Camp Pendleton Auto Skills Center in
Oceanside (CA)

Great place to do diy repairs on your vehicle, including bay/lift/tool rental and advice from knowledgeable staff.

Don’t get any of the negative reviews. They’re helpful whether you’re a skilled mechanic or a regular dude who’s trying to put on coilovers for the first time by yourself. Good price, I’ve only ever used the lifts but it’s $12/hr for the lift and that includes all the tools you would need for a job. Only recommendation would be to have some more 16mm impact drill bits (1/2”) but that’s really the only complaint. Everyone’s been really kind and helpful

Baltazar and the crew are really helpful the best place to fix your cars 5 star

Awesome, we'll stocked facility with the friendless staff anywhere! A true one-stop shop for all your automotive needs. And all at a great price!

It’s a great place to come. You can use the lift rent the tools get your car worked on if you know how to work on your car.

First time here Easter Sunday ! The women in the office area were kind and pleasant explained what I needed to do to get a stall and about tool check out procedures. Sam was very Helpful and knowledgeable he guided me to Luke who fabricated what I needed to install original mufflers back on vehicle as he mig welded them in place. Awesome Job Ty ! Sam runs a eyes on Safety First approach to All work Done in Shop, and maintains a very clean shop area. I will return!

Love this place. Guys are super cool and helpful. They got some nice tools for fuel pumps. I just dont appreciate expired soda from the vending machine.

Thank you so much to the Auto Skills team! From the Ms. Ashlyn, to Mr. Gary, to Mr. Baltazar! I had a nail in my tire, and they fit me in and had my tire plugged and ready to go within an hour of my request! Thank you for the high quality work and professionalism shown during a truly stressful situation for myself! Highly recommend this location for any of your car services! Extremely price friendly as well!

The staff make this place a nightmare, half of the time they’re talking down to you and think they know everything, typical old person. Trying to get a lift can be a headache and they’re quick to say comeback some other time. I’d recommend going to Miramar Auto Skills before this one, staff is younger and way more helpful and never hostile.

Have to show up a hour early to get a lift, if your not in line when they open your not going to be able to get in, if you show up after about 12 they will turn you away, will say there’s no stalls when you can clearly see 1/2 the bays are open. If you so happen to lucky enough to get a stall it costs about $13 a hour, end up paying $100 easy to work on your car for a day, which 1/2 the time you will spend waiting in line to get and return tools.

Greatest place I've found in California to work on your vehicle and have assistance from the techs from around the shop. Only issue is they don't have wash bays to detail your vehicles.

Looks like a nice place… from outside the gates. Showed up during what is supposed to be hours of operation but not a soul was in sight and no signs saying why or if they would be coming back. Complete waste of time. Just another reason why the army does it better.

Chris was my technician and he was so helpful and professional. As a 1st timer, he patiently took me through the rudiments of doing oil change on your own. Great guy! Ashlyn the customer service rep was also helpful and professional. I really appreciate all your support. Thank you.

Reading some of the other 1-star reviews, glad to see nothing has changed in the last 6 years. Their hours are garbage; the manager lied saying that their website states that they stop taking cars at 15:30 - website showed no such info anywhere at all. Military civilians and contractors can be worse than bad leadership - this is a prime example.

Very nice facility and the people working there were very friendly and helpful. The place is clean and well kept. They had all the tools I needed to change my 16 spark plugs. This was very useful seeing as though it was my first time doing it on my Jeep. Will definitely be using this place again and maybe trying a few more things on the Jeep. Oh and doing this myself saved me a bunch of money. Got quoted almost a $1,000 dollars so I looked up the price of the spark plugs and paid $125 for them (on Amazon). The stall I used was around $23 because it took me 3 hours to do this and I got 2 Hagen Daz Ice cream bars for me and my assistant/teacher (Husband)? all for about $150. Yeah worth every bit of the dirty hands and Ice cream calories.

For my fellow brothers and sisters, that voluntarily serves for this country and put their lives on the line! Only: To be charged a higher price to do their "OWN" work!! Is another slap in my face!! $110 to put 2 tires on the rim and get "my" hands dirty.($60 off base) I have to asks why not just charged 10% instead of 60% for service. Vietnam Vet!

On Fri, Apr5/1200, I took my truck to the Auto Skills Center to replace a broken wheel stud on my Toyota Tacoma truck. I’ve never had to replace a wheel stud before and felt intimidated by work that lay ahead. However, Chris a superb techincian at the auto center helped me a lot w/my uneasiness. Although Chris is not allowed to provide hands-on work, he instructed and showed me how to replace the broken wheel stud. Chris needs to be recognized for his general mechanical know-how, competency, and willingness to help a veteran brother in need. Chris exemplfies a person of great character. Thank You Chris for your help today! Hal Bonilla, Retired USAF MSgt

DIY auto shop on base with any kind of lift you might need. They have a small store where you can buy oil and small hardware, you can rent any tool you need and they have access to ALLDATA for any vehicle information or how-to guides from about 1980s to present. You also can order parts and tires in store or online and have them delivered here to install yourself.

They have all the equipment you could need. They even have a store for small items such as grease oil’s. Local auto shops deliver much-needed parts to the doorstep. Store your car while you’re working on it. I’ve been coming here for almost 35 years. Stalls lift diagnostic machines and a mechanical staff to provide much needed knowledge

I'm a regular here, and have done almost anything you can do to a car. I wouldn't have been able to do any of it, if it wasn't for Sam, Greg, and Luke. Tool room guy is hilarious; He'll try to get under your skin, but he's just joking with you. Lifts are convenient, and they have just about everything you need. They're also an AMSOIL dealer.

Auto Hobby shop camp pendleton is AWESOME. The place have easy access spectacular clean have all tools and equipment available to complete your auto works. The staff are very knowledgeable, approachable, helpful, very patient and friendly. Thank you very much to Sam and Luke. They assist and guide me to complete my projects of changing brake pads and rotor for my 2013 Suburban. I would not cmplete the tasks without these two gentlemen. These two stood up above all. Greatly appreciated. Stay kind and helpful.

Great place to learn about cars and get your hands dirty. They got drive on jacks and can mount tires new or used for very cheap. They also have a selection of tools for you to use. Savannah in the tool room was kinda rude and seemed she didn’t like working there but guy at the front desk was very polite and informative, and the tire guy mounted and balanced the tires fast and on 34inch tires. Would recommend

This establishment is awesome for the Marines to use on their time off. Prices are reasonable, the staff is knowledgeable, and the facility is flexible if you need more time than planned. My only gripe is that it’s all the way in Camp Pendleton north. Bottom line: San Onofre/Mateo/Horno (1st & 5th Marines) need a closer facility! Marines are forced to hide from the MPs and change their oil or tires in the barracks parking lot, rather than bring them to a safe and secure facility like the hobby shop. Bring the Auto Skills center back to the SOI area and give these Marines what they need!

I did a major suspension overhaul and steering components. Justin and his team was extremely helpful and knowledgeable. Dave and Greg were always ready to lend me an extra set of hands as well as their expertise. I’m not a complete novice but at the same time I’m not a mechanic so their presence, availability and help was instrumental to my success. Thanks guys! I highly recommend going there to work on your car or truck. Learn something about your ride and yourself.

Staff was extremely helpful and friendly. Specifically Tiffany and Dave helped me find compatible parts for my vehicle, and Penny helped with tool advice. The facilities were as expected, but the staff 100% made the experience into a 5 star visit.

The auto skills shop is great! Staff here is always friendly and helpful. The lifted stalls only cost $8 an hour and they can guide you if you need any assistance with your car maintenance/work. Learned how to change my oil and brakes here and they even have an oil pan that's adjustable that drains directly into a hazmat waste bin so you don't have to pour or dispose of it yourself. You can check out up to 10 tool set at once and get two rags with each set, extra tag for extra rags. I'd recommend stopping by and learning great skills at a even better price.

Love the lifts and the rovers that come around to help or just ask what your working on. The tool room guy is incredibly rude. Said Marines promises were about as good as the paper they were on. Would give five stars if you didn't have to deal with him everytime you needed a broom.