The incident was reported at about 5 p.m. in the parking lot of a private business in the 300 block of Oyster Point Boulevard.
A tree located near where the pipe bomb exploded sustained minor damage, police said. The suspect fled west on Oyster Point Boulevard in a 1990s dark-colored pickup truck.
Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call the South San Francisco Police Department at (650) 877-8900.