s. It's had some major work done but between Foreign Affair and Don I managed to keep it running.

One more tip for Bay Area folks - there's a smog station called Pioneer Smog on Basset Street in San Jose. The owner had an NSX before and knows how to work serious magic. He's gotten the car to pass clean every single time.

 

[fastfwd]

One more tip for Bay Area folks - there's a smog station called Pioneer Smog on Basset Street in San Jose. The owner had an NSX before and knows how to work serious magic. He's gotten the car to pass clean every single time.

You mean Friendly Smog? Or are there two smog stations on that little street?

I've been taking my car to Friendly Smog for 20 years. He still has a dyno for testing old cars, but last time I went he said he was going to start requiring appointments -- he needs to clear stuff out of the way to use it.

 

[hyuan]

You mean Friendly Smog? Or are there two smog stations on that little street?

I've been taking my car to Friendly Smog for 20 years. He still has a dyno for testing old cars, but last time I went he said he was going to start requiring appointments -- he needs to clear stuff out of the way to use it.

I think it's the same place. My receipts always say Pioneer Smog. And yeah, his shop is scary. He has used electronics in that shop that have not seemed to have been turned on for 30 years. I have had him smog the car the last 3x and he always says that he thinks he's seen this car before. LOL. Maybe when I visit him for 20 years he will start remembering me!

 

[ih8ricerz]

All useful info so thank you for asking the question since I know I'll need to find a trusted mechanic in the Bay Area for my NSX as well.

As for your smog guy, are you paying regular smog prices or the "other" prices? lol

 

[hyuan]

I don't know what's a good price for a smog check - but getting a 29 year old car to pass smog is priceless to me.

I just looked up last receipt in December 2024, and I paid Friendly Smog $130.

 

[Dhalsim]

Hey Hyuan - I haven't been on here much in a long time either. The last time I had someone work on my NSX was at Trackspec in Fremont. You might want to try there. They are pretty good and I think a bunch of NSX owners still take their cars there. Also for smog check a number of us have been taking our cars to John at Hayward Smog on mission in Hayward. he also has an NSX and has been very good at getting mine to pass over the years.

 

[hyuan]

Hey Hyuan - I haven't been on here much in a long time either. The last time I had someone work on my NSX was at Trackspec in Fremont. You might want to try there. They are pretty good and I think a bunch of NSX owners still take their cars there. Also for smog check a number of us have been taking our cars to John at Hayward Smog on mission in Hayward. he also has an NSX and has been very good at getting mine to pass over the years.

Awesome, thank you!

As an aside, I am shocked at how vibrant this community still is - it's been 24 years since I first joined.

 

[docjohn]

judging by your member pic, you were a prepubertal primer....

 

[hyuan]

That is actually my real-world passport photo taken in 2018. I ran into issues for years because I was flying in and out of high-risk countries, so it was helpful to have my online photos match. I just took a selfie with 7 years of aging.

judging by your member pic, you were a prepubertal primer....