Sarasota European Auto Repair

Jesse is a diamond in the rough among mechanics. I typically am very picky about who works on my BMW and after a consult with Jesse I decided to have him do some work. He was able to repair several parts which had broken and unlike past experiences where a shop would just order new parts, he took the time to find out what the real problem was and fix it saving me a tremendous amount of money on my repair bill. If you're looking for a Mechanic who will save you money, communicate well, & who takes pride in his work, Jesse is your man.

I had a new radiator placed in my car by Jessie about 5 mths ago. I returned over then next 4 weeks at least 2 x's a week, it was still leaking antifreeze the 3rd return he realized that he did not change the O ring (even I know O rings no matter how new thaty look NEED TO BE CHANGED) he then apologized and changed it. the car continued to leak where I needed to put antifreeze in once every 2 weeks he said bring down its prob a hose. He could not find the problem, 5 mths later im putting antifreeze in 3 times a week, I called him yesterday he says it sounds like you have a leakiy head gasket and i told him thats expensive, and I know I have an oil leak, thats like $1500 to fix he say's no, I can do it for 850 + the head gasket it will be about $3000.00. So I took it to another (highly recco shop BRITO; in Osprey) I was there about 5 mins and the seasoned Mechanic says theres your leak its a hose that drips slow when sitting and much faster while driving (heated up) he said if your head was leaky you would see condensation in the Oil housing (he then opened up the oil housing and said see NO CONDENSATION! Needless to say it was a BMW hose so with the labor it is 181.50 Far CRY from $2150 to place a new head gasket! I would not reccommend Jessies Garage, the work is shoddy at best and he cant find the smallest problem like a leaky hose...he would rather put in a whole new head gasket and just figure she's an unmarried girl with no clue I can take advantage of her and get away with it! He never offered to make good or find tghe problem. I rented a car to be able to have this mechanic do the work and I have had nothing but aggrivation over a "hose"....I could have seized my engine due to this person inexperience on a lousy radiator hose!

I just got back from Afghanistan and my x5 had been in storage for over a year so it needed to be checked out before I made my cross-country journey. I called Jesse to explain my situation and despite being backed up for a solid 10 days he said he would check out my vehicle for FREE! I went over to his garage and not only did he do an overall check on the x5 but he resolved my CHECK ENGINE light AND fixed one of my headlines for COMPLETELY FREE. He even wanted to refuse my tip I gave him for his time. That would have EASILY cost over $500.00 at any BMW dealership. If you have a BMW and you are in the TAMPA/ST.PETE/SARASOTA area definitely see Jesse and he will take care of you. I already scheduled an oil change with him.

Jesses' Garage is hands down the most competent, fair garage for European cars in the SRQ area. When I first took my 89 635csi to him he seemed genuinely excited to work on it instead of treating it as an old hassle (like some previous shops in town). He took one look under the hood and fixed some thing I didn't even know where there (based on color and age he immediately knew some parts had never been replaced from the original factory install). We now have switched shops and take our Mini Cooper S there. A recent problem showed just how good he is. The Mini went into Limp Mode and we had it towed to the shop. The onboard computer codes said one thing, but Jesse knew it wasn't a part that really failed. He did a little more research and ran more tests and found the problem . . . a blown harmonic balancer. Not an easy part to fix, but it was up and running in two days (while he was backed up as well) While there he checked out my newest BMW acquisition and told me what to look out for in the future with the E82 N54. If you are looking for a talented, trustworthy mechanic stop your search and head to Jesses'. If you're an enthusiast maybe you will get lucky and see one of his rally/autocross bimmers while you are there.

Several months ago I bought a fixer-upper - a 30-year old BMW with a few quirks. There's a special place in my heart for E30s (reason #1 for the purchase), and I knew that I'd be able to learn the basics of car repair by bringing my new ride back to life. There's a well-established community for these cars, and I assumed help would be plentiful... What I didn't realize is that even the most reputable mechanics cringe at the thought of diagnosing problems without the help of a computer code read-out. Well, most mechanics. Of the three mechanics to whom I brought my car, Jesse was the only one who looked at the list of work I had done, who talked to me about potential solutions, who spent two hours fiddling under the hood - removing and checking hoses and sensors - while I was standing next to him. While other mechanics recommended that I just start replacing parts (or replace the whole car...), he tackled my cold-start / idle problem pragmatically and methodically. And for the additional work (suspension, brakes, etc), he made lists of what I could do with basic knowledge and tools before bringing the car back to him, to reduce cost of labor. The other two mechanics are good - and in the end, they were helpful - but Jesse was the only one who approached my problem with enthusiasm, dedication, and honesty. I'm happy to pay for diagnostic work, and I did - but ultimately, it was Jessie's free help that put my on the right track to fix my car. There are a few great mechanics for BMWs in Sarasota, and if your vehicle throws a code when it's sick, you can take it just about anywhere. But if you're looking for someone who will work with you, who will honor your desire to learn from the experience, who will share his knowledge with you, there's only one guy in town. If you're looking for a great price and for good advice, head to Jesse's. For as long as I own BMWs, he'll have my patronage.

What can I say about Jesse, he is an honest and extremely knowledgeable guy. He takes the time to inform his customers what is wrong, sometimes even why it went wrong, and the best way to fix it. Jesse has personally helped me in several "emergency" situations, he goes out of his way to help as much as he can! Jesse gets my business every time! I highly recommend him to family, friends/co-workers and anyone else who needs work on their import car. After our first meeting, you gained a life-long customer. Thanks Jesse!

New to Florida, needed an honest mechanic for my old, but favorite car. Jesse showed me what I need and suggested each repair's importance in the list - she needs a bit of work....and I knew that. Changed my oil after I determined learning how to do that on a '98 Saturn is a pain if you don't have a lift! Know what needs fixing now, and will definitely be back. Thanks!

We drove down from Texas for a week and the car started acting up. Saw Jesse's on Yelp and headed over. He checked the car, read the codes and said if was just a coolant temperature sensor. He said it was simple to change, showed me where it was, and suggested I could change it myself fairly easy. I did, fixed my problem and we were on our way. Jesse? No charge! Awesome guy, awesome place. Highly recommended.

I'm new to the Sarasota area so when I needed an oil change....I went running to Yelp. Jesse had the best reviews by far so I made an appointment. Now I know why. Jesse was very cordial and knowledgeable of my vehicle. We had a good conversation while he did his thing and even took the time to check all of my tire pressures (even the spare) and snooped around the crevices of the undercarriage. He does a lot of work on BMW's so if you have one....this should be the place to go. Overall a very good guy / mechanic that makes you feel good about bringing your car to a trustworthy source.

I will say one of the biggest things I appreciated with Jesse is truly feeling that I have someone I can trust to do good work and not price gouge me! Phew... Finally!