Canal Boulevard Auto Service

These guys know exactly what they’re doing. They are not here to take your money but to really help you. Happy is the best! Awesome guy and mechanic.

This is the only place I trust with my car. Happy knows everything about cars and he is very straightforward when explaining it to you. I have been going to him for years and honestly cannot imagine going to a different garage. Happy and Connie are the best and it always feels like I am catching up with old friends when I bring my car in. I tell all my friends to go there, and they feel the same way.

Summary: I’m an idiot, this mechanic is not, he saved me $ 700, and don’t trust dealerships.
I found myself stranded in the Lowes parking lot. My key no longer turned in the ignition. I phoned my roadside assistance (thanks Verizon!) and requested a tow. I explained my situation to the roadside assistance operator and she suggested I get towed to the local Honda dealership as the problem related to my ignition and key. Modern car keys are no longer something that just any mechanic can tackle, so I figured I’d play it safe and have it towed to Honda even though my gut instinct told me to take it to Happy at Canal Boulevard Auto Service, my trusted mechanic. I get a call the following day from Honda quoting me nearly $ 1000 to get my ignition working again. I nearly fainted. I immediately called Happy and spoke with his wife who was equally horrified. She suggested I have it towed (now at my own cost) across New Orleans to their shop. We’d figure it out from there and it’d certainly cost less than at the stealership. I get it towed over and Happy calls me soon thereafter. Upon investigation, he finds that he can’t actually fix it for cheaper than the dealership, but he knows a guy who he can have come take a look at it. That guy is Bill of AU Locksmith. Happy got Bill there within a couple hours and he repaired the lock right there at Happy’s shop. Happy charged me a small fee to diagnose the problem, disassemble for the locksmith, and facilitate the transaction. The whole thing set me back $ 300 including the towing, the locksmith, and Happy’s time.
Once again, Happy saved the day and figured out a creative solution for my car problem. He isn’t about making a buck off of his customers. He’s there to do an honest job so he can sleep well at night. I recommend this shop to all my friends, coworkers, and family without hesitation.

No frills trustworthy mom & pop’s auto shop! Happy & Connie are two of the most genuine and down to earth people I ever had the pleasure to meet. I’m so glad I took my car to Canal Blvd Auto Service!
I was on a roadtrip relocating from Texas to Florida. The A/​C on my Jeep stopped working when I was about 3 hours outside of NOLA. I almost passed out driving in 100 degree weather. Luckily I made it in town that evening. I previously booked two nights stay to tour the city. But my plan had to change b/​c the car problem. I only had one full day in NOLA to get my A/​C fixed so I could get back on the road the following morning.
Since I’m from out of town, finding a trusty auto shop to fix my car in only one day seemed like mission impossible. On top of that, everybody knows how much the auto business likes to ripe people off. So I was super stressed out about it. I woke up early and found a few places with good reviews on Unilocal.I even took my car to one of these shops for them to look at. Unfortunately most places said I had to leave the car there and it would take a few days.
I then called Canal Blvd Auto Service and explained what happened with my car. This man on the phone listened to me patiently then said it could either be a leak or a compressor issue. He tried to explain to me how the A/​C works in a car and told me I could take my car there for him to look at, free of charge. I later learned his name was Happy.
When I pulled my car in the drive way at Happy’s auto shop, I was having a hard time wrapping my head around it. I deff had a second thought about my decision to come here. Let’s just say this place is not fancy by any means, kinda of a dump even. Then Happy walked out.
He is very tall with grey hair. He looks like every mechanic with grease on his hands and his cloth. You can tell Happy is a veteran auto mechanic. He seems to know so much about cars and he likes explaining how car works to everyone around him including me. He did a quick diagnostic on my car. And it turned out it wasn’t just a leak that could be fixed easily. My compressor was burnt which explained why smoke was coming out of the hood when I was driving. The problem was pretty serious and my car was not safe to drive.
It is very costly to replace the whole compressor kit so I expressed my concerns. Happy never forced anything on me. Instead he provided me with two less expensive alternative solutions to help me make it to Florida safely. His wife Connie spent a lot of time calling around trying to find cheaper parts for my car. I instantly felt I could trust them and decided to have the compressor replaced there. I told Happy I had to get on the road the following day and he assured me that he would try his best to get my car fixed by the end of the day no matter how late it was going to be.
Happy’s wife Connie gave me a ride to the place I was staying. The ride wasn’t fancy either but I enjoyed the conversation with Connie. She is such a nice lady and also knows so much about cars. She and Happy are long time residence of NOLA and have never abandoned this city even after the hardship caused by Hurricane Katrina. They lost everything they owned and had to rebuild their auto shop. Finally things started to pick up but another storm recently damaged Happy’s shop so he lost half of the roof entirely. And that explains why the shop looks like a dump. But Happy always keeps his spirit high and is never defeated by the setbacks in life. He continues to do what he does best while helping other people.
Connie called me around 9pm and told me my car was ready. She picked me up and gave me a ride back to the shop. Both of them seemed relieved and happy that they were able to help a helpless girl get back on the road safely. I chatted more with Happy and Connie. I learned about their life and their children and grand children. When I told Happy I was moving to Florida to finish my PhD, I saw sparks in his eyes. I know how much he values education.
Happy asked how I found his shop. I said I found him on Unilocal.He told me that his business was slow for a long time b/​c everybody got new cars after the hurricane. Then business started picking up and random people would come to his shop to fix their cars. He was surprised by how these ppl found him and someone told him that he had good reviews on Unilocal.And that’s the first time Happy had heard of Unilocal not knowing much about the Internet. He said he’s glad ppl wrote honest reviews about his business and he’s happy they could find him on the Internet.
I’ve been in Florida for a couple of months now. And I finally got some time to write this review. The A/​C on my Jeep has been working like a charm and keeping me cool in the Florida weather. I still remember Happy & Connie vividly. Somehow they reminded me of my parents or any hardworking, genuine, perseverant humble people for that matter. I’m so glad I got to meet them!
Take your car to Happy, trust me you will be VERY HAPPY!

Fixed my problem immediately and didn’t even charge me. Clearly knows what he is doing and is really friendly. I will be back!

Another great lead driven by Unilocal!The service great, honest, and a deal. Thanks Happy!

The owner, Happy, is awesome. He’d had a break in (first and only in 18 years) the night before I swung by and was admittedly «furious» about it. But that didn’t stop him from cheerfully giving my jeep a complementary once over in anticipation of a long trip.
Clear and straightforward, Happy explained everything he was doing and offered frank assesments and advice. I ended up having him replace my fan belt and waited at the Mid City Bulldog two doors down while he worked (quickly and affordably) on my car.
Highly recommended for anyone but especially those who are a bit out of their depth discussing what’s under the hood.

Straightforward, fast and helpful. Listens to you and talks you through any problems, like a good doctor would.

After being misdiagnosed and ceremoniously dismissed three times by another mid city auto shop (why wouldn’t they believe me when I told them it was the starter?), I took my truck to Canal Boulevard Auto Service. They listened to me, make the correct diagnosis and repaired my vehicle in a day and at a great price. Growing up both the daughter and baby sister of two mechanics, I have pretty good «spidey sense» when it comes to auto repair and I advise you to check these guys out.

Read these reviews on Unilocal and decided to visit Happy when our car battery died. He replaced the battery and told us we needed to fix our radiator as well. All in all cost us just under $ 400 and it was all fixed before lunch. Highly recommend Canal Boulevard Auto Service when your car breaks down! It’s not easy to find a great mechanic — but you have one in Happy.

Let me tell you about Happy. Happy is one of the last old-​school mechanics. He can listen to your car and nine times out of ten, he can diagnose it if it’s the engine.
He’s also extremely honest and fair about things. When my poor Saturn stopped trying to move, I coaxed it to Happy’s shop and he got in… put it in reverse and rolled maybe 3 feet and knew what was happening.
And since it was a death-​sentence for my car, he didn’t even charge me to check it out. He also looked up what the value would be and called around to some friends to see if he could get me a buyer for it as-​is.
To me, that’s service and it’s what I want from a mechanic.
P. S. They have a shop dog that’s just about the sweetest thing ever.

Happy made me very happy!
Earlier this summer, my car would not start. AAA jump-​started it but the problem was not the battery. I was going to head to the dealership, when a friend said, «Don’t take it to the dealership. Take it to Happy.» I drove my car to Canal Blvd. Auto Repair, but at that point it was running fine. Happy took a look at my car, told me that he didn’t want to do unnecessary diagnostic tests, and if I had a problem I should come back. Fast-​forward six months. My car would not start and could not be jumped. I had my car towed to Canal Blvd. Happy diagnosed the problem (the starter), ordered a new part, was delivered the wrong part, ordered it again, and fixed my car by the end of the day. I was able to pick it up the next morning.
Canal Blvd. Auto Repair is run by Happy Hathaway and his wife. Happy has been the owner/​operator for the last 15 years (he worked at the business prior to that, and was a mechanic in the Army as well, so he has a lifetime of experience). It does not look like much from the outside (supposedly so he can pass the savings on to his customers). You’re certainly not going to hang out and wait on your car, but Happy’s wife will give you a ride to work, just like you might find at a dealership.
I don’t know much about cars, but Happy and his wife seem like friendly, honest, knowledgeable people. He did the work quickly, efficiently, and for a reasonable price. I trust him. That’s as much as you can say about a mechanic.