Coast Auto Body

I’d like to give this place no stars, but that’s not a possibility. To make a long story short, they kept my car for 2 ½ months and did a half ass job, went to Honda and said to go right back because «it’s not under warranty» (of course they were going to act as a dealership would). Came back to talk to them and they went out of business… GTFOH!

I have taken my cars here for many years and the service was always wonderful. Are they gone now that Elmer passed away? How sad. Have they moved or just closed down? I need a new body shop of this caliber. Any suggestions?

These people may be out of business, we still have not got our car back, and the insurance company is out of the check it issued for the work.
We brought the car in for some minor body work at the end of November. I’m told that the day after we brought the car in, the workers stopped coming in and the business closed, and the insurance company advises that Coast Auto Body cashed the check (it was made out to the shop and to the insured, but I know that I never signed the check). Don’t bother trying to reach them — there is no one there, and while you can listen to a pleasant voice giving their hours, you then get a message that their voice mail box is full. Hopefully our car is locked up in the shop, but there is no way to reach these guys and we can’t get our car back.

I had the repairs done over a year ago but realized I never gave these guys the great review they deserved.
I went first to Kennedy Autobody in Redwood City. When the guy I spoke to there would not give me an estimate without seeing the check from my insurance company, alarm bells sounded in my head and I decided to look at what Unilocal!had to say about who I should try instead. I saw the great reviews for Coast and headed over — without my insurance check.
I aksed how much and said that I idn’t have the check on me. He told me he didn’t need to see the check and proceeded to give me a quote on the spot. A great price, too! Not only did they do a good job and fast, they got me out with close to $ 700 of my insurance check left — a big help to a single mom only working 32 hours a week! The one thing I didn’t have them do was the windshield, which was from a rock on the freeway, not the accident that damaged my car. They have to bring someone in from outside for that, apparently, and I was able to do that cheaoer elsewhere. For bodywork, though, I will definitely remember to come back should I ever need it again. Just recommended a co-​worker to them, too!

I frequent Elmer and Coast Auto Body whenever something minor to major happens with any of my cars. They are the most attentive and honestly the fastest i have ever been to. Mirrors have been broken and replaced within an hour, scratches and dents and emblems replaced and painted within an hour or so, everything is next day too! I really appreciate their service and professional look, they do not let anything come back sub-​par, thats for sure.
They can find pretty much anything i have ever needed in a flash!

Coast did a great job on the rear of my 2002 Mitsubishi Montero Sport. Coast gave me my car with new parts, washed and looking like new. The other person’s insurance company paid for the repairs, and I was very happy to get my car back looking good.
Elmer is gruff, but so are most old guys, and he was extremely interesting to talk to about the car industry and current trends with Japanese cars after the earthquake and tsunami in Japan. Elmer opened Coast 36 years ago, so he has seen a lot happen in the history of cars. There is an awesome photo on the wall at Coast — an arial view of Coast and the surrounding area 35 years ago with a lot of 1960s & 1970s cars.
I highly recommend Coast Auto Body and will definitely go back to Coast if necessary. I hope I do not need to use their services in the future though!

Did a fantastic job! Fast and honest. Very reliable and not overpriced.

This was a great shop. They gave me a fair estimate and they came in under. They took a few extra days, but their work was really good. The owner, Elmer, was gruff at first-​but he warmed up. They seemed very honest, and again-​great work.

Service here was prompt and quotes were reasonable and fair. The owner, Elmer tends to be on the gruff side and all business. If you want a bit better customer service, talk to his son Steve who is amazing to work with. When I got into a fender bender on 101, they fixed my car up within no time. When I got swiped in Palo Alto, they worked with me and the guilty party to get my car fixed up since she didn’t want to involve her insurance. They made sure I got my car back to perfect and when they needed parts, they ordered the original Toyota parts. Auto body shops have a tendency to have a «shady rep» but this place has been honest and thorough. Highly recommended!

Coast sent me a check for a new GPS system. At least they made it right.

I recently had my truck repaired there, second vehicle they’ve worked on of mine.
I was treated professionally by the staff, reasonable pricing, and excellent results.
I highly recommend this place if you need collision repair.

I really like these guys. They do really good work, their prices are very competitive, and their service is well above the norm for this industry. Every time I’ve had to deal with them (because let’s face it, you never actually WANT to deal with an auto body shop) I’ve come away impressed and de-​stressed from the experience.

Why an auto body shop? Well, let’s just say that I had a 1MPH back-into-my-neighbor’s-car incident. Yeah. Um. Yeah.
OK, so moving on, I got referred to Coast Auto Body through my insurance company. I was not required to get the work done there, but they were able to give an official estimate that the insurance guys could use.
For a car that needed a new rear bumper, a new sensor, a bracket, some foam thing, and some other stuff, the estimate came out to be just over $ 1500, which is very competitive for a fancy ride like mine.
The guys in the office were extremely polite and fit me in the schedule. Dropped it off on a Thursday morning and picked it up on Friday afternoon. Not only had they fixed everything, but they threw in a full-​body buff/​shine which made my 4 year old car look seriously brand new again. On top of that, the billing was simple through the insurance company, plus my (significant) portion that I had to pay as well.
I hope to never need an auto body shop again, but if I do, I will come back to Coast. Thanks, guys!

I have had two great experiences with this body shop. My first occasion was just before Christmas of 2008. I was driving to pick up dinner for the family and I passed a Mountain Mikes Pizza driving North on El Camino. It was raining and dark. As I got up to the pizza place. Out of no where someone opened their car door, side swiping my car and pulling the right side mirror off. WHO does that!?! I had my lights on and I was in the middle of the cars moving forward. You should have waited until all the cars passed, looked behind and then opened the door. Anyway, needless to say they were at fault. My Insurance company referred me to Coast Auto Body.
They gave me an estimate and time frame for my mirror and the damage done to the right side fender and doors. Their estimate was very low and they kept me up to date with what was happening with my car. They did a fantastic job repairing my car and I couldn’t tell where the damage was. It took less than a week to fix. They matched the paint just like it came from at the factory. Very impressed. They even gave me the window from one of the doors that had to be replaced because it had been chipped in the accident.
Just last week, I was shopping in Foster City and parked my car in the parking lot outskirts to avoid other vehicles and possible door dings. I shopped for a few hours and returned to my car. To my surprise I found a Home Depot shopping car leaning against my car. There weren’t any other cars in the area and no other carts. I pulled the cart away and found a huge dent in the front passenger door. I went back to Coast Auto and they gave me the Dent Doctors number. I called him and he referred me back to the body shop. He mentioned the dent was very big and that the shopping cart didn’t just hit the car and that someone had to have pushed it. WHY??? Why does someone have to destroy something I try to take care of. Needless to say, I went back to Coast. I talked to Coast’s Manger and after being laid-​off from work last year and still not working. I didn’t want to file a claim again with the insurance. Coast repaired the car and only charged me the deductible I would have paid to the insurance company. I was very concerned and knew that dent would have cost more, but again they wanted me to be satisfied and we worked out a very very low cost. That really made me feel special. The car looks even better. The paint is perfect once again and they polished the car. Kudo’s to Robert who paints their vehicles. The Dent Doctor they recommended me to, also commented that Robert’s paint job look like the factory had done it. I personally thanked him upon receiving my car back. It’s so hard to find someone that takes pride in their work and this guy does. Also, it took just 3 days to repair my 2007 Audi A3. Actually it took them 2 and a half days. I was able to still do some errands in the afternoon. Thanks again Guys!!!
I am so impressed with the professionalism of this business and customer satisfaction. If you need work done, check these guys out. They are the best in my book and they work as a Certified Body Shop for many insurance companies. You won’t be disappointed. I will be coming back for years to come. If and when I need them.

Calling to ask for estimate they just want to see the car but my car is not drivable, very bad attitude and not helpful at all.

A few months back my son was side swiped in his 2004 mustang, I am in the automotive industry and know many of the body shops in the redwood city and San Carlos area. All i can say is there is none better than Coast Auto Body, these guys are awesome. We brought the Mustang in on a tuesday, repairs were authorized the next day and repairs were completed within a week. the car came back in better shape than before the accident, having been fully detailed and buffed. Elmer (the owner) and his office staff and shop crew are super professional and are a pleasure to do business with. If you are reading reviews to pick a shop for repairs, look no longer you have found the best…

My 50^th Review — WHOO HOO!
I can’t believe that I finally made it (and I still have TONS more to catch-​up on).
Nevertheless, Coast Auto Body Shop definitely deserves the Golden Review No. 50.
Okay, now that I’m done celebrating, let me say that Coast Auto Body were absolute professionals and extremely skillful at their craft!
On Voting Day 2008, I was heading to work after pulling-​out of the nearby Starbucks. I stopped at a light to observe the oncoming traffic. A few seconds before I was about to take my foot off of the brake, I was rear-​ended. Luckily, they didn’t hit me hard but hard enough to dent my rear bumper. Also, the driver assumed full responsibility and her insurance company contacted me within a day.
The insurance company highly recommended Coast Auto Body but of course, I wanted to get a few estimates and research various body shops before deciding.
After doing my homework and speaking with Steve at Coast Auto Body, I decided to go with them, which is a decision I’ll never regret!
First off, they had my car back to me within a day or two.
Secondly, the estimate was competitively much lower than the other shops that I looked into.
Thirdly, Coast Auto Body provides excellent customer service and a lifetime guarantee on all of their work!
Finally, when I saw my car, all I could say was «Holy Moly!» The work they did was beautiful and my car looked brand new! Oh my gosh AND they detailed both the inside and outside of my car! She looked gorgeous!
Since then, I have returned to Coast Auto Body to have a scratch removed from the trunk (received by the St. Francis hotel valet parking — Grrrrr!). Before charging me, they tried to get rid of the scratch with some industrial auto body stuff and since that didn’t work, they went for something a little more intense.
After an hour of waiting at the nearby Starbucks, my car was returned to me in the same beautiful, detailed condition as last time and the fix was very inexpensive.
Once again, five stars!

They did a fantastic job on my rear bumper. This is the 3^rd time I have had it repaired and they did it for about half of the cost of other places as well as getting it done in two days, rather than the usual week or two. I strongly recommend them.

Disclaimer — I have not had my car fixed at this place (yet).
I went in to determine the work need to fix my car. The folks a this shop were nice and professional. They gave me a written estimate of all the work that needed to be done as well as a detailed explanation of the work.

Memorable rating: 5 out of 5 (I want to forget about the _​_​_​_​_​_​_​who hit my friend’s car… at least I remembered where to fix it)
So I borrowed my friend’s car and was on my way to get coffee for all my addicted buddies… (im included)… Starbucks to be exact…
I waited at the railroad stop… and BAM!!!
WTF???
I jumped out of the car to see what idiot just hit me from behind…
I always find it amazing to see the kindness and smile from someone who just made the biggest mistake of his day!!!
Anyways… the damage was minimal and I was able to get my friend’s car fixed with exceptional turnaround from Coast Auto Body
They have been in business for 33 years!!! it shows… no BS… they just get the job done… the way it should be everywhere…
enough said…