Gateway Auto Repair in
Mountlake Terrace (WA)

Great service, knowledgeable mechanics, super nice and helpful

Staff doesn't talk much. They didnt put everything back together after an installation. Hopefully next visit will be better

Rude, disrespectful , can’t even give you a time range on how long a simple maintenance check might be when you have an appointment. And hangs up on you.

I’m deeply disappointed and disturbed by my experience at this shop. Not only was the owner rude and unprofessional, There is absolutely no excuse for that kind of behavior—especially in a place of business that deals with the public. I went in expecting basic respect and fair service, and instead I was met with hostility and discrimination. It’s unacceptable, and it’s something people need to be aware of before giving this place their business. No one should have to tolerate that kind of treatment—ever. I will never return, and I strongly encourage others to think twice before supporting a business that behaves like this.

Went today to request a system flush and a thermostat replacement as it is getting warm on the highway (not in idle nor during city driving). The technician asked me if it was overheating; I said "yes, a little" so he walked out to the car (Dodge Durango) and asked me to pop the hood, which I did. He found that I was low on coolant; he went to the shop, brought coolant out and topped off the system. He charged me $50 for this top off. During the look at the cooling system (5-6 minutes?) most of what he told me (about 80% give or take) were things that I already knew. I tried to give him exact symptoms but he would hear none of it; as soon as I agreed that it was overheating a little he assumed he knew all about it and topping it off would solve the problem. That has been done before and it still gets warm on the highway (not in the city or at idle). He told me to drive home and look under the car for a leak; I told him that I have been looking for a leak for weeks and have not found one so there shouldn't be one currently; again, he did not want to hear it. I think he charged me $50 because I did not agree with everything he said; lesson learned that if I return I should play dumb and just go along with whatever he says. This is not the kind of shop I need to do business with; they used to care about the customer but I can see now that the focus has changed. I told him about the AC system recharge I would also need and you know what? He asked me if I wanted him to look at it. He wanted another $50 for another 5 minutes!! For want of $50 the shop lost 2 immediate jobs that I already have a $600-$700 estimate for; I was looking for a 2nd opinion. Great job guys!! You have also lost every other maintenance job I will need to do on the vehicle to keep it running - over the years I am not sure how much that will be. Great job, guys!!! I have already started spreading the word; you want anyone here to look in your direction bring lots of cash! And that's just to pop the hood and look at it!!! Good grief - how much could an actual repair be??

Easy to talk to someone and have my car ready. Sometimes it's a wait but they always get my car back on the road :)

The mechanic Mike is very nice but not too knowledgeable about old cars. We have a 1965 Ford Mustang that was making clicking sounds. We also needed a tune up and oil change. They said the clicking was due to an exhaust leak and they couldn't fix it because they don't have a welder. He said I didn't have to fix it because it was a small leak. They charged over $600.00 for the oil change, tune up and diagnosis for the exhaust leak, which they didn't fix. I'll never go there again. I do NOT recommend Gateway Automotive!! I ended up going to Andy's Auto Repair in Lynnwood. I highly recommend Andy's! I just wish I had gone there first!

Lynnwood towing company are the best! They took good care of me. They were fast, professional, and low price. Will recommend to everyone.

Lifesaver Ignition interlock I have had my device malfunction so many times that it almost cost me to loose my home because I was not able to work for 2 weeks due to a low breath temperature alert that would not go away. I emptied my storage on New Years Eve 2024 and the POS would not allow my vehicle to start. They swapped it out and not even 48 hours the pos started throwing a Abort code. I had to have my vehicle towed twice already plus additional shop fees. I could see if were drinking but that is not the case. Very Upset Client. Hold times are ridiculous unless you push the sales option. Good luck with chat because that doesn't work either. Their automated system is garbage too. The owner of the shop looks and acts like an evil Cooter from Dukes of Hazard smoking cigarettes in the shop. New Flash it is illegal to smoke in the work place.

Mike has been my mechanic for over twelve years now. I will be sad if he retires or I move. I have two 4Runners he keeps working. The oldest is a 1997 that still runs like a champ. I think I am on my third or fourth timing belt, so it’s got a lot of miles. My newer truck is a 2008, and Mike only gets to work on it occasionally. All good mechanics are expensive but I feel Mike does what needs doing, and then appraises me of what else needs work. With older cars, it’s always something. This time I thought my starter on the ‘97 was bad, and had three other issues to look at. Turns out the starter was fine and we fixed everything else for a cost I could live with. I appreciate the fact I can always get in to have an issue looked at immediately, and he has even helped my sister when she drove out from Wyoming to visit.

Mike is knowledgeable mechanic. His staff are welcoming. Have been treated well over the years. Fair pricing.

My family takes our cars to this location and have for years. My son had work done on his car and apparently they had to charge the battery at some point and they charged him an extra $25 for this service, outrageous!!! Just out of curiosity I called Legend auto up the street as a stranger and he said $15 for the same service.

Fastest oil change and tire rotation ever! They were done in about 30 minutes, super nice, and showed me the price beforehand. I appreciate the great customer service and straightforward recommendation on what my car needs.

Go literally anywhere else for whatever needs you may have. In a roadside emergency, if this was the nearest place, I would pay extra to go somewhere else, far away from Gateway Auto Repair and the awful people who work there. These men are the rudest, most unprofessional people I have ever had to deal with in any business transaction in my life. I did not go here expecting to have a red carpet rolled out for me, but even with low to no expectations, my experiences (yes, experiences, I had to work with them several times) were uniformly terrible. Their ability to make every single interaction from simply taking payment for their services, to answering basic questions (like where should I park my car while I wait?) unnecessarily confusing, stressful, and hostile is almost impressive, were it not so frustrating and upsetting to deal with. I am telling you - do not go here, for anything, ever.

Absolute snakes who don't know what they are doing. They told a friend they need a new transmission because it was shot and the transmission oil filter was filthy. How did they know that if they never took off the transmission oil pan? They were just guessing and trying to take advantage of her. I would never recommend you to go hear, especially if you are a girl.

No one should ever go to this place. Every person who works here is super unprofessional and super rude. They went to install a device in my car and it ended up messing up coding that they swore wasn’t their fault. I had to tow my car to another shop because they didn’t care to look at it and the technicians who looked at it clearly stated it had been messed up due to the people here. Please do yourself a favor and do not come here.

Mike the Mechanic was fantastic. Very friendly and you could tell immediately he knew his stuff. Got me right in and right out and did a great job. I was so used to horrible service I was absolutely shocked about how efficient everything was. I won't take my car any place else.

I went there to have an interlock device installed. The installer could not get the equipment to function properly for me and I requested a uninstall. At that point he left having to go on a bounty with his boss, and left me hanging for quite a bit of time this experience started at 9 AM and ended at almost 2 PM after they uninstalled all their equipment. I am now currently trying to resolve an install charge to my credit card and Smart start seems to be pretty unresponsive. I believe their equipment to be outdated and would suggest alternatives if you need a lockout device. It’s been along time since I’ve Interacted with a company that is so terrible. Run as fast as he can from this company!

I went in for a vehicle repair. $500 later they said they couldn't fix it. Then sold me a car from their lot for $1500. It broke in a month and had to be towed away. No money back.

Poor customer service. Extremely rude behavior. Didn’t reassemble what was taken apart 5 minutes earlier correctly. Tried to shut the hood with the battery cover off which would’ve broken the cover. Threw parts inside of car. Gave attitude when asked about a recipe.

This was the absolute WORST customer service I have ever experienced. The tiny Asian man working did not have a mask on as he approached customers. In the short 10/15 minutes I was there I watched the tiny Asian man employee mouth off to SEVERAL customers. He was extremely rude in every customer interaction he had. When he approached my car he snapped at me for the keys. Instead of immediately handing him the keys I told him to please wear a mask, in which he snapped back at me “I am” and pulls up the mask from around his neck. What good does that do?! After this we decided to take our cars elsewhere for service. OWNER please reconsider who you have employed, this man was TERRIBLE!!!! I will never be back to this location.

First time going here was great. I just had an expensive issue with another vehicle I was hoping to have them diagnose though, and the mechanic on the phone was arrogant and condescending, and frankly didn’t seem to care to have my business. I’ll gladly oblige and take it elsewhere.

First of all- THIS IS NOT A TOW SERVICE. COMMENTS ABOUT TOW SERVICE SHOULD BE DIRECTED AT THE TOWING SERVICE!!! WE DO NOT HAVE A TOWING SERVICE BUT USE DIFFERENT COMPANIES!!! Secondly- We are a Smart Start Location. (Ignition Interlock Breathalyzer Install and Removal) If you are unhappy with Smart Start, then you should place a review with Smart Start not Gateway Auto!!!! Auto Repair and Smart Start have different hours of operation. You should ask us what they are and be ON TIME for appointments. Being Late to any appointment could cause a cancellation and a reschedule. ********** If you want good reliable mechanics this is the place for you. I have been coming to Gateway Automotive for years for all my cars needs (Hyundai Genesis, Toyota Camry, Hyundai Kona), from oil changes to brake replacements to maintenance services. They are incredibly friendly. They have kept my cars in awesome working order. Go to Gateway Automotive for great service!!!!!! Say Hi to Steve and Mike!

Gateway was absolutely stellar to work with. I called ahead, they gave me a time to drop my car off, then asked me some questions about the issues with my car. About an hour after I left it, I had a call to discuss the work necessary and the associated costs. My car was done a couple hours later and running like a champ. Can't recommend these guys enough.

This review is for work done to my vehicle in July 2017. I never post reviews but I am still so upset about this that I finally got around to writing about it. I would not trust these guys with a ten-foot pole if you are having anything remotely complex done to your car. I took my car there to have the timing belt and water pump replaced as part of routine maintenance after 120k miles. The cost was reasonable compared to other places, but lo and behold! shortly after getting this work done, I found my radiator had a leak and had to be replaced. Upon looking at the radiator (fan assembly), I found that it was COMPLETELY MANGLED, as though someone had taken it out and just shoved it back in haphazardly. It was totally FUBAR - see photos - pieces were bent out of shape and even broken off in some places. The radiator itself had holes in it, possibly from the fan blades. I was understandably upset, given that I had taken the car in for work just the day prior. When I called them about this, they were unwilling to take responsibility in any way for the damage done to my car, claiming that they hadn't touched the radiator. This seemed very suspicious to me as, firstly, several parts need to be taken out in order to access the timing belt for replacement. Secondly, there's no way that the radiator/fan could suddenly have an issue like that without someone removing the part and breaking it upon reinstallation. After BS-ing their way past my complaint, Gateway told me they would be happy to replace my radiator assembly for an extra $500! No thanks! I replaced the radiator myself for only $150, and would never in my life return to this company unless I want to be overcharged for fixing things that THEY broke. Stay away.

CUSTOMERS BEWARE! POOR IGNITION INTERLOCK INSTALLATION JOB! Brakes locked up because they didn't secure the control unit. It slid between the brake pedal and caused my brakes to be in the pressed down position! I took my car here with complete trust the work would be done right. First day I had problems, my automatic climate control wasnt working and there were many wires and cords hanging by the brake pedal. The tech who installed it didn't even apologize for the inconvenience and did some adjustments and literally just stuffed the cords up behind the brake pedal and said everything was okay! 8 months later... I am driving to work. I am at a red light at the freeway exit off ramp. The light turns green and I press the gas pedal. The car starts moving and then a second or two later starts moving like molasses and the car is literally moving 5mph and I am now in the intersection of the road freaking out because I cant get out of the way of oncoming traffic, let alone I will be in the way of traffic coming from the left and right when their light turns green. Cars immediately start coming my way and have to brake abruptly and swerve around me to not hit my car. I thought someone was sure going to hit me. I had to drive about half a mile just to get the car in a safe place because there was no shoulder to pull over on. Once I was finally in a safe spot. About 10 minutes later I had a tow truck on its way and it was going to tow it to the dealership. I totally thought it was an issue with the car and I was ready to handle it. The dealership called me and said whoever installes my ignition interlock did a horrible job and did not secure the control unit and left it near the brake pedal. So it eventually shifted with driving and made its way between the brake pedal. I called the Smart Start 800 number and said that I shouldn't be responsible for the bill I have now racked up with my dealership or any damage to the vehicle. They said that it's the responsibility of Gateway Auto to handle it and take care of it because they did the work. That sounds logic to me. Well when I called them their response was, "can you have it towed here?" No apology or concern. I said I already paid for it to get towed and they told me it was my responsibility to pay again to get it to them. I said well my dealership can fix your problem and secure the unit themselves. Gateway Auto said they didnt want to pay them to do that and wanted my car brought to them. WHAT AN INCONVENIENCE. I had to speak to a manager who was basically just trying to brush off the situation and had also said, "well its been 8 months since we did the work so its not our fault." Then I had to remind him about the problems I had first day. Then said he would call me back They never called me back and they passed the issue to another Start Start Interlock location who is corporate (Gateway Auto is contracted). They never showed any remorse or apology for my problems I endured because of them. All I wanted was for them to takw care of their customer's. Instead I got horrible customer service and a crappy job on my car! I also could have got in an accident and I am sure it could have been much worse and the insurance would agree after finding the fact this happened because of their work. I would give them NEGATIVE - minus stars if I could! Very upset! Maybe if you guys tried to make it right and showed you cared I would be okay and forgiving. But I received nothing like that. I hope you guys aren't installing these units the same way on all cars.

Absolutely fantastic experience! I had a bit of a car disaster on a Thursday night, and brought it in on a Friday morning. Despite having a packed schedule of repairs of other fine folks' cars stretching through the weekend, they were able to diagnose my poor little wheeled baby and fix what turned out to be a minor problem, and I had her back Saturday afternoon. So so grateful to Gateway for getting me back on the road so quickly!! Timely, afforable, and affable! Thanks guys!