Fred's Wrenchouse

Fred was recommended by a friend's mechanic who said that Fred's work was "worth the trip to Alameda." He was honest and he was able to fix my starter motor problem for good where others had failed. He also kindly helped me with a quick bicycle adjustment when I was biking from his shop to work. My brother also used his services and was equally satisfied.

My boyfriend and I moved to Alameda about four months ago, and both of us have taken our cars (his is a Chevy) to Fred to have work done. We've had great experiences both times-- Fred was open and honest with us, and neither of us felt we were being swindled out of our money. In fact, Fred was upfront with me about a problem in my car that he just didn't feel he had the expertise to fix, and "rather than cause your car any damage, or cause you to spend more money than necessary" he passed on the work. How many times do you hear that from an auto mechanic?!

fred has got himself a customer as long as my chrysler keeps running. one time, the repair took a little longer than expected, and he had to keep the car over the weekend, but in the end, i got a discount. another time, i thought something was wrong with my front tire/axel, but then i felt really stupid because it just turned out to be my front cracked bumper flapping in the breeze as i sped up/slowed down...and fred was so nice, for all that trouble, no charge. great service, great shop!

My wife and I have been going to Fred's for the past ten years and he has been the sole servicer on four different vehicles (3 Toyotas, 1 Durango). On numerous occasions, Fred has counseled alternate solutions with the trade-offs of each including price. He has saved me a lot of money over the years by recommending repairs that were appropriate to my needs and where the vehicle was in its useful life. Fred is very open and honest-you will never get gouged. He has never exceeded the estimated price including a time that he clearly underestimated the extent of a major transmission issue. This is a good sized (6-8 FT mechanics), clean, orderly shop. If there is one drawback, it is that they close fairly early in the evening making car retieval after work challenging.

You couldn't ask for a more honest, conscientious, reliable mechanic. I was referred to Fred by another mechanic who tried several times to fix a problem and failed. Of course Fred was able to figure it out and fix it the first time! The Wrenchouse is the only shop who ever works on my 14- year old LeBaron. I wouldn't trust my baby to anyone else! When my water pump started leaking last year, Fred told me that I would need to replace it. Since he has to remove and replace the timing belt to get to it, it's not an inexpensive repair. I couldn't afford the repair at the time, so Fred put some "stop leak" in it, and very carefully explained the precautions I would need to take until the pump was replaced. He made sure I understood the potential consequences of delaying the repair, without pressuring me to spend money I didn't have to get it done right away. I will always recommend Fred to anyone who ever needs anything done on their car. He is the best mechanic in the bay area!

Fred took care of my Kia Amanti when a collapsed lifter started a complete rebuild of the engine. He took care of all warranty paper and contacts with the warranty company. Very professional and accommodating. Runs great. Super gentleman.

I can only second all the positive reviews. I've been going to Fred's for over 20 years and have never had a bad experience.