Advanced Auto Care

I am so glad I found a great honest respectable mechanic shop in so cal. My wife an I had taken our only car there to get serviced, I am on social security and do not make a whole lot. After scrambling around to get a mechanic a rather tall Caucasian fella approached, I couldn’t tell if he worked there or not. He had a black shirt on with some camouflage shorts but he announced himself as a technician there so we told him our issues and he immediately knew what the problem was before I could finish the symptoms. His hands were a little dirty but he went an got gloves which I was surprised to see a mechanic be so attentive to detail and cleanliness but he told us what it was and we walked inside an the Hispanic fellow at the front desk wasn’t very talkative but I guess it was ok. So he told us our wait time was approximately 3 hours maybe sooner. We were a little fluttered by this as we had a funeral to attend later in the day, so praying it would be sooner our tall pal came to the rescue we were there a total of 30 minutes and POWWW He had the car in on the elevator thing and was wrenching away, finished in and out in 1 hour, I wish we could get his name so that we could recommend and leave a better review he deserves 10 stars. Only issue is I wish the front desk guy would be a little more accurate. Prices were great as well.

My car broke down in Orange County. AAA sent me to Advanced Auto Care by chance. It was after 9 pm when The tow truck finally got me there. I fully expected to leave a note on the dash and check in to a hotel. Scott and Ashlyn stayed crazy late to get me back on the road home to San Diego. They went so far and above for a total stranger I can hardly believe it. I can’t properly express the gratitude I feel. This is my first ever Unilocal review. I’d give 500 stars if I could.

I would give no stars if I had the chance. This establishment if you can even call it that is owned and ran by an individual named Scott. Now I don’t have a lot of time to go into details so I’ll get straight to the nitty gritty. My 08 cx7 was towed to AAC because of it being a triple a affiliate and very close to my home. Was given a diagnosis from another place stating I had a timing belt issue and a mass air flow (intake/​outake). This scam artist Scott took 3 days to do his own diagnosis all the meanwhile keeping me and the owner if the vehicle in the complete dark about any progress. Not to mention each time AAC was called by the owner of the vehicle Scott would sound aggravated and annoyed that we were calling to check on the status, even though they’d say we will call you in an hour with a status update at 1130am we’d end up calling them by 545pm since they close at 6pm. Anyways after performing multiple oil changes (so they claim) Scott stated the motor was blown and it would be almost 5 grand for a new one. Something struck me as odd the whole time about Scott possibly his arrogant attitude or the fact he made me and the owner of the car feel like we were bothering him when we’d call to get an update. Either way I was getting a second opinion, but upon telling Scott I’d be picking the car up he had another offer 3,000 $ for the car outright, now this struck my last nerve there’s front body damage done to it and if the motors really blown who would pay 3,000 $ for a shell of a car with 80,000 miles on it. I declined the offer and had it towed to another shop, come to find out it’s a 1200 $ turbo problem, the engine/​motor is just fine. I’ve reported the matter to triple a and to top things off when I had my car towed Scott would not release it for a 40 dollar oil change bill. Don’t come here I urge anyone I almost got swindled and in sure this isn’t his first time doing this. Or attempting too ALWAYS get a second opinion.

This place seems like a trustworthy and comfortable spot to get your car looked at. For me that’s hard to say because I’ve been screwed over by a couple places. I brought in my car because the brakes are squishy and i felt due to be changed. They were honest saying that they didn’t look to bad and I may not need new ones but it wouldn’t be a bad idea to change them yet definitely no new rotors. But if I wanted to b safe I could change the pads. I hardly have off time so I took advantage of it! I’ll b back Forsure if I need future work done. It ended up being n extra 45 mins well worth wait

These guys don’t know anything about cars. I took my 86 manual transmission in to get smogged, and was told it would only take an hour, but ended up taking 4hrs. Then, when he took me to the back to discuss what the problem was, he stated that the RPMs were too low and as he took the vehicle off the machine, he asked me what the throttle was and blamed the wire for the low RPMs. Don’t trust these guys, they clearly don’t know how an engine works.

Hello,
I recently became a hairdresser, so with the last of my school tuition money bought a used Volvo. (I had to sell my prior car to be able to attend beauty school) I needed something to get to my newly acquired assisting position at a nearby salon, so I bought this car pretty much knowing it might be a lemon… I know nothing about cars! I randomly drove into Advanced Auto Care to get a check engine light investigated so I can therefore register the vehicle. From the beginning Scott, explained to me the process in laymen’s terms & began the necessary repairs to appropriately getting my car registered. Since, then Ive had issues with my coolant system being repaired… It’s been a journey, but Scott and his team of mechanics are really helpful & honest. I know my vehicle might have age on her, (Volvo 2000 c70) & she burns through gas pretty quickly, but she’s all I have to support me in the beginning of my professional goals. You’ll feel it once you walk in that it’s a family atmosphere with a great number years of experience behind them. I am grateful to them for keeping me on the road, & I’d give my highest recommendation to anyone looking for a reliable mechanic. I wish them nothing but good health, & prosperity in the future!

There aren’t any words to describe how amazing this place is. They are friendly, fair and caring. I found them when I first moved to OC and been going here ever since. They always take such good care of me and my car. I am having to move to LA and took my car in to get checked out before it hits 100k miles and Vik made sure my car was in the best shape and even told me to call them when I move to LA if any place is telling me different. It truly has been a phenomenal experience EVERYTIME. Thank you Advanced Auto for always taking car of me!

DON’T. Don’t waste the time or money bc they will abuse. There are too many details to explain how two trips to this facility incited a BAR investigation with subsequent payoff.
The way they talk about customers when they leave is not acceptable and they waste your time to get multiple visits and operate without consent. DON’T. I got taken advantage of and many loyal customers do; don’t let it happen to you.
The « Unilocal Community» tried to remove this review bc I didn’t elaborate enough about my UNSATISFACTORY experience.
Allow me to report: the least egregious incident involved waiting an entire week for a diagnostic. When I finally said I’d be taking my vehicle back, they scurried to do the diagnostic and 30mins of work while I waited an hour for both.
Homeboy tried to sell me a salvaged car after swindling me out of 2K that he explicitly agreed to the night before. The tactic was so I’d be stuck at his door and not the BAR’s.
Dishonest company removing honest reviews? Big surprise.

Scott and his team are my heroes! Should’ve written this a while back for the past two years of service on my car and 4+ years on my boyfriend’s. The whole team is extremely professional and caring. They take the time to explain complicated issues in a relatable way. Scott goes out of his way to make sure he finds the best price and never nickels and dimes or tries to upsell you. These guys are hard working and honest to a fault. This is the only car place I’ve found where they’re truly looking out for the customers’ interests. I was in a car wreck on 1÷11÷16 and immediately called Advanced Auto. Scott greeted me and calmed my hysterical self down and let me know it was all going to be ok. I can’t recommend them enough!

BEST, HONEST, ACCURATE, SAFE!!!
Stop searching, you’ve landed in the best most trustworthy group of mechanics in all of Orange County. They’ve been taking care of my car for 12 years. There is nobody else I would bring my car to. Not only did I do an amazing job but they also work with my budget. They are worth every dime. I’ve been taking advantage of before but certainly NOT here. Scott is your man and he is running an outstanding business. I driveaway I feel safe and I know I’m in good hands. I have had several repairs and mainstream maintenance done well. They pretty much do everything. If you have any thousand I’ll stop in and ask for Scott. I guarantee you’ll go back. An example of their honesty… There was a time I came in with my «check engine» light on. They ran diagnostics and found that there was nothing wrong with the vehicle, and that it was a minor electrical malfunction. They fixed it and minutes and let me go without charging me a dime. This is a situation where I could’ve been heavily taken advantage of, but this place would never do that. Go have a cuppa coffee and lounge and our new upgraded waiting room. If you have to drop your car off for the day there’s plenty of entertainment nearby so you can entertain yourself while you wait. I moved to LA, and I go back to orange county just to get my car worked on. I can’t tell you enough how grateful I am for this group. Stop in and see for yourself.

I do not have enough positive things to say about this place and its owner Scott. We had a used car looked at here prior to purchasing and they were so accommodating to fit us in last minute. They had looked at the car thoroughly and identified problems that would have cost thousands to repair. In hindsight, knowing we would likely not purchase the car, Scott had sacrificed his income on these potential repairs. Instead, he spent FOUR hours after closing helping me and my husband find our new car. What’s more, he refused to accept payment for the diagnostics on the original car we brought in. I have never been to a more kind, honest, and helpful autoshop. Please do yourselves a favour and disregard any negative reviews.

Scott and the team at AdvancedAuto Care make you feel like part of the family. Reliable, friendly and just the best! You need to bring your car here to experience the best!!!

I’ve been bringing my cars and trucks to advanced for years now. And each and every time, I’ve got excellent service. Everything gets done right and I’ve never been charged a penny more than I was originally quoted. If I bring a vehicle in to get a job done… it gets done! If you bring your car in for an oil change, you get an oil change. They don’t do a bunch of stuff you didn’t ask them to do and then charge you a fortune. They do however make suggestions if they find something wrong. I dig that. But they leave the decision where it belongs! With you! The customer! And all the guys behind the counter are super courteous and knowledgeable. How often do you bring your car to get worked on and get someone asking if you’d like coffee or a cold bottle of water?! Bravo guys! You deserve some recognition! Thanks for the good experience!

I have to admit, I like many others, read the one and two star reviews first, especially if we already have had much better experiences. Those reviews are nowhere even close to my experiences at AAC over the years. As I write this, my 1997 Jeep Cherokee (with over 300,000 miles) is in the shop getting some front end work done. I am fully confident Scott and his crew will do their usual 5 star work with my elderly Jeep.
When I walk into AAC, I’m treated not only as a customer by Scott (and sometimes family members), but as an old friend. Scott’s comments directed to my Jeep are always humorous but the fact of the matter, AAC has kept this old Cherokee running as good as can be expected. BTW, not to leave out the other guys working the counter, they are pretty damn good themselves.
Nothing ever has been installed on my vehicle that it didn’t truly need and in some cases.
Scott suggested a work-​around or told me to hold off rather than a replace something before it needed to be done. I appreciate these qualities about Scott in addition to his honesty and integrity. It’s almost always inconvenient to bring your vehicle in for work but they have always gone out of their way to accommodate me when needed. Regarding the mechanics; I don’t remember having to bring it back for the same thing that wasn’t done right or misdiagnosed. It probably happened at some point; after all nothing’s perfect, I just dont remember when.
If you choose to wait in the clean customer area, you’ll find comfortable leather chairs and free wi-​fi. The banter Scott and his crew engage in is usually entertaining!
I dont hesitate for a second to recommend AAC to anyone looking for an honest and competent shop.

It is a shame that my first review on Unilocal has to be a negative one but I have no choice. I brought my car here to get a quote, being foolishIy suckered in by the high Unilocal rating. They charged me 90 bucks to get a diagnostic, which was fine. The problem I have is that the list of things that needed to be fixed were not accurate in the slightest bit. I had a quote for 2500 in repair. I towed the car to another costa mesa mechanic and he replaced the alternator for 350. He did a full diagnostic and said everything was fine that was said to be broken by these guys.
Be careful here Unilocal.These guys will prey on your lack of automobile knowledge.

Very pleased with both the service and the employees. I always fear getting ripped off at car repair places because I am a young female who looks like she doesn’t know much about cars (which is completely accurate). When talking with Dan, I never felt disrespected or talked down to, and my dad assured me the price they charged me was fair. My car was in and out in 7 hours, with two phone call updates during the day. Would recommend!

Like trying to find a good dentist, it can be equally as daunting to find a good mechanic. I have now found one. I was referred to Advanced by AAA and the owner Dan and his crew exceeded every expectation that I had.
They were efficient, friendly, accurate and timely. They were even able to arrange a discounted rental car for me. These guys were simply great. I will definitely return.

I started taking my cars to Advanced Auto upon moving to Costa Mesa last year. Not having any leads for a mechanic was troubling but I must say, I hit the lotto with these guys.
Scott, Vic and Dan are professional and forthright in their communication. I’ve taken all of my cars to Advanced Auto and my wife and I are most pleased with the service these gents and their staff provide.
These guys are the Nordstrom of Auto-​mechanics.

I am aways worried about taking my car in for service, however after an unexpected breakdown my car got towed to Advanced Auto by AAA. I for sure thought I was going have to spend a bunch of money for the repairs. Within an hour I received a call from Scott with the good news that all they had to replace was the fuel filter on my Denali. I was surprised that my truck was taken to a very honest repair facility. Thank you Scott, you have my business for life.

The only downside to this place is that they are extremely popular, and it’s a bitch to get into their driveway at times.
However, I’ve taken numerous vehicles here and can wholeheartedly say that it’s one of the rare mechanic shops that is not only good at what it does, but honest with its prices. While I can provide a number of positive stories, here was my first-​ever impression.
Though I wasn’t a regular (yet), I brought my jeep in by tow truck after breaking down. They had me sign the $ 89 estimate for the inspection to figure out what was wrong; the usual deal. They called me and explained that my clutch blew up and they could fix it by the following day. It turned out I had a friend who specializes in clutches and I explained that to them and told them I’m just going to tow to him since he’d prefer to work on that issue.
I went in and they were super cool about me not going forward with them and only charged me $ 40 for the inspection to find the problem, explaining they found the issue fairly quickly.
I couldn’t believe it… and have been taking vehicles there and recommending them ever since.