Automotive Repair

The best in the bay

Great service, helpful, reasonable price, know their stuff.

“Beta? What’s a Beta?” This question led me to two of the best decisions I’ve ever made in my 35-years as a boat owner - to re-power our beloved Nauticat 43 cutter/ketch with a Beta Marine diesel engine with H & M Marine in Sausalito. THE ENGINE: I asked “What’s a Beta?” when considering purchasing our previous boat which had a Beta 30 installed by H & M Marine (also known as Beta Marine West and Hirschfeld Yacht, LLC). When I opened the engine compartment of that boat for the first time, I was sold. It was the most beautiful engine install I’ve ever seen (clean, organized) and this gleaming red engine had all the maintenance parts within immediate reach – oil and fuel filters, dipstick, impeller, belts, oil change pump, etc. But the performance of the Beta is what matters most. Is it possible to “Love” your engine? Quiet, reliable, strong, easy to maintain, she never let us down and always carried us home, even in the hairiest conditions off the Pacific coast and in S.F Bay. When we moved up to our Nauticat with a tired, smoky 90hp Ford Lehman, our top priority was to re-power with Beta at H & M Marine. THE SHOP: These guys are simply the best. After doing my due diligence for such an expensive and important decision by getting competitive bids for re-powering with Volvo, Yanmar, etc. with other shops, getting a Beta with H & M Marine ended up being a no-brainer. When we arrived at their dock in Sausalito I was introduced to co-owner Shane McCormack, the “M” of H & M Marine. Simply put, Shane is a friggin mechanical genius and passionate about Beta and his work. He personally does each Beta install and was the guy who did the beautiful install of the engine in our previous boat. Every boat is different and every re-power requires a high level of expertise to design a system that is a good fit for the boat and new engine, more like a heart transplant than “plug and play.” Matching the prop, shaft, and engine to the size, displacement, and type of boat is an art and science that makes or breaks the re-power project. Shane not only designed and installed a beautiful fit of engine and boat, he elegantly re-designed our fuel transfer system (we have two 110 gallon fuel tanks), oil change system, and fuel filtering system. Shane also installed our new generator (NextGen, a Beta of course) and handled two huge projects that local boatyards either messed up or couldn’t handle: One of our fuel tanks was leaking and required a lot of custom work to remove and replace that was beyond the capabilities of the local boatyard, and our dual-helm hydraulic steering system was leaking and the cockpit helm needed replacing. A previous boatyard attempted to fix this and messed it up badly (cross-threaded, cheap “Home Depot” type fittings, etc.). Not only did Shane fix our hydraulic steering system, he improved on the original design making it far easier to bleed and maintain than when the boat left the manufacturer. He should patent his bleeding system; it’s that unique and brilliant. I could go on and on about Shane, who is the only guy who I will allow to touch my boat’s mechanicals from now on, but H & M Marine is a busy, well run shop with a lot of staff. Their prime Sausalito location in Clipper Harbor means they have all the work they need, but unlike other shops I’ve experienced, in my time here I’ve observed these guys to be on top of every job and take immaculate care of every customer. While Shane will always be either deep inside a boat or in his shop, Ethan is seemingly everywhere at once taking care of everything and everybody- moving boats and trailers, on the phone, on the computer, directing staff, helping customers, while finding time to go crabbing (in season, of course), while John, the General Manager is the strong, friendly, efficient guy that keeps everything running smoothly. When we first arrived John blew us away by personally driving us across the bay to retrieve our car, and we’ve felt well taken care of every step of the way since. And, yes, we Love our new Beta, thanks to H & M Marine.

I couldn't recommend Peninsula Car Care enough. They are honest, swift and efficient.

All I can say is don't get stuck in this town with car trouble. I needed the rack and pinion replaced on my 2002 Pontiac Grand Prix. I was having problems steering. I went to this place and they wanted $ 1750.00 for the work. They also changed me $ 70.00 for a basic oil change. I passed on the rack and pinion replacement and decided that I would just put fluid in it every 30 miles until I got home. I lived 130 miles away. When I got home I went to the the dealership and I was quoted $ 1525.00 . How can a shop charge $225.00 more then the dealership? Everyone has to make a living but this place felt like robbery.

I've taken my two VW vehicles to Auto Haus II for a few years now. Greg is quite knowledgeable and can quickly diagnose the problem and give an accurate estimate of repair costs. In fact, I was interested in buying a used VW Golf and I asked him if there was a year, model and engine type that he could recommend. He told me of the specific year model and engine that he thought were well designed and had a good repair record. I found that vehicle and it has run great for me ever since.

what an amazing garage: very nice people, good job, always try to fix the problems for the lowest price. Thanks for saving us. We are so glad we met them.

Honest Able

I went in for an oil change, and the tech accidentally broke my radiator. Franklin's not only replaced the radiator free of charge, they also compensated my oil change. On top of all that, Franklin's provided shuttle service to and from my house. Side note: You can also get a milkshake at Toni's while you wait.

Awesome place to have your auto serviced and repaired. Costs are reasonable. There are specials and discounts available. You are alerted to a service or a repair that will need to be addressed and time frame they should be taken care of. They talk with you not at you. That feels really good.😀

Do not use these company! The owner will find a way to scam you for a lot of money! They towed my truck and trailer in to their yard. They told me that my trailer would be fine at their office and I could come back after my truck was repaired to pick up trailer. after a few weeks I receive a lien in the mail on the trailer, owing thousands of dollars for storage fees. Forced to pay all the money in order to get my trailer back. The owner is a scammer and is not liked by the local economy as we went to the restaurants close by and employees were getting towed and getting hit with big fee’s To the owner your a scammer!

Solid shop, honest people, definitely recommended.

Grass roots locally owned, handshake while looking you in the eye. Competive prices, with top notch service. Honesty,integrity,& a sense of community are the reasons I have,& continue to take my generators to Derek at Alternative Power Solutions

Been doing business with Steves since 1997,always have the most up to date software for vehicles. There very thorough and will explain in detail repairs needed but not pushy. Owner Steve custom built Brake lines for my Classic stepside truck. Did an alignment also..

Honest, candid and extremely helpful. Finally service that you can trust. Great job on my brakes. Took it in for engine light on and considerately looked at my past paperwork and advised me that code was probably something only a Toyota dealership could repair. All this help and with a great attitude! I'll take my car back to this shop as long as I live in Marin.

This is the nicest place Ive ever had the opportunity to have my car fixed. Marty is always so polite and always on time with delivery. Thank You Santa Cruz Imported Truck Service for excellent work.

Fast, friendly service, competitive prices, good selection.

This is the best diesel mechanic shop in the area, and also where to rent a uhaul truck now

The kindness that Kim and her staff showed to us, was beyond great customer service. Our transmission line tore, on the way to show my little handicapped grandson the ocean for the first time. He had been having a few seizures that morning so we were being careful. We pulled into Aamco and Kim came out and greeted us, we explained our problem and she said don’t worry we’ll take care of you. Alejandro was wonderful with my grandson and went above and beyond for us. I would recommend this business to anyone. Thank you Kim and crew, I will be forever grateful to you. Nancy