Kar King Auto

Reviews

Reviews are sorted by relevance, with the most helpful and insightful feedback listed first for easy reference.

  Andrew Siggelkow (Siggy)
a week ago
Sold me an engine for a B2200 and found out after they install the head was leaking coolant into the combustion chamber from a cracked valve seat. They sent me a new cylinder head after they verified the old one was cracked. This delayed my project by 2 weeks which is why I m leaving 3 stars. QUALITY CONTROL

  shdw1002 wittekind
3 months ago
I live in the Atlanta metro with a 2012 Toyota Prius. At the 221K mark, the head gasket went on it, so it was either replace gasket or engine, mind you it was Christmas 2023. I opted for the engine. Did some internet looking and was referred to Kar King Auto. Called up George, told him my situation, and provided specs. He came back with a very reasonable offer and shipment charges to get it to my mechanic in Atlanta. He originally stated it would be ready in early 2024, but to my surprise, he had it ready for shipment before the end of 2023. Shipped fast, had it installed, and now it runs like new again. Very pleased with the communication and price.Thanks George!

  Arnold C A
a month ago
Bought a Kia 2.4L engine and it failed after only 22K miles, same exact way as the original engine. I specifically asked if it got new updated bearings, which was the determining factor of whether i keep it or not, and owner said "Yes new bearings, it shouldnt happen again" ...Well it did

  Douglas LeClair
2 years ago
I have maintained my 2005 car myself since I bought it new. I pretty much had done all the maintenance until my engine unfortunately gave out at 160k miles. I was sad to think that was the end of the line for my vehicle and I was researching the options: I could take a gamble on a salvage yard engine, pay for a lot of labor to get the engine problem diagnosed, have my engine rebuilt or buy a rebuilt one. I opted to have my engine replaced with a rebuilt engine with a warranty.I ordered a rebuilt engine from Kar King and had it delivered to my shop and they took excellent care of me and my car. I was surprised how clean the rebuilt engine was when it arrived.George communicated at every step of the way and kept me up-to-date and worked with me to coordinate the delivery. He handled the return of the old engine and everything was seamless.I can't tell you the delight it brought me to get back in the driver seat and hear my car roar back to life, knowing that I'll get to enjoy my vehicle for some more time.I can't recommend Kar King more.Services: Engine repair, Motor building

  Molly Girl
4 months ago
Thank you Goerge! for the 2003 Tacoma 2.4 liter motor rebuilt, your shop does goog work it started right up and it runs great.. Thanks again!

  B Anderson
7 months ago
I purchased a rebuilt engine from Kar King Auto a few months ago and our car has been running great ever since! I was a little skeptical about purchasing from an out of state company that I found on the internet. After I had read the reviews, I called and talked to George. He was very knowledgeable and helpful. He sent us exactly what we needed and within the time frame he promised. He was also quick to respond when I had questions. Outstanding company! Thank you Kar King Auto.

  Noah Riley
5 months ago
I bought a motor from them early2023. Im happy to share that my car runs perfect with no issue and already put around 8 thousand miles on it. Great customer service and great product.Service: Motor buildingService: Motor building

  daniel ezell
2 months ago
Took a week to get the engine and it came in with freight damage.after a long fight with the freight company, two more weeks later I got a new one. Good rebuild as far as I can tell. Runs as a new one!

  Hrbrt Chavez Torres
3 months ago
Well wrapped remanufactured engine will share how the engine hold up in the next coming months

  Kenny Kase
a year ago
George was awesome to deal with. We needed an engine for a Hyundai that we could not find anywhere and he not only rebuilt one for us but did it twice as fast as he said he would. We were able to install it and get our guest back on the road much faster. We will be using Kar King's moving forward.Services: Engine repair, Motor buildingServices: Engine repair, Motor building

  Juniper Freeman
a year ago
I was looking for an Nissan engine and found it at KarKing. It came fast. The problems I had was the engine was faulty. I called was told 'I was lying and trying to pull a fast one on them'. My calls I felt were avoided, and when called from another number they were answered quickly. I took the truck and engine to a second mechanic and they talk to George also and were not impressed. George offered to look at the engine at his shop. I would have to take it out, ship it at my expense. Then he would look at it and determine if it was the shops fault. If he was he would ship it back at his expense. By this time my trust was lost and I did not feel like I would not be treated fairly or with honesty.I choose to have the 'Rebuilt engine' Rebuilt locally. (cheaper then taking it out and shipping it back) or left with nothing.Service: Motor building

  Daudi Muhammad
a month ago
Kar King sold me a rebuilt engine that was not properly rebuilt. It has a engine code of P0022 which is indicative of Timing Chain and/or Camshaft phaser problems. The engine rattles, has less power, and has very poor gas mileage. On a full tank I'm only getting 160 miles when my old engine would get atleast 280-300 miles per fill-up. This is due to the Camshaft phaser not being able to adjust the engine timing as needed due to KarKing Auto not correctly reassembling the engine they sold me. in order to fix the mechanic shop needs to replace the camshaft phaser and redo the timing chain alignment which is a very expensive job. Seller asked me to remove the engine which would cost me another $1000 and then ship it back to him which would be an additional $300. Then I would have to pay the same mechanic another $1000 to place a new engine from elsewhere in my truck. The timing chain job is quoted to be a $3500 job at the local Toyota Dealership. I initially only asked for half and the seller still declined to make things right and only offered me returning the engine from Texas back to California. Stay away from these guys unless you like being scammed.Update: 2/19/2024I won the small claims suit against this company but I still was out of an additional $2000. The problem was indeed the timing chain being off which was fixed at a Toyota Dealership. Stay away from these guys.

  Crystal Henson
a year ago
** Buyer beware.... you can tell from their responses they will not take ANY responsibility for their work and their goal to charge you as much as possible and then claim your car was old when they create more problems.Absolute garbage service and installation for rebuilt engine. They do not stand by their work and are quick to take your money. My engine repair was nearly $5k and I returned multiple times to have them fix the nonexistent performance, only for them to tell me it was fine. A few miles down the road it would stall or some major issue would be identified. They didn t properly install the air intake, and it literally fell off. The MAP and oil sensor guage were not properly installed creating major headaches and several thousand dollars more in diagnostic and repair. Ended up selling the suburban to a scrap yard as it could not tow anything after the engine rebuild as the vehicle literally could not handle a 2k load with any kind of incline. BEWARE!Services: Engine repair, Motor building

  bob5944
a year ago
Our 09 Pontiac Vibe had an engine failure and needed to be replaced. I found Kar King Auto online and after reviewing their Customer reviews and looking at BBB information I felt they would be a good choice for purchasing a rebuilt engine. Although their shop is in California and we are located in Michigan there was no problem getting the rebuilt engine to us and the shop installing it gave it good marks as well. The motor looked great and is performing as it should. Thanks George!Service: Motor building

  adalberto Matos
8 months ago
Horrible customer service ordered a remanufactured engine. Engine went bad 3k miles in had to send it back pay return shipping and got sent a engine with numerous parts missing and they refuse to help saying they already threw away the parts stay away from these crooksUpdate: it has now been $700 i had to spent in parts for the new engine i spoke to George and he said all the unnecessary parts sent back by my shop were already thrown away so lets do the math before u guys decide to get an engine from these crooks$5200 engine$500 2 year extended warranty$2500 labor$600 shipping bad engine back after 2 months$700 in parts thrown away by these crooks$2500 in labor again to reinstall the 2nd engine in 3 monthsStay away from this business its not worth the headache and they offered 0 helpService: Engine repair

  Scott Fog
a year ago
Back in early 2020 I was looking for a rebuilt engine for a 2013 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid. NOBODY had these, they were unobtanium. Enter Kar King. They had it and because my car was in the shop they shipped it the same day. It is now late 2022 and the car is still going strong 60k miles later.Kar King really came through for me and provided excellent service.I highly recommend Kar King. They go the extra mile to make customers happy.Service: Motor building

  Mick Omun
a year ago
I was on vacation in South Carolina when my Toyota FJ blew the engine. Several months earlier I was on the Arizona Interstate stuck in stopped traffic due to a accident ahead and the alternator went out destroying the serpentine belt causing the engine to drastically overheat before I could get off the road. The Toyota dealer there wanted over $12,ooo to put used engine because NEW was not available. i had the vehicle shipped back to midwest to a authorized shop - but after several months and two short blocks later both refused due to defects I had it hauled AGAIN to a Toyota dealer close by my residence. Their estimate was considerably cheaper and they also could not get a new engine - only a short block. Upon them tearing down the old they found considerable repair was needed in the heads and the price skyrocketed.So I researched and found Kar Kings out of S. Cal could build me complete engine for less than the short block. I called George and we had a great conversation wherein he explained how they do the work. 5 months later from it breaking down and less than two weeks after I paid Kar Kings the engine is on its way. What was disappointing for me was the Toyota dealership knew of George and Kar Kings but did NOT suggest it to me. They had his name and phone number.I have no doubt that I will refer others to Kar Kings and specifically George M. He reminds me of the way business was done back in the early 60's when I was a teenager. Ethics and customer satisfaction with a personal touch. I am thankful.Service: Motor building

  Elvia Palomarez
a year ago
Got a rebuilt motor for my Toyota FJ Cruiser and admittedly, I was hesitant in the beginning of the process. Having said that, I now add that I highly recommend this outfit. From the start of the transaction, George explained everything that would take place from start to finish. Let me say that it went just as explained to me, I was constantly updated on the process of the rebuilt and was notified on the day it was to be shipped.The engine looked great and to date, I have put in over 2.000 miles and have had zero issues. I highly recommend this outfit to anyone that is thinking about doing business with them as I am certain that my engine will last a very long time.Service: Motor building

  phillip rayer
a year ago
George is a great owner. Worked with me on my car. Built me a fresh motor and installed it. I was so impressed with our conversation on the phone that I chose to drive to Cali for his team to install. Then drove back to Az. All was perfect. Thank you George and team at Kar King!!!Service: Motor buildingService: Motor building

  Stevan
10 months ago
Pretty sad company to work with! Please be careful. I live in Vegas and drove to Ontario to pick up a 3.4L Engine for my T100. We brought it back and installed it and there a was a clicking noise coming from the engine. We got a really good mechanic that we know so he took it apart again and found that they installed wrong camshaft.. So I called them up and I talked to the owner and he said to have the mechanic give him a call. My mechanic called them and explained the issue so I called them back and told them that the guy gave me a really good quote, with a new part and labor it was going to be 450(He was a close friend that's why the price was so good). The owner said I will not cover any labor i will give you 150 for parts and that's it. So I asked him why should I be covering a mistake that you guys made? Own up to it. Everyone makes mistakes and I'm okay with that but own up to the mistake. He would not. He was very rude and did not even apologize. He said well that's life. Just deal with it. Very sad. Very sad to see people nowadays not wanting to take any responsibility. Tbh i feel very sad for him. Hopefully he learns how to own up to his mistakes and never treats anyone like this. What goes around, comes around.. If you can find an engine or transmission somewhere else i would go somewhere else. Don't waste your time with this guy. You will just get angry and disappointment in people. You don't deserve being treated like this.Service: Motor building

  Anthony Tony
a year ago
I ordered a rebuilt motor off of eBay from this company, The motor arrived two weeks earlier than was promised by (George) , by the way whom was very knowledgeable and professional. The motor was immaculate you can tell by the appearance that workmanship was excellent. I installed motor and it fired up right away with no leaks or problems. The motor purrs like a kitten. I highly recommend Kar-King I have had a good experience with them, and their pricing is reasonable.I definitely will do business again with this Company.

  James Kodat
a year ago
First off, George is the real deal and one of the most responsive and honest repair shop owners I ve had to deal with after over 30 years in the Air Force doing transportation and supply. Secondly, EVERY-TIME I called this business George answered the phone and was professional and genuine. My experience started off bad as I went through a company in Florida who subcontracted with KarKing to provide a rebuilt engine for my Kia Sportage. After working with the unresponsive and untrustworthy owners in Florida for warranty work due to issues after 1600 miles, I finally realized I had to work the issues with George because they didn t want to take the time to address the issues. George stepped up to the plate and hit a home run by sending me a replacement engine after inspecting the engine I sent back. He explained exactly what was needed to ensure the engine was installed along with the recommended lubricants and filter even sending an oil cooler to ensure no contaminants were present. He also provided some technical help after the engine was installed as the rebuilt motor took different VVT solenoids which rectified the issue and now the engine is running smoothly. I was deceived by the company in Florida into thinking they were the ones rebuilding the engine and if I had to do it all over again I would have went through KarKing the first time. Thanks George you have my business in the future.Service: Motor building

  marcela arnette
a year ago
First off I want to say I didn't buy anything from Kar King Auto but nonetheless had a wonderful Experience. I called looking for an engine for my Kia Sorento. I talked to George very knowledgeable and he quoted me prices which were more than fair. After that he made me aware that this Sorento of mine might have a recall and asked if I ever looked into that. Told him I did and was turned down he lead me to another Dealership he was familiar with I said won't hurt to try so I called then and I want to say Thank You to Kar King Auto Especially George his recommendations where more than GREAT Kia honored the Recall and I got my car fixed at no charge. If all businesses operated like this it would be much easier to not worry about spending your hard earned money. I had to write this Review because I am very Appreciative of the honesty shown from this Company.Would not Hesitate to Recommend this place to Everyone I know!Service: Engine repair

  Jenny Boggs
9 months ago
Purchased an engine from them via Ebay- quick shipping, very helpful. Had to call almost 2 years later to get a copy of the invoice- George was incredibly helpful-would recommend!!

  Pem M
10 years ago
Purchased a transmission for an 84 Toyota truck and George at Kar King was great to deal with and very helpful. I mail ordered this part and was a bit concerned of what I might see in the box when it arrived...well there were no dissappointments! The transmission looked fantastic and after installing it I was 100% pleased with the transmission. I worked with George to get round trip shipping up front which worked perfectly and UPS came right to the door to pick up the old one. I was notified by UPS when my core arrived and Kar King had the core charge back to me in no time. Can't say enough good things about George and Kar King...I will definitely go to them again in the future.

  Cade Brenchley
a year ago
**PURCHASE FROM THIS BUSINESS AT YOUR OWN RISK**It's truly a gamble.Here's my story:In August of 2021, I purchased a rebuilt motor from Kar King for my daughter's 2010 Hyundai Santa Fe. Once the motor arrived, I had it installed by a certified mechanic. Upon installation, the motor had a noticeable rattle between 2500-3200 RPMs. Everything on the exterior was looked at. Two mechanics (one who has rebuilt numerous hot rod motors) and an engineer from Japanese Engine Exchange all determined that the noise was coming from inside the motor.I contacted Jorge at Kar King and he asked that I video and audio record the rattle as well as a reading from hooking up an oil pressure gauge, which I provided. Jorge said I would have to send the engine back so he could have his mechanics take a look at it. He would not say that it was their (Kar King) error, even though the noise was coming from something wrong inside the engine. Also, his policy is that Kar King does not pay shipping, nor labor for the engine under warranty. A six month warranty is better than nothing, but really does little to save the consumer money when you have to uninstall the motor and pay for shipping to have them fix something that shouldn't have been a problem in the first place. He offered to fix it or give a refund. Either way, I had to have an engine and would have to pay to have this one removed, shipped back, then get a new one or have this one "fixed", pay to have it shipped, and pay to have it installed ($1000 at a minimum for the Hyundai Santa Fe).I elected to have a local mechanic look at the crankshaft, bearings, and possibly the rods. It was determined that Kar King put the original bearings back on after polishing the crankshaft, even though they no longer fit. There was a lot of movement with those bearings. This was recorded on video and sent to Jorge at Kar King. Jorge offered to pay for the new parts ($122, give or take), but obviously would not pay for the labor associated with fixing Kar King's error. The vehicle was finally ready to go in late October 2021.We followed all the protocols of breaking in the rebuilt motor. The maintenance schedule was followed as well. It seemed to run very smoothly.Fast forward to July 9, 2022. My daughter was approximately 100 miles into a 115 mile trip when the motor started clanking and making other loud noises. She pulled over immediately. Later when the oil was checked, it was determined that there were bits of metal in the oil. We towed it to a mechanic who confirmed that the engine was done. With approximately 8,000 miles on it, Kar King's rebuilt motor blew.Simply put, I would not recommend Kar King. Sure there is a 6-month warranty, but, at minimum, you will lose time (if you uninstall the motor yourself) and some shipping expenses to exercise the warranty if the product is low-quality as mine was. Otherwise, it could cost you thousands.Service: Motor building

  Brian Symons
9 years ago
The reason I have waited so long to post my review is I wanted to wait and see how things were after the 6 month warranty they give with their work expired. It has now been around 7 or 8 months since I purchased a motor and transmission from Kar King and they are running just fine. I would recommend this company to anybody that wants quality work without the inflated price tag. Before Kar King I was quoted $5900.00 from one shop (that was just for the motor w/warranty) and $3700.00 from another (used motor w/o warranty). Since these prices were way out of my price range, I decided to shop around and found Kar King. Not only did I get a new rebuilt motor (with a warranty) I also picked up a rebuilt transmission. I figured might as well do them both since the tranny had around 140,000 miles on it as well and had to be pulled out with the motor (easiest way to do it). The price for motor and trans was $2750.00!!!! Nobody else could even touch this price! Another nice thing about George and his crew is they stand behind their work. Long story short, there was a slight discrepancy concerning the transmission and it had to be sent back to Kar King. I called George and informed him of this. Kar King paid for all the shipping to and from their shop in California. Not only that but when they took another look at it he informed me of a different, more serious problem with my transmission. At this point he called me to let me know what was going on, that they had fixed it and was sending it back with a trans cooler.....FREE OF CHARGE! So to sum it up I think the guys at Kar King do a great job so don't bother looking anywhere else.A very satisfied customer

  Tess Iluzada
2 years ago
I called and spoke to George at KarKing last September to purchase a rebuilt transmission for my 2001 Toyota MR2 as referred to by Folsom Lake Toyota service advisor. The transaction went through very smoothly via phone calls and emails. The transmission was shipped and delivered way ahead of estimated date and was installed and driven without any problem. I told the auto shop to send the core back to Karking but they never did.I know that the cost of the core is nothing compared to the core itself. I told FolsomLakeToyota service advisor o find it or pay $200. They were adamant that I did not tell them to send it back. So i told George the bad news and was ready to pay for the core.I got teary-eyed when he told me that he will not charge me for it!This gesture is a proof that not all auto shop businesses will overcharge and take advantage of their customers at all times.Karking s rates and prices are affordable, fair and the lowest in the whole United States.KAR KING IS AWESOME and HAS A BIG HEART Merry Christmas and a Prosperous New Year to all staff and I pray that God blesses your company alwaysMore power and more business to you!From the bottom of my heart Thank YouTess Iluzada - Sacramento CAService: Clutches & transmissions service & repair

  Donny
2 years ago
Bought a engine and transmission 8 years ago from them that they installed themselves. 8 years later on my truck with 15k miles on the rebuilt engine the timing chain went and head gasket blew. For a rebuild to only last 15k miles and the company that built it take no responsibility .not even a discount towards a replacement I wouldn't recommend them to anyone(I mentioned on the phone that I wasn't expecting anything for Free but no discount was ever mentioned. You said you could do nothing about it. I am aware I'm past the warrenty but a engine with that low of miles shouldn't fail. I wasn't completely blaming y'all for the failure but based off the mileage I was expecting some discount.Service: Engine repair

  Alex Darington
a year ago
I bought a new long block from Kar King after one of my connecting rods punctured a hole in the block. For awhile, it ran just fine and gave me no issues. Gradually, however, the cracks started to show: several minor oil leaks had developed, with the biggest ones being the valve cover and oil pump. This wasn't the biggest deal, but when my head gasket started to fall apart and combustion gasses from the cylinders started getting into the cooling system, I started to realize that I had purchased the motor from a company who didn't care to use OEM replacement parts or install them correctly.When I asked the owner about it, I mentioned that I hadn't even driven the car 3000 miles yet, but he still wouldn't honor the warranty because too much time had passed. Fair enough, I suppose, but if you were teleworking during the peak of the pandemic as I was, you were left out to dry if anything went wrong. He wouldn't even meet me halfway on the necessary headwork needed due to the extreme temperatures it had been subjected to, so I was left to foot the entire bill for essentially an entire teardown and rebuild of a motor I hadn't owned for two full years yet.Hopefully, I'm past the issues with this motor. The bottom end is fine for now; I can only hope that it holds up at least half as well as the motor that came with the car did. Can't say I'll be calling up Kar King in the event I need another, though.