The right car.
For your real life.

No. Tell me what you need and how you prefer to hear back. Before work begins, we put the scope and price in writing. For one purchase or sale, that includes the candidates or deal revisions covered, timeframe, outside costs, cancellation or refund terms, and when each payment is due.

805CarGuy is for local hands-on help: assessing a car, coordinating its shop inspection, completing a local used-car purchase, or selling your car. OttO offers nationwide remote guidance and search from the 805CarGuy team. You can start there with a free introductory consultation, a written second opinion, or a used-car search.

One car in the city of San Luis Obispo: dealership pickup, a test drive, transport to Certified Auto Repair, a full used-car inspection and written deal analysis. $249 total, with payment due when booking. Ordinary SLO-city pickup and transport are included, with no extra travel charge.

You can live elsewhere. The car’s location determines the scope: elsewhere in SLO County or beyond requires a separate quote. Seller permission, access and scheduling are confirmed before booking. See the complete assessment.

Choosing, searching, screening, negotiation, purchase coordination, and one full used-car inspection at Certified Auto Repair in San Luis Obispo. That inspection is included in the $1,000 price. Payment is $500 to start and $500 when you purchase, less applicable prior payments. Our written agreement confirms the purchase covered and when its balance is due.

We can agree on seeing and test-driving the car and coordinating the shop inspection, subject to seller permission, travel, access and scheduling. The car must be available for inspection at the shop. Transport is not included. If you reject that car after inspection, the final $500 is not due unless you complete a purchase. Any additional inspections are priced and approved before booking.

At least three qualifying, seller-confirmed candidates within the agreed 30-day search, unless you choose a car sooner. I help choose a model if needed, contact sellers to confirm availability, specifications, and price, and review available history and maintenance records. You get a recommendation explaining which cars are worth pursuing and why.

We agree on your budget and must-haves first. If I can’t deliver the agreed search, we discuss an extension or refund under our written agreement. I won’t fill the shortlist with unsuitable cars to make up the count. For a standalone remote search, see OttO.

Money you’ve already paid counts once toward an applicable larger service for the same purchase or sale. For example, if you’ve paid $500 for a used-car search and upgrade to the $1,000 complete local service, $500 remains. Our written agreement confirms the credit and remaining payments before the added work starts.

No. OttO’s written second opinion reviews supplied listings, records or offers. It cannot establish mechanical condition.

Certified Auto Repair’s standalone full used-car inspection costs $199. That is the shop’s standalone price. One full inspection is already included in both the $249 SLO-city assessment and the $1,000 complete local service, with no extra $199 charge.

The $249 assessment covers one car in SLO city; elsewhere in SLO County or beyond requires a separate quote. You can live elsewhere. The separate $1,000 complete used-car package includes an inspection at Certified Auto Repair in San Luis Obispo, with its own scope and transport terms. For remote help, start with OttO.

OttO handles nationwide remote guidance, including help choosing and written second opinions. See our new-car buying guide for a useful starting point.

The $350 assisted sale is paid upfront and covers pricing guidance, photos, a listing, and initial buyer screening for one car over 30 days. You handle showings, negotiations, and closing.

Full service also handles showings and negotiation and coordinates closing over 60 days. The fee is 5% of the sale price, with a $1,000 minimum: a $10,000 or $20,000 sale costs $1,000; a $30,000 sale costs $1,500. The $350 upfront payment counts toward that total, with the balance due on sale. It covers completed preparation even if the car doesn’t sell.

For a lower-value car, the $350 assisted service may make more sense if you can handle the buyer meetings and sale yourself. Detailing, repairs, smog, paid advertising, and transport are separate costs agreed in advance.

With you by default. Drop-off is by arrangement when space is available. Detailing, repairs, smog, paid advertising, and transport are separately approved costs.