Al's Garage
100 S Merritt Mill Rd, Chapel Hill, NC 27510, us
(919) 967-3016
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About this shop
- Hours
- Specialties
- Specialities:
- Loaners
- No
- Notes
Score card
They are always honest | 4.7/5 |
They are competent | 4.7/5 |
Their repair price is reasonable | 4.2/5 |
They complete the work in a timely manner | 4.9/5 |
They respond well when they screw something up | 4.4/5 |
They take the time to explain the problems and necessary repairs | 4.8/5 |
They treat male and female customers in the same manner | 4.7/5 |
They are always honest | 4.7/5 |
I would use this mechanic again | N/A |
I would recommend this mechanic to others | N/A |
They fix the problem the first time | 4.7/5 |
The shop is located in a safe neighborhood | 4.2/5 |
The hours of operation are convenient for customers | 4.3/5 |
They are near public transportation (or provide loaners, shuttle bus, rides as needed) | 4.5/5 |
Reviews
Sep 06, 2002
Good folks. I trust them.
Jul 31, 2003
- N/A
They won't work on Hondas with automatic transmissions. They said they prefer to do what they do best.
Nov 07, 2011
- N/A
Dec 21, 2004
On more than one occasion, Al has told me that I did not
need a costly repair (that another place told me I needed
or when I thought something was wrong with my car). I find
that impressive. On top of that, he will personally
explain to you, not only what was done to your car, but
what caused the problem how that part of the car works and
anything else you want to know about it. The rest of the
staff is nice and knowledgeable, and yes, they do work on
automatic Honda civics (they worked on mine for 7 years
before I moved - I don't know why someone said they
wouldn't). I wish Al had a branch in my new home town.
Fortunately, he lets me call with questions me call with
questions now that I moved (Al is easier to get to in a
timely manner than the Car Guys!).
Nov 07, 2011
Jul 05, 2008
In the 8 years I lived in NC, I was a repeat customer at
Al's for the last six. I recently moved to CA and regret
that I can't take Al's with me!
All of the staff I ever talked to were extremely
knowledgable, but they never tried BSing when they didn't
know something.
My favourite Al's anecdote demonstrates their honesty. I
realised the seatbelt on my 90 civic wasn't locking when you
tugged on it hard - kind of defeats the purpose of seatbelts.
So first I called a local dealer to ask how much it would
cost to replace - IIRC they quoted me $300, without
mentioning anything else. So I called Al's to see if they
could do it any cheaper. They told me that was what it cost
to replace, but that I shouldn't have to pay that - Honda's
have a lifetime guarantee on seatbelts. They told me to
take the car to the dealership and tell them I want it
replaced under the guarantee. Sure enough, when I asked the
dealer this was, they replaced the seatbelt for free!
In this situation, Al's chose to save me $300, and loose out
on a job they could have done, if they were more economical
with the truth (like the dealership). To me this is
testament to their honesty and integrity. They seem to
understand that if you treat customers with respect, then
they will likely be repeat customers.
I could complain about their prices, but I don't think I'd
get the high level of service they offer any cheaper
anywhere else (at least not in Chapel Hill or Carrboro).
My 93 accord is stiil running like new at 150k miles, and my
90 civic ran great at 220k miles when I sold it. This is
testament in part to the quality of this vintage of honda,
but also the quality work Al's have done over years.
Thanks Al!
Oct 23, 2008
I would not own a car that Al and Don and their other staff
would not work on. They LOVE to explain how your car works
and are completely open about their reasoning when trying to
think through what could be producing whatever problem you
are reporting. They want YOU to understand it and to
appreciate that sometimes all they can give is a probability
estimate about whether a small noise or problem may turn in
to a serious problem eventually. I have sent many people
new to the community to them, some quite sophisticated about
mechanics and some total idiots, and everyone has loved
them. These are the best of the breed, I promise!
Jul 24, 2010
A short while after moving to Chapel Hill, I needed to
replace the catalytic converter on my car. Because I was new
to the area, I knew that I would have a hard time finding a
good, honest mechanic. I was apprehensive about having to
find a mechanic, because I knew that if I just happened to
pick the wrong one, then I would end up with more problems
than just a blown catalytic converter, and I would have
wasted a lot of money. So I called around to get bids on
what it would cost to replace a catalytic converter. After
calling about five places, I called Al's, and they were able
to quote me a price that was about $100 cheaper than other
places (especially the local Honda Dealer). It made me
wonder if there was some catch, but I tried them anyway. It
quickly became apparent that they were more interested in
providing a good, cheap service than trying to wring every
dollar out of me that they could. I have since used them
several times, except in the few cases where they could not
fix my problem, but in those cases, they could always point
me to a specialist who could fix my problem. They also
always take the time to explain the problem in great detail,
and make sure I understand what is wrong with my car and how
they are going to fix it. If more mechanics were like these
guys, then mechanics would be among some of the most trusted
professionals, as opposed to among the least trusted.
Jul 12, 2011
DON'T KNOW THEIR BUSINESS AND WON'T REPAIR THE DAMAGE THEY DO.
We have a 1995 SW2 Saturn wagon that died from what turned out to be a
bad alternator. Initially, we replaced the battery and it fired back up, but the
battery warning light suggested we had an alternator problem. We took it to
Al's garage for confirmation of the alternator problem, which he did, and an
estimate for the repair. He could only give us a wide range for the repair
costs, $330-$430, because he didn't know how long it would take to do the
repair, thus how much labor he would end up charging us. They should know
how long it takes- there's a cost book somewhere with repair times for all the
different repairs -THEY SHOULD KNOW.
Even his low price seemed high so I called another shop (the now defunct Saturn dealer repair shop), and they quoted ~$300. Rather getting
caught with paying his guys to learn how to replace a Saturn alternator, we
opted for the other shop to do the repair, paid Al his $25 for his estimate and
arranged to pick up the car Friday night after they closed. I arrived that
evening, the battery still had sufficient juice and it started right up. But when
I went to shift gears on the manual, the linkage between the shifter and the
gearbox had been broken. The shifter just floated with no way to change
gears. The other shop was going to repair the alternator on Sat AM, but now we had
to leave it at Al's for the weekend. I had to wait until Monday to "discuss" this
with Al. His response to the broken linkage: it's an old car, wear and tear, your
problem. He'd be happy to get the parts in and give me a reasonable price for
the repair. If someone damages your car, they should repair it. I told him as
much, but he claimed I was scamming him. Rather than give this ????. (fill in
the blank with your own #@) another penny of my money, I arranged to have
it towed to the other shop. Estimates- alternator $280- cheaper than his low
estimate even with the Al's $25 diagnostic fee thrown in- actual final cost at the second shop: $260. Repair cost for linkage damage as a result of taking it to Al's
garage- $275. You do the math on why you should avoid Al's garage??. Feel
free to take it to him if you like to be taken advantage of and to the cleaners
to boot.
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