El Camino 76

The mechanics here are always helpful. When I bring my van in for an oil change, without appointment, they work to fit me in. Thanks guys!!!

I would give this 76 station 10 stars if I could. They fixed my brakes in 1day and cost less than other places. Offered advice about some needed repairs without being pushy. Very trustworthy station and always good service. My only minor complaint was a misunderstanding with a cashier whose English was hard to understand. I highly, highly recommend getting gas here and any needed repairs. The head mechanic, Allen, is the best!

I have been taking my cars to this station for years and have nothing but good things to say about them. Greg and his crew are very friendly and helpful in all of my car or truck needs.
Glen

I have lived here in Los Altos for 14 years. This is a privately own full service business. This is my go to place for auto repairs. They have been here for me at any time of the day. Accepted our cars when they have been towed. They have repaired all of our cars in our house. Its like taking our cars to a dealer. They have all the same equipment almost. Yet you dont pay the dealer prices. They are friendly, responsible, dependable and always get our cars running. If they can’t they are honest and help us find a shop that will know about our car and that is rare. We really feel comfortable taking our cars to El Comino 76 and San Antonio 76.
GS Los Altos

A friend recommended me to this place, and I couldn’t be more thankful. Greg is truly amazing at what he does. I was stressed about the sound my brakes were making and he quickly fixed the situation and calmed my nerves. He kept me in the loop the entire time and provided astonishing customer service. I wish I could give them 10 stars. Thank you Greg and Team!

The El Camino 76 is like something out a movie about gas stations in the 60s. It’s not simply a place to fill up your tank, but is a full service station to fix anything related to your car. One two separate occasions recently, I’ve had to stop by the 76 due to a low tire light on in my car. At the first visit, Greg helped check the air in all my tires and filled/​emptied out the air as needed. This was done absolutely free of charge. Wow. At the second visit, with a different car Allan also checked all the air, filled them and noted a nail in one of the tires. He overfilled it so I could drive it to my dealership. Patching a nail at this 76 would cost only $ 20. Super reasonable!
The price of their gas is also highly competitive for expensive Palo Alto, Los Altos area. I love how helpful and awesome the folks at this 76 are. You’ve earned a loyal customer and fan for life!
On a side note, this 76 is also where I fell in love with the Fisker Karma a few years back. The manager of the Fisker on El Camino was filling up gas next to me and was nice enough to chat with me after observing me drooling over his car. Unfortunately the Karma is no longer being manufactured and Fisker filed for bankruptcy. However, when they were around, they were smart enough to fill up at the best gas station in town– El Camino 76!

Great privately owned full service auto shop! Honest, fast and professional. This team really knows their stuff and not just that but they love what they do. I recommend everyone to bring their cars here because they have what it takes to do the work on top of the line autos. They have all the electronics your dealer has to check your car and re set your auto computer plus diagnose any issue… With out the dealer price and/​or experience. Thanks again!

I came here for a smog. I called on the phone ahead of time and the front desk worker said it would be $ 20.00. I agreed and went. When my car was done, she and the owner Greg charged me $ 65.00 even though I called ahead and confirmed the price. This is dodgy and a scam. I was only refunded $ 15 after lots of wasted time.

I have never felt compelled enough to actually write a review on Unilocal,but this place deserves it. After getting ripped off for decades on my auto repairs, this is the first auto repair shop where they were upfront, honest, timely, convenient and overall went well above my expectations. I have a Range Rover, which before finding El Camino 76, couldn’t make it out of an auto repair shop without at least spending $ 2K+, no matter what was getting fixed. In my recent visit I got new brakes, rotors, windshield wipers, and an oil change for about half the cost of what I am used to paying and with incredible customer service.

I changed my timing belt there. The work is fantastic. The price is also very reasonable. Allen and Greg are both very nice guys. I recommend.

New to the area, relocated from the Midwest… Needed a smog check and Greg knocked out my vehicle, without an appointment in less than 30 mins! In addition, I was aware that new tires would be needed around Christmas time for my vehicle. Unfortunately, in late October, hours prior to leaving for a trip to the city for the weekend, I discovered a screw in one of the already bald tires. I figured that now would be as good as time as any to replace all the tires. However, with no appointment and the need to leave for the city later in the afternoon, I was doubtful that I would be able to get new tires in time (keep in mind that the tire in question was not worth patching… below the ware line). I first visited the dealership and they of course had no tires. Even if they had it would have taken them an estimated 5 hours to complete the job.
Remembering how Greg had helped me out with my smog check with no notice, I stopped in to see if it would be possible to replace all 4 of my tires. Sure enough, Greg made it happen in just over an hour (the delay, he had to wait for the tires to be delivered)!
Greg has twice now helped me out of a jam! Moreover, he promised what he could deliver and then delivered more that what he promised!
Thank you!

Lowest gas prices on El Camino… But inconvenient hours!

I took my Ford Ranger truck to this 76 station in March of 2010. The customer service was actually pretty good. Staff was polite, I was kept informed about the status of repairs, and they asked my pre-​approval on all charges.
The problem unfortunately, was the work done. Honestly, I would like to give this shop a better review.
I had the brakes re-​done which required replacing the rotors. Not uncommon on a 15 year old vehicle. Then, 4 – 6 months later they began pulsating. Essentially, once the brakes heat up they begin to vibrate. This often happens coming down hills. The brakes heat up and the entire truck shakes.
After researching the problem, I learned that it’s probably due to mechanical error. There just wasn’t enough time for the brake pads and rotors to wear down. And it’s a problem that often results from over-​torquing the lug nuts (a common error that is made by car mechanics, or so I’m told).
At any rate, they did offer a 12 month warranty on the work. But being busy and living far away in San Francisco, I kept putting it off (which is my fault). I am now past the warranty deadline. So I don’t see a point in returning. Like I said, I would like to give them a better review. But after my experience, I really could not justify going back.

One very early morning I tried to pay for my car registration online (it was due that day), it wouldn’t let me because smog check was due! So I scrambled around looking for a place to get it done very quickly. I came across this 76 station, the guy answered the call was very friendly and luckily the first appointment at 8am was available. I zoomed down there by 8am, really hoping that it would be done in half an hour so I could be back to the office before the boss came in. Well they did it! The guy who did the smog check was friendly, explained the basics, got it all done in less than half and hour. I couldn’t be happier. Now I know where to go for my next smog check!

Yes this place does great work on cars, is honest, etc… but they blew my mind this week… I recently had a baby and needed to get my car smogged (to sell) but the car does not safely hold a baby car-​seat. I call 76 and mention this predicament (how to get car to station with no car seat and a baby) and they COME TO MY HOUSE TO GET MY CAR FOR ME. Note this is for smog check — not a big money maker for them. Greg the owner came to the house himself 30 minutes after I called and dropped the car off too. I really had no way of safely getting this done and can’t imagine another auto shop that would have helped out like this. Love this place…

About 14 years ago, finding myself with no mechanic and a failing muffler, I checked out 3 local shops and their repair estimates. Greg’s was the third stop. The first shop’s estimate? $ 1450 — and they were impersonal at best. The second shop quoted $ 280, but despite the price, I didn’t like the vibe. Next, fortunately, I found Greg’s El Camino 76. Greg himself met me, looked me straight in the eye, gave me a good strong handshake, and asked «How can I help you?» I noticed their lot was full of cars, the work area was clean and bustling, and mechanics and customers were consulting with each other, all good signs. Greg’s estimate of $ 120 was ¹⁄₁₀ the first and ½ the 2^nd estimates and the repair outlasted my car. His shop shepherded my next car thru 200,000 miles. They have been unfailingly honest, curteous, helpful, proactive, and community oriented. TEN STARS!

Greg, the owner, lets groups raise money by doing car washes at his gas station for free. He also allows them to use his water at no charge. He says that it does not increase his business on those days, he just does it out of the goodness of his heart. I feel good about giving my business to someone who is so generous with his resources!

I used to like this place, but now they are rude and have no soap in their bathroom. They lie too. Don’t go there.
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I highly recommend this place for general service to your auto (oil changes, general maintenance, etc). I lived in Palo Alto for 6 years and tried mechanics all over — from Redwood City to EPA to Mountain View — and none of them compare to this place with regard to professionalism, honesty and price. The owner/​mechanic, Greg, is really friendly and trustworthy for a mechanic. He won’t try to rip you off like at a bunch of the other places in the area and his prices are reasonable. Hope you give this place a try because it is one of the small businesses that I feel is sincerely good for the community.