I have a contact - I'll dig it up. He did a major repair for us (coolant rails/timing chains) and all went well. I'm in WLA. Andrew

 

I live in the Pasadena area if anybody needs help. I have 7 years of experience.

 

Where in LA are you I may be able to help. Look On guses sight for the link to reman throttle bodies. I think its janus?

 

Joolz, this is about five months later here. I live fairly close, in North Redondo Beach, and when South Bay Jaguar close their doors, with them went the only dealer in the South Bay. I just wanted to ask you, have you gone back to the referenced shop, as to confirm your good first impression?

 

I work in Manhattan beach if you need my help.

 

I took the advice of the poster who mentioned RMB. It was the closest shop to Sherman Oaks, and he was great. Anyone living in the valley has a great option there. Thanks again!

 

I live nearby and have never heard of them. Are they still open?

 

I lived about two miles from South Bay Jaguar on Pacific Coast Hwy. Their service facility looked top notch, it was a multi-story building where they could store your car indoors if you had a problem that would take many days to repair. About two weeks after I purchased my Jag, they closed.

When I was due for the yearly service, I went to Hornsburg Jag in Hollywood. It's kind of a run down area, and definitely not convenient to where I live. The waiting area is odd, as it is right in the middle of a busy passageway with offices that face it. Your sitting there hearing employees talk on the phone all day. After we determined the vehicle would not be ready that day, at no charge they gave me a small Land Rover as a rental. That was nice. When I got the car back, all repair work was perfect, and they had washed it. I recommend this facility, but you'll either want to get dropped off or take one of their loaner vehicles, because there really is no waiting area.

There is or was an independent Jag repair shop nearby on Hawthorne Boulevard and PCH, Al's Jaguar Service. I was going to use him for minor things like oil changes, but it looks like he is closed.

About a week ago my engine failed to start. The closest authorized Jag repair facility is in Cerritos, about 18 miles away. It took about ten days to get the appointment, and then have them actually start work. That seemed too long. They said the engine wouldn't start, because the fuel injection system for some reason had washed the oil off the cylinder walls and there was no compression, and the fix was to inject oil into the intake manifold to recoat the cylinders. That all seems very odd, but I picked up the car today and it appears to be working ok. One thing they failed to repair, was a rear passenger door lock. I had explained to the service advisior exactly what the problem was, and when I went to get the car, the receipt showed the mechanic had not found any problem. The advisor and I went to the car, using the remote I locked the doors, and then pulled the rear door handle, and the door opened. Problem not fixed. And then I pointed out to the advisor, the inside door lock button was stuck in the out position. We both just shook our heads, how could the mechanic have been so dumb to not be able to lock the doors and then find one wouldn't lock, and so blind to not see the lock button sticking out? So the advisor said they'll order the part, and have someone come out to get my car, and then after the repair return it to me. So it will eventually get done, but this is an unnecessary hassle. The reason it happened was because the service advisors don't call and let you know what is going on with your car, if they had called me and said they didn't find a problem with the lock, I could have given them exact steps to find the problem. I had to pay for some of the work, and found I had left my credit card at home. The manager let me take the car without paying, and I called upon getting home and gave them the credit card number. That was good of them, and almost balances out the failure to fix the door lock. The waiting area is nice with a play room for kids, and has a window so you can look to see your car being repaired. I do not recommend this facility due to the long time to get the work done, missed repair, and service advisors not keeping the customer informed.

 

Glad you had a good experience there. I haven't been yet, but he was highly recommended to me.

 

I've had a 97 XJ6L and a 96 XJ12 and I've been to a number of shops in the L.A. area. Without naming names I will tell you that I was never completely satisfied with any of the three shops referred to above. The shop owners were all great guys and very knowledgeable, but I was consistently not getting solutions to problems, and I rarely felt like we got to the bottom of the issue. Since that time I have found three shops who have been significantly more on the ball. #1: Topanga Auto Repair (5333 Topanga Canyon, Woodland Hills), #2 European Auto Service (18520 Wyandotte, Reseda), #3 British Motor Cars (3111 E Thousand Oaks Blvd # 5, Thousand Oaks).

Good luck!

 

I believe I also visited European Auto Service--the guy there (Renee?) has some relationship with Mina Gallery or actually is Mina Gallery. The only thing I did not like about the place was that there is no room for the cars before or after they are actually being worked on. I think they just park the cars on the nearby local residential street which, frankly, looks kind of iffy.


Doug

 

Wassup everybody. my Jag, 03 STR, will be due for its 100k service soon (currently 98xxx)and i was wondering if anybody can recommend me a shop to take it to. I much rather NOT take it to my local dealer (Galpin Jaguar on Roscoe) Im located in the SF valley but wouldn't mind taking a drive to surrounding areas to have my Jag taken care of with quality work at a fair price. any help greatly appreciated.

 

Haven't been there yet, but hear great things about RMB auto in Burbank. Another member here had a good experience after my suggestion.

 

Read through the preceding posts. Shops I have found but not yet used include European in Reseda (the Mina Gallery guy), McClain in Encino, the place on Van Nuys Boulevard just south of the 101, Just Jaguar on Woodman just north of the 101, Bonnet-to-Boot in Encino, British & European Car Service in Encino, Steves Jaguar Service in Canoga Park, etc.

I have been using Galpin since I still had a warranty and they are the closest 'official' Jaguar shop around, although I have not been impressed with them so far.

Doug

 

He's an independent alright - he'll tell you what he wants to do and what he doesn't want to do. Try to wait at his shop for your car and he'll tell you to leave. NO WAY I'd ever go to him again (and it was only an oil change!)

 

I spent a few hours one night looking at a 2004 Vanden Plas and talking a deal there. They were closing, so salesman says call me tomorrow at lunchtime. When I called to tell him I was coming to pick up the car, he said another salesman sold it that morning. Galpin acts so high and mighty with their fancy dealership, but they're just money-grabbing scum.

 

Frankly, in terms of servicing I have never had much luck with the service departments in dealerships. I have found out that they start out okay for the first few years when you are stuck going there while you have the warranty but as soon as the warranty is done, watch out. Galpin has one of the glitziest operations I have seen. They primarily cater to folks that probably are not as sensitive to pricing but like being coddled with a fancy waiting area and complimentary Starbuck's coffee.


Doug

 

Yup. Richard at RMB in North Hollywood is great!

 

pasadenamotorcars.com
We are a new Independent repair shop that is Family Owned Factory Trained. Located on the east side of Pasadena next to Arcadia/Sierra Madre.
I have worked for Penske Jaguar/Aston Martin and Rusnak Jaguar from 1999 to 2009.
Justed opened my own shop in late 2009 and hired another excellent Jaguar technician. We specialize in Jaguar,Aston Martin,and Land Rover.
Jaguar master certified and ASE master certified .
We are good with all cars 1995-2011 We are fully equipped to handle all repairs and needs. Factory scan tools and special jaguar tools. Any questions please ask, or visit us at pasadenamotorcars.com
626-449-6686 Owen Curtis

 

Owen---now if only you guys opened a shop in the San Fernando Valley!


Doug