Favorite Car REPAIR Channels
One of the best “how-to” resources found online are videos. When I was just a young lad getting into automotive repair, I studied the shop manual for the car I was repairing. These were great resources because you got good step-by-step repair instructions. This was before the age of the internet so it was either read the shop manual, or find my dad for instruction. Dad was a great teacher, so the first thing he taught me was to do it myself.
Now that we have online resources, “Dad” can be found in many YouTube videos. Even with my years of experience, I still look for help when tackling a new problem. As a result, I watch a lot of YouTube videos. Not all YouTube channels are created equal, so I am happy to share my favorites ranked below.
YouTube Repair Channel Ranking
- South Main Auto
- Pine Hollow Diagnostics
- Royalty Auto Service
- Dave’s Auto Center
- 1AAuto
Honorable Mention: Watch Wes Work (Wes has moved away from his automotive repair videos, but still posts topics about farm equipment and other automotive-related themes. His videos are less frequent, but his past ones still hold value)
South Main Auto
South Main Auto is a small three-bay repair shop in upstate New York. The owner, Eric, shares the steps to repair cars that are in his shop.
He focuses on cars with common issues, which makes the videos relevant for folks like me and you. Since it is located upstate New York, he deals with the same challenges as people like me in Michigan–RUST.
More importantly, he spends a lot of time on diagnosis–walking you through the logic of pinpointing the problem. I learn something new each time I watch his videos.
He has a dry wit, so his “editorials” are often on the sarcastic side. Sometimes I feel like I am looking in the mirror.
Channel link: South Main Auto
Pine Hollow Auto Diagnostics
One of my readers recommended Pine Hollow Auto Diagnostics. I took his recommendation and watched at least a dozen of the videos on the channel.
Ivan, the channel host, runs an auto diagnostic and repair service out of his garage in State College, PA. Most videos feature live troubleshooting of automotive drivability and electrical problems. In several cases, he drives to the customers’ home to perform his diagnostics.
Electrical work is my lowest skill, so I am learning a lot from Ivan’s videos. The playlists are well-organized by categories and manufacturer for easy browsing.
Channel link: Pine Hollow Auto Diagnostics
Royalty Auto Service
I added this channel in August 2025 after watching its content over the past few months. Videos from this channel are based on activities in two southern Georgia repair shops. Sherwood Cooke is the shop owner and presenter in the videos.
Sherwood showcases some of the more challenging vehicles in his shop, and is very thorough in his explanations and repair process. Due to their location, they get a number of stranded travelers. This adds to the urgency of the repairs and demonstrates the compassion and integrity of the shop employees.
Channel link: Royalty Auto Service
Daves Auto Center
Like Royalty Auto Service, I added this channel in August 2025 after extensive viewing.
Based in Centreville, UT, Dave’s is a family owned and operated repair facility, offering automotive repair and custom machining. While a lot of their focus is on diesel trucks and engine rebuilding, they do service all makes and models of vehicles.
The focus of most of the videos is tough to diagnose conditions or correction of mistakes made by other sops (and dealerships!). Dave is in most of the videos, working with the technicians assigned to the repair. He drives home the “4 Cs” of automtiove service: Condition, Cause, Correction and Confirmation. While many of the vehicles serviced don’t hold my interest, the diagnosis and explanation are educational. Dave is passionate about his customers which makes it enjoyable to watch.
Channel link: Dave’s Auto Center
1A Auto
1A Auto is an automotive parts store, with really good repair videos. Their video library is well organized (a rarity among car guy videos) and both the camera work and narration make for a great experience.
There are no shortcuts in their videos. If a procedure takes an hour, you will see the full hour. If they run into a problem, they will show ways around them.
Their parts prices are not bad, but I still go to Rock Auto for parts whenever I have the time to order parts. If I am in more immediate need, I go to my local AutoZone for parts. They are terrific about backing their parts.
Channel link: 1AAuto
Related Resources
If you have an interest in vehicle repair, modification or customization, check out the related articles on the Repairs/Mods page.
For other videos, YouTube channel recommendations and automotive podcasts, be sure to visit the Video/Podcast page.
All of the resources found on this site are based strictly on my opinion. If you feel I am missing a valuable resource, please leave a comment below.
Final Thoughts & Questions
My morning routine includes watching new video content from the above channels. Only South Main Auto and Pine Hollow have been on this list for a few years. All others are newer, with some dropping off the list and others added. I am constantly evaluating these channels, so if you have a great channel to recommend, please let me know in the comments below.
Another channel to watch is Pine Hollow Auto Diagnostics. Ivan doesn’t do a lot of repairs. He focus on just the diagnostics. The repairs he does do are still interesting.
Thanks…I will check it out!
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I’ll suggest Watch Wes Work. He works on a wide variety of vehicles from cars through larger trucks to older construction vehicles.
That’s a great suggestion! I discovered his channel last week after posting this article, and have watched about 10 of his videos so far. It kind of feels like a cross between South Main Auto and Rainman Ray’s. I love his chuckle when he finds an improper repair or other weird discovery.
Thanks for sharing the youtube channels for car repair.I was actually looking for some good mechanic for my own car repair in New York but after reading your blog and checking out the recommended ways and channels for car repair, I was able to do it on my own.Thanks for sharing.
I’m glad this worked out for you. If you ever come across a different channel that you want to recommend, please share it in the comments.