Alternative Automotive

They took care of the inspection and the employees were friendly, however, would have liked to know that my car would be driven off to another property for the work. Where it was driven away to I have no idea.
The charge was $ 30 for a state required $ 25.50 inspection fee. It’s my understanding that It’s only legal to tack on an extra fee if the station tells the customer about it before the service is performed where the customer can decline it. I was not told before the service and believe me, I would have declined it.
One more tricky thing they did: the inspection report says $ 25.50 total inspection cost, but my card was charged $ 30.00.
Now I’m getting picky but the residue from the old sticker wasn’t removed from the windshield.

Stay away. I had my worst car repair job ever here.
Oh man let me tell you about this place.
I went in for an oil change and they told me my car was leaking oil and that it would be $ 1000 to fix. I like the car so I but the bullet and told them to do it. $ 1000 later I pick up my car. It breaks down on the way home. I barely get it back to the shop. It turns out they forgot to reconnect all the hoses.
Fine. An honest mistake right. This was after a visibly drunk (with 40 in hand) and profusely sweating «security guard» tried to help me.
After I pick up my car there’s a burning smell. Like oil burning. I ignore it for a bit but then I can see an oil leak and I am leaving oil puddles. I then take it into another shop and they are great (except for the fact they charged me $ 70) and show me exactly what’s leaking. It turns out it’s exactly what they supposedly fixed, only instead of being better– it’s actually much worse. A leak I didn’t notice before, I definitely see and smell now.
So I take it back to the shop and ask them to look at it. He takes a quick look at it and tells me it’s not leaking. I try and say that another shop looked at it and showed me the leak. Foolishly at that time I asked him to change a light bulb. The price of the light bulb is the price of the lightbulb. Nothing to do for that. But labor on the light bulb $ 65! For a light bulb.
Also the same guy toting his 40 oz beer is hanging out in the garage. It’s around 3pm. 5o’clock somewhere right?
Stay away! This is a terrible place– the worst car repair job I have ever had. My car is worse than when I dropped it off and I’m out $ 1100.

We stopped here around 4pm on a Saturday for an oil change. Even though there were plenty of cars there, we were in and out in under 30 minutes. I agree with other Unilocalers that they are over priced. We were charged $ 45 for a basic oil change. Maybe I am cheap, but I think $ 45 is way too high.
Everyone was friendly and we were in and out. But, because of the price, we probably won’t be back anytime soon.

I was on my way to Austin for the weekend (back in March) and suddenly there was smoke and something was leaking and the engine temperature in red. It was right in front of this place… so I pulled in and they looked and said I needed a new water pump!
I said fine and they went to work and a couple of hours later, as I was watching, the mechanic removed the old water pump and then suddenly dropped a tool by accident and broke it and it was Friday 5:30 PM and they could not find a placement and said that it had to wait until Monday! and they couldn’t even put the old broken pump back in, because they broke it.
So, I explained that I needed a car and asked for a loaner. They said they don’t have loaners.
I said they broke the piece and should be able to either repair it of provide a loaner. The owner said, oh hell it was not our mistake. Even though the mechanic admitted it to me himself, not to mention that I saw it happening!
The guy kept yelling at everyone, but ultimately said he was going to get me a loaner! Fine. So, I waited another hour and half and by now, it’s 7:30pm and this began 7 hours earlier!
Finally at 7;30pm, my so called loaner arrived. It was a 1982 Toyota Corolla, with no inspection stickers or registration, it was filthy, the pain on the car had vanished and turned into a rustic brown and blue on the hood, it had a spare tire (thin one).
One tire had a cup and the other 3 did not. it was dirty inside much like the outside and it was just a disaster of a car that I didn’t even want touch the door handle, let alone the dirty steering wheel. I said I don’t want to drive a car that is not safe (oh and the seatbelt didn’t work and the check engine light was blinking). He said that’s all you get …
I was so done with the whole thing, ad took that piece of crap and went on y adventure ride to austin and came back on Monday to get my car.
The nightmare was still not over… my car was ready and when I went to get in it to drive away as fast as possible I noticed a piece of the door frame was broken and was sticking out.
So, I went back inside and explained that there was something broken, but the dude went crazy again and said that it was like that already. he didn’t even look at what I was talking about…
Basically, I spent $ 600 to fix my car, but ended up wit a half A** repair that needed to be repaired again and a broken door frame that ended up costing me over $ 2000 in additional damages!
I would never go back to this place and don’t recommend anyone, who wants their car back in one piece to go there either. Never again!

Alternative Automotive in Oak Lawn left my car unlocked with the windows rolled down and the keys in the ignition — which is how I found it when I picked it up at the curb in front of their shop. No way am I going back there.
What’s good? Comfy waiting room with free wi-​fi. If you come here, you’ll want to stay to ensure that your car is not left unsecured in the parking area in front of their store like mine was.
Unbelievable neglect of client property. Go elsewhere.

agree with other reviewers. straight forward, did not feel up-​sold or ripped off. bare bones, hard working shop. will be back.

This place has an exceptional service! They repaired my flat tire in less than 15 min for only $ 16! Five stars all the way!

I just had a great experience at Alternative Automotive. I was concerned about my brakes and stopped in to have them checked. Miguel looked them over, told me they’re in good condition and I wasn’t charged a dime! He even helped me load my stroller in the car. While we waited, meeting Doris and Sugar Ray (the new office puppy) was also a treat. We will definitely be back!

By far the best place to do anything to your car. It took blowing 1600 at another place before i came to my senses. Fast, honest and professional

First time to bring my car there. Great services & honesty. They’re not pushing or cheat you’re what need to be done on your car. The services is quick and the prices is decent.
I will continues use theirs services. I am recommended this place.

I’m sorry you guys I really wish this review could have been a positive one. I read the reviews which is why I gave him a call on Tuesday June 9^th requesting an estimate for my vehicle. I gave them all the details requested and I was told they would get back to me at the latest Wednesday. I even mentioned that I would like to have the work done the same week if possible. Unfortunately I never received a call back and it’s been a week. I’m sure they do awesome work but it was really disappointing as a potential new customer not to receive a call back.

I called Alternative after spending four hours at Just Brakes to get a quote of over $ 700 for front brake pads and rotors for my MINI Cooper Countryman, Doris answered and was extremely helpful giving me a quote over the phone that was $ 300 LESS than Just Brakes.
I came by after JB put my car back together, and the salesman/​brake tech threw a bit of a fit that I wasn’t getting my brakes done there, and they took a quick look and ordered my parts. It was Memorial Day weekend, so naturally, it was going to take an extra day to get the parts in, so I scheduled a day to come back.
It was my appointment day and I dropped my car off and while I was waiting for my partner to come get me, Doris asked if I needed a ride somewhere — WHO DOES THAT ANYMORE?
They put SERVICE back into Service Station and you can tell they work to keep their clients happy.
As I waited, I spoke with some other people who couldn’t say enough good things about Alternative, so with my experience and their feedback, Alternative will be our repair shop of choice!

My car was over heating, and so I pulled over and looked on Unilocal to find a place nearby. I found Alternative Automotive, and it had such good reviews, so I decided to give them a call. I explained on the phone what I thought was going on and asked if it was okay to drive my car there or if I needed to tow it. The receptionist was so kind and went out of her way to asked the mechanics, and came back to the phone and explained what they said. I then drove my car there and they immediately helped me, explained the problem, and listened to what I thought was wrong. They showed me exactly waht they were going to do and the price. It was extremely well priced. They even changed my oil for $ 22! And my car was ready later that day.

Needed my alignment checked and fixed so I dropped by. Quick and friendly customer service. Came in the morning and there wasn’t a wait. There is a in-​house cute cat in the waiting area, so if you’re allergic, heads up.
They did a great job servicing my car. Hopefully won’t need to go back for anything. But if I do, I’ll come back here.

Super impressed by these guys. I got a new tire put on and an oil change in under an hour during my lunch break. The customer service was exceptional & I love how nice and clean the office is. Will definitely be returning for some work on my A/​C and other repairs to my VW. Highly recommend.

This is my second time using Alternative Automotive for car needs and I think it’s safe to say they are now my go to mechanic.
My car was making weird thumping sounds on my way to work this morning (and had been for awhile now, I thought it was just the road due to the mess of construction downtown on the 35, etc.). My fiancée was with me and suggested we get it looked at ASAP. Since we were in Cedar Hill we went to Christian Brothers Automotive where they ran a free diagnostic and identified the issues-​I was in need of new front and rear shocks/​struts. Their estimate came to $ 1500! I was thankful for their help but needed the work done closer to home.
I took the estimate to Alternative Automotive and asked them for an estimate on the same work that needed to be done. Their estimate was $ 1150ish.
Done deal!
They said it would take about 4 – 5 hours to complete the work and they’d call me when they were done. I told them that even the next morning would be fine to pick up because they did look busy.
4 hours later I received a phone call saying my car was ready! I guess something got mixed up in communication and they though it was a rush job. Plus for me! I went to pick it up and the total came out to be even less than the estimate.
My drive home was nice and smooth. :)
Thanks Alternative Automotive!

Came here needing an oil change because it was super close to my apartment and the reviews on Unilocal raved about the outstanding service and great prices.
I don’t know if maybe I’m just cheap or what, but I didn’t expect to have my oil changed (2008 Corolla) for a whopping $ 45. I guess that’s about $ 1/​minute that I waited. Even Plano doesn’t charge me that much.
I get it, it’s uptown Dallas. What did I expect?
Overall the facility is much older and despite friendly service, I will only come back in the case of emergencies or if I value the convenience for pricing.

Went first to Firestone because they are on recommended list of TireRack and they are inexpensive compared to others on list. I had an appointment and confirmed it the same day. They took 3 hours, didn’t finish the job, and then I found they didn’t put the value stem on correctly and wouldn’t fix it until Monday (two days later).
Instead I found a GREAT local auto care place (Alternative Automotive on Oak Lawn) and they took care of the Firestone problem for free and did my alignment within 45 min, no appointment, on a Saturday. They were awesome. The manager I interacted with was helpful, intelligent, and enjoyable. The price was inexpensive compared to other places.
I have a new Mini. I saw other autos such as Land Rovers, Toyotas, Cadillacs, and Fords, etc. So they take care of all.
I wholeheartedly recommend them. I just left their place 30 mins ago and am writing this enthusiastically. It doesn’t look like much from Oak Lawn Ave. but they are legit.

The service here is terrible! We waited in the office and no one acknowledged us, my husband even walked around the property and was completely ignored for at least 5 minutes as he was standing there! There were at least 6 employees who saw his standing there and said nothing. We had called in advance and they said to just bring it by, then when we get there not 30 minutes later, there is a 2 hour minimum wait for an inspection? He could have at least said that on the phone when we got here! I won’t be back.

One word. Refreshing!
The cost was actually less than what I’m used to paying for an synthetic oil change. The service quick. The mechanics friendly, honest.
Bonus: friendly tabby cat to keep you company while you wait on your car.