South Bay Independent

I called several auto glass repairs to get a quote. But none surpass the reasonable and affordable price South Bay Independent was providing me. Mark was helpful when I asked about the price, he answered all my questions. My passengers side window was damage/​broken; it has never happened to me so I had too many questions and I’m glad Mark was able to help me. My window was repaired within 30 minutes. I didn’t had to wait and they were really friendly which is a bonus. Thanks for the great service!!!
P. S. Bring cash because is cash only.

This shop was referred to me by my business teacher from high school. After 4 years you are out of warranty with BMW and any maintenance issue has to be paid out of pocket.
First time I had to use their service was for 2 spark plugs. Dealer wanted to charge me 3 times the price and replace all 6. They did the job under one hour since I had booked my appointment.
Second time I went to them was due to a problem with the vanos. They have contact with South Bay BMW mechanics so they are still updated with what’s going on. They called for me and found out there was a way for me to get the job done thru the dealership at no cost.
They could have just fixed it for me and charged me but they went out of their way to help me. They are honest, hard working people that in my opinion are doing an amazing job.
Only suggestion would be to call in and make an appointment.

I’m not the type that likes writing reviews BUT I had to in this case. I am a BMW enthusiast now for a while and own quiet a few of them so I have been dealing with many shops and this one by far has been the best experience I have ever had with one. They are polite, knowledgeable, and I’m sure are enthusiasts also. I picked up my bimmer today and was totally satisfied with the work and price. My car was idling very rough with a check engine light for sometime. Just couldn’t quiet figure out what it was so I decided to bring it in to the experts and not only did they fix it and runs a lot better, I was totally surprised at what I only had to pay. Thank you Berto so much for your help boss! A+++

The other day my car was totally dead. I needed to make is work asap. I called AAA to have a jumpstart of my car. I was told its not the battery but could be the starter. I found an independent BMW shop less than a mile from my place and i have my car towed. The owner mechanic said i needed a starter and also a replacement battery. I asked if i can just have one job done since i lose my job. He insisted i need to have the 2 job done and boy it coz almost 1000.00 for the 2 jobs. I was frustrated and i decided to called Hua at South Bay. Just by telling him my problem he already knows and felt bad for me to be charged that much. he felt my frustration and offered free towing of my car to his shop. Woah! i was very thankful and immediately moved my car towed to him. Know what? my car only needed starter. Hua is absolutely correct! The battery and alternator still good. I end up paying less He saved me a lot again
This place is always very busy, you have to make an appointment.
These guys are very honest, skilled and dependable. They are committed to customer satisfaction and this is what makes them different and leaves customers satisfied.

When I transitioned from Asian import to German import, I was in need of a good BMW mechanic. I know with German cars, there are people out there that will try to charge you an arm an a leg for mediocre work. So I was very particular on how I would end up choosing my mechanic for this car.
Enter SBI.
My cousin recommended this place to me, as he had taken his past two cars to get serviced here. So I decided to give them a try, after checking out the Unilocal reviews. Well, it turned out to be a good recommendation, as I was very happy with their service.
The place is owned and run by two cousins who are both prior mechanics from the Torrance BMW. They are pretty pleasant to talk to, and are professional. They take pride in their work and do not try to nickle and dime you. They recently expanded to operate out of the entire building next to the fire station. They have more staff now, and they are pretty cool as well.
Pro tip: make an appointment with them ahead of time, as they can get very busy. Don’t hold this against them, they are just that awesome and are in demand.
I highly recommend them. If you are a BMW enthusiast like I am, then come here to get your maintenance work. You won’t regret it.

Wanted to give zero stars… went into ask some questions and the guys just doesn’t wanna answer my questions and just kept about doing his stuff he says he didn’t see my car so don’t know how much then I brought my car in then he says he cant do anything today. wow…all I want is a price quote and this is how I get treated by this skinny Asian dude. If they don’t wanna do business then don’t…don’t open ur door and not welcoming others. What a shame on a good review on Unilocal.More like kids play~they are too good for my money then so be it I go some where else where I am welcomed

Tang and Hua are extremely honest and hard working. They care about the customers and will charge you a fair price if you need maintenance. They are also fast and you will get your vehicle back by next day. I strongly recommend them to anyone. They are the best!!!

After many recommendations for a BMW mechanic, I always got recommendations for South Bay Independent. I trust them for their knowledge, skill, and ability. I don’t consider any other shop to work on my car.

This is the place to take your BMW if you want great service and pricing. They are honest and friendly. They don’t charge an arm and a leg like other places. Just a few fingers.
This is the place I take my e30 after my favorite local shop closed. The only bad part is that they are so far away that I have to take the whole day off to make it up there.
Hopefully, the sandwich shop across the street is still there next time I go.
I recommend this place to anyone who asks me for help on their BM

Hua is the man! My go to mechanic after the BMW warranty is up. He’s not your ordinary mechanic. He’s an enthusiast and will work on your car like its his own.
Been going to him since my E46 M3 days so for all the enthusiast you can do the math and calculate how many years I have been going to him.

Awesome and honest. Hard to beat that.
They give you recommendations like if your car was theirs.

Got brakes, rotors and oil change. Price was average. Was told my fluids were topped off and found that I have absolutely no windshield washer fluid so that was a lie. They did nothing out of the ordinary that would bring me back. And now I have to make an extra stop to get my fluids filled.
Update my car just started smoking because apparently my coolant level wasn’t checked during my oil change either.

I’m so glad to have found this shop and this review is way overdue.
This was for work done on a E92 in ⁰⁹⁄₁₄. I had a blown alternator and James was able to have a replacement installed very quickly after I had the car dropped off. I’ve been running the car since then with absolutely no problems at all.
To top it all off, I just called them today about getting a 4-​wheel alignment done and James didn’t even hesitate to recommend another shop to get the work done. Also, this shop doesn’t seem to mind if you do minor maintenance yourself, which is a huge plus in my book since I DIY some things (oil changes, brakes). I will definitely be coming back here for any work that needs to be done.

These guys are awesome. South Bay BMW wanted $ 700 for parts and labor to replace the battery in my wife’s e92 328i. Crazy! Called around, searched Unilocal,and found this place. Not only did they do a great job, they accommodated my obsessive-​compulsive need to watch and nitpick while they changed out the battery. They were very nice and patient with me. And the grand total was about $ 415 for the labor, a Bosch AGM battery, and the ecu reprogramming. Awesome!
Bottom line, when your car is out of warranty and the complimentary BMW service, you’ve got to bring your car to South Bay Independent.

These guys are awesome. Very nice, honest and affordable. I had a major oil leak issue which would have cost me $ 1200 to fix but they suggested it was likely covered under warranty and to call BMW and have them fix it for free, which they did!
I drive all the way from Costa Mesa to use these guys because they’re the best in the business.
They work exclusively in bmws which is also preferred.

James is the man there. He did a great job fixing my E39
He thoroughly answered all my question and why any parts needed replacement.
And even better yet, He never tried to upsell /​replace anything that didn’t need replacing or not due replacing.
Real honest guys!
Definitely coming back for preventive maintenance and repairs.
Thanks SBI

I love these guys! They are the experts in BMWs and they are extremely honest. They turned me away a couple times when I ask them to perform some service that they know is covered under warranty (but I obviously didn’t).
Just recently, they saved me over $ 6000 by telling me that my faulty turbocharger was covered in a special warranty (the warranty is good for 8 yrs, 82K miles and my car is 7 yo with 79K miles, which i figure is outside of the normal 6 yrs/​100K miles extended warranty coverage). They told me to make and appointment with a dealer and the service would cost $ 0. I didn’t know such warranty exists and the dealer never mentioned it. Anyone else would probably be glad to take my money.
Their honesty is not limited to regular customers. I’ve been referring them to my colleagues and friends and they told one of them (my boss, on his first visit there) to get a new car if he could afford it because they could tell the car would cost him a lot of money in the long run. They didn’t make any money from him at that time, but they gained his trust and confidence.
Even though they don’t provide fancy services (no loaners, coffee and what not), they are extremely nice and I honestly don’t care about those extras. One time I told someone to pick me up at Walmart and I planned on walking there. One of the guys overheard the conversation and offered me the ride, I didn’t even have to ask.
I’ve been taking my BMWs here for the last 5 – 6 years and will continue to take my cars here for as long as they have the shop.

I’ve been coming here for each of my BMW. From my E34 540i to my E39 530i. After getting them fix here I can always have that safe feeling and positive thought that my car was done by amazing mechanics! If you’re car is out of warranty this is the place to go! Best price is town and OEM parts.

Thang is the mang. I went in with a handbrake problem and he looked into it. At first the assumption was that we needed to replace the hand brake assembly. Parts and labor would come out to be several hundred dollars. I said go ahead and do it and left my car with him. I got a call the next morning that he figured out what was wrong and was only going to charge me 1 hour of labor.
He already had me on the hook for parts and multiple hours of labor and he calls in to say he fixed it? Only one hour of labor??? Saving me hundreds of dollars??? He could have just as easily stayed with the original plan.
Honesty and integrity is a rare thing. Especially when it comes to mechanics. I will be coming here from now on.

This is the absolute best place to take your BMW. These guys are honest and efficient.
I had a tiny leak in my power steering and I couldn’t afford the repairs at the time and the guy honestly told me the damage wasn’t that bad and you could continue to drive without repairs for a long time as long as you keep replacing the steering fluid. He gave me 3 bottles of the fluid FOR FREE, more than enough to last me until I could afford the repairs.
This is a small shop and it may not be the nicest looking, having boxes everywhere. That just means their only fixed overhead costs are utilities, rent, and labor so they could charge you less! They don’t small talk with you because they have so many customers, they just deal with only the relevant information. That doesn’t mean they don’t try to educate you a little about your car. English may not be their primary language (Vietnamese) but they’ll clearly explain all the details to you.