Automotive in La Mesa

Cali v. Smog, a licensed State of California smog-test facility, ensures that vehicles of all models and manufacture dates aren't emitting excessive pollutants before sending them off with a pat on the trunk and a state certificate. Since Cali v. Smog is a test-only station, motorists can gauge their car's environmental output without being coerced into buying a new muffler or putting their vehicle on a regimen of high-fiber motor oils.

Discount Tire’s professional technicians install and service a vast trove of tires and wheels to keep wagons rolling safely. Experienced, trained mechanics manage an inventory replete with tires by brand names such as Goodyear, Michelin, and Bridgestone ($60–$100/tire for most vehicles) and a huge range of wheels ($50–$100/wheel for most vehicles). Proud owners of newly outfitted buggies receive advice on how to improve their rubber-road marriages or ability to do donuts on the lawns of rival librarians. Along with recommendations on products and services, tire installations include new valve stems, road-hazard protection, and lifetime rotations.

• Alpine Auto Repair, in Alpine • Bob Bowen’s Auto Service, in La Mesa • C & D Auto Care, in La Mesa • Ebers Street Garage, in San Diego • FTS Auto Repair Convoy, on Convoy Street in San Diego • FTS Auto Repair La Jolla, on Cass Street in San Diego • Stuart Terry Auto Repair, in San Diego. • John's Automotive Care, in San Diego • Convoy Auto Repair, in San Diego

Since 2000, Time Limo has blended the attentive care of a small family business with the resources and professionalism of a much larger production. Their skilled drivers safely maneuver Lincoln Town Cars, Cadillac Escalades, and Chevy Suburbans through the streets of San Diego and surrounding regions at all hours, seven days a week. The contemporary luxury cars and SUVs, each meticulously maintained to preserve a new-car smell into their golden years, cushion bottoms with plush leather seats and afford panoramic views of the skyline through long windows. Though chauffeurs devote a large chunk of their time to corporate transportation, their services encompass everything from airport transfers to prom trips to quick getaways for bailing prom chaperones.

Heartland Jiffy Lubes enjoy the benefits of being under the Heartland Automotive Services umbrella, putting them in good company along with more than 435 Jiffy Lubes nationwide that service more than five million customers each year. They specialize in the Jiffy Lube Signature Service Oil Change, which comes standard with a fresh-from-the-box oil filter and up to 5 quarts of quality motor oil, plus a comprehensive lineup of other vehicle maintenance checkups. Highly trained technicians also perform cosmetic and mechanical services including inspections, emissions testing, transmission service, and counseling for 1960s Corvettes that are going through a mid-life crisis.

With its sloping, spanish-tiled roof and matching fill-station canopy, Emerald Oil looks more like a roadside chateau than a roadside gas station. Nonetheless, visitors to this La Mesa hot spot can fill up their tanks—both gasoline and propane—and pick up any number of little conveniences. Inside the station shop, beer, liquor, and tobacco products rub elbows with a wide variety of sodas, coffee, and snacks. Customers can pick up lotto tickets and newspapers or ask the clerks’ assistance in filling up propane tanks and dream journals until 10 p.m. daily.