Black Forest Automotive

John Chesire

★★★★★

6 years ago

I have been having my Porsche serviced here for nearly a decade. They are top notch, and a pleasure to deal with. They are far more honest and less expensive than that San Diego Porsche dealership!

Darrin Santos

★★★★★

a year ago

Steve over at Black Forest is awesome! Explained a lot of detail about the GT3. I’ll be servicing the vehicle there.

Kyle Schultz

★★★★★

2 years ago

Was looking for a good independent shop to take care of my Porsche and found this place. Incredible group of staff, very communicative, professional, and knowledgable. Great atmosphere as well as fair pricing.

John Marsh

★★★★★

2 years ago

They are a automotive company you can trust and feel truly confident with them taking excellent care of your Porsche, and at a fair price! They take good care of their customers.

Zoltan Novak

★★★★★

8 years ago

I took my BMW in expecting to replace my entire clutch as I was having some shifting issues. However after doing a thorough inspection the technician told me it was only the shifter bushing that needed to be replaced and not the clutch. The guys at Black Forest were honest, very professional, and friendly. They were able to accommodate me immediately and repaired my car within a very short amount of time. Overall Black Forest Automotive provided exceptional service with great honesty. Considering I was under the initial impression that I needed a new clutch, other shops could have easily taken an advantage of this and charged me thousands of unnecessary dollars, but thanks to their honesty and skilled service, Black Forest did an excellent job with the repair and saved me thousands of dollars.

Kent Lewis

★★★★★

a year ago

I have been going to Black Forest for over 20 years because they are skilled, professional, straight-shooters. They have always given me good advice and kept my cars running as they were designed to.

Brian Reilly

★★★★★

5 years ago

After years of using another technician I brought my Porsche to these gents. Clear about prices, prompt service and very professional. An easygoing no bull**** business. Would highly recommend which isn't usually my style.

IC Defense

★★★☆☆

a year ago

I worked with Black Forest Automotive as an out-of-state customer for a Pre-purchase inspection on a Porsche 911 997 in 2023. Black Forest had good reviews and, when I reached out they seemed knowledgeable, with very professional communication. I paid $380 for a PPI on this 997 911. The PPI report was about 5 pages, plus a DME report. I mentioned to them that I was very concerned about bore-scoring which is a major problem on this generation, but they assured me they'd be looking for the telltale signs/knew what to look for. The report was helpful, ID'd typical stuff like a weep from the main seal and that it needed brakes. The mechanic was very helpful and talked to me on the phone, answering my questions. When the car made it to the east coast, the transport driver starts the engine and I see a huge cloud of oil smoke. Smoking engine was not noted on the PPI. The smoke ended up being a PCV AOS (not bore scoring), to my great relief. I replaced it myself and noted that the intake manifold was absolutely full of oil. Just everything was covered in oil. (AOS is the best case, but still $1k++ at a shop. It's not a small job) Since I was so concerned over bore scoring, it would have been nice if they'd monitored the exhaust on startup. I emailed them with this concern, and they essentially replied, "The car had been sitting, it could have happened after it left," etc, but apologized professionally. I understand PPIs aren't super profitable and, in my experience, they truly miss things all the time. My comment is, a car that is smoking, with this much oil in the intake, is relatively easy to catch. (If I had looked at this car in person, this is the first thing I would have looked at is the exhaust when starting it.) The car had maybe 5 miles difference on the odo from the PPI to delivery at my house, so the chances it developed in that 1 week window are exceedingly low. I think they handled it professionally enough, but wanted to share my experience.

David Martin

★★★★★

15 years ago

I have all my Porsche's on the East Coast and recently had my first experience with Black Forest. While every place seems to have a horror story, these are nice guys that from my experience have been friendly and not too pricey, in Porsche terms. I am in the middle of fixing up a '89 951 so am sure will have more opportunities to test the shop but have to say to date I am very happy. David

Jim Nesta

★★★★★

2 years ago

I used to bring my Porsche 944s there in the early 1990s when I lived in San Diego. John, the owner, and the other people there were really first-rate people, whose enthusiasm for cars shone through on everything they did. If only other shops had this commitment to excellence and honesty as Black Forest does.

Trevor Shaddox

★★★★★

a year ago

Spectacular experience working with this service. Their Porsche pre-purchase inspection was insanely thorough, with comprehensive analysis that reflected their understanding and appreciation for the details and nuance of the work. Highly recommend them to anyone seeking Porsche service. Their Porsche passion will match yours.

Bob C

★★★★★

a year ago

I recently used Black Forest to perform a pre-purchase inspection on a Boxster Spyder I was considering buying. The team did an excellent job of inspecting the car and provided a very comprehensive report. This helped me to make an informed decision to buy the car and alleviated a lot of the stress that comes with buying a car long distance. Thanks to Stephen and the rest of the crew for their help. I would highly recommend them based on their excellent service and knowledge of the Porsche brand.

Steve B

★☆☆☆☆

7 months ago

They removed my engine three times for a water leak and evey time they had some other problems besides the same water leak. I only put the most about 2000 miles on the car. I also went in there for a front window regulator and to this date the rear drivers window is broken. Either they are bad mechanics or they were taking me for a ride financially what do you think? You're on your own with this place

Tim Huang

★★★★★

8 months ago

Bought a 718 Cayman GT4 sight‑unseen from out of state, and Stephen plus the Black Forest crew made the whole thing a breeze: - Spent hours crawling over the car and calling out every little detail I would’ve missed. - Sent an 8‑page report packed with photos and super‑clear Pass / Monitor / Fix notes. - Stephen hopped on the phone for over an hour, walking me through the report line by line and answering every question. - Stayed totally reachable for follow‑up questions afterward. - Their Porsche knowledge runs deep—they speak GT4 fluently. Couldn’t be happier—highly recommend Black Forest to anyone who wants a rock‑solid PPI or Porsche work.

John Fernandez

★★★★★

7 years ago

I've been a customer for so long that I don't even know where to start. The owner, John, is the consummate Porschephile and generously gives his time and talent to local enthusiasts looking to max-perform their Porsche or BMW at an autocross or track event. Jeff and David work the front lines and they know just about everything to get the right service for your sled. And Mark Kinninger, the lead Porsche mechanic, turns machinery into magic once he gets a wrench or computer hooked up to it. Cannot count how many cars I've owned that has some Black Forest DNA attached to it...the latest GT3 acquisition has exponentially ramped up the smiles per mile ratio and I trust them like family to make sure the ratio does not suffer an untimely demise. The team deserves a round of applause for their dedication to the marque, and more importantly, trust and integrity to get the job done right!

William Kerwood

★☆☆☆☆

5 months ago

Unacceptable communication and quality control issues I brought my car to Black Forrest Automotive for suspension work after previously spending around $9,000 there for engine mounts and other repairs. This second visit was where everything went downhill. They first quoted me about $4,500 for the suspension job, and I told them to call if they found anything else. They called the same day to update the estimate to $6,000, which I approved. When I arrived to pick up my car that Friday, the total had somehow jumped to $8,200—an additional $2,200 of work that was never communicated or approved in advance. I was frustrated but paid the bill, assuming the work was at least done correctly. Less than five miles down the road, my check engine light came on. I took it back immediately, and they told me it was a “non-important system” and safe to drive for the weekend. When I got home, I checked under the hood myself and discovered that some components were left unplugged. After reconnecting them and clearing the code myself, the car ran fine again—something they should have caught before returning the vehicle. Later, while washing the car, I found that a head bolt on my driver-side front tire was missing, which is a serious safety concern. At that point, I completely lost confidence in their workmanship. To make things worse, I noticed they tried to include a replacement engine mount on the second bill—even though they had already replaced them during my first visit. They removed that charge only after I questioned it. Between the unauthorized charges, missed safety-critical reassembly, and attempt to double-charge for parts, I can no longer trust this shop. I strongly suggest anyone considering Black Forrest Automotive get everything in writing upfront and thoroughly inspect your vehicle afterward.

Jimmy Dendrinos

★★★★★

4 months ago

Very happy with the service and care these guys have shown maintaining my 996. Reasonable prices, clear communication, and if they can’t fix something (rare) they’ll tell you exactly where to take it to get it fixed.