Auto Repair in Albany, CA

Dana and his people are great but the price and the service are not worth it. After years of bringing my cars here I am going somewhere else. I brought a car to do a check before I bought it. No problems. No warning, Everything okay. Five months later I have to have a new transmission that is going to cost me $4,0000!!!

We just learned that Dana Meyer Auto Care can fix an issue we have had with our Jeep for over 3 years! For an extremely reasonable rate along with other persistent issues we had forgotten to mention when dropping off the car. Thorough, reasonable, and communicative. If you're in the Bay Area, don't hesitate. Simply put, best car repair service, ever.

When my wonderful wife thought she would please me by fueling at Costco when she was there (since I had asked her why she did not do so). However, not knowing this when I drove the vehicle later, I realized something was wrong. I smelled the fuel filler hole with the cap off and said 'Oh, S**t!). I asked my wife where she filled up and she said Costco, like you suggested. I said great, but you put gasoline in the Diesel van!. After determining how much was put in, we started calling around to local mechanics to see if someone could assist as the extracted fuel would not be usable and would need to disposed of properly. Most could not help. Dana said he could. We were grateful. Since we were desperate, the price seemed reasonable. I asked my wife to have them replace the fuel filter too, which I provided and put on the passenger seat. I go to pick up the vehicle... then the trouble starts. First off, they added a $50+ charge for a dipstick. I asked what that was for. Apparently, when they checked the oil (a good practice... to drum up business), the dipstick hit the positive side of the battery cabling and fried. Dana said the dipstick had other burn marks like it had happened before. I said it never happened to me and I never saw any burn marks and could he show me the dipstick. He said sure, and went back to find it. He could not produce it. He would not concede it was their fault. So I paid and said to myself, that was a small price for them to pay to lose a customer. When I got to the vehicle, I noticed the fuel filter is not installed. I go back in to inquire. He said he told my wife it would only be done if needed. I'm not sure how he would know if it was needed or not. My wife did not understand it this way. I replaced it myself, later. Finally, when I go the the fuel station a block away to fill up, I find out Dana and crew left at least 10 gallons in the vehicle. So not a very thorough job of extracting the fuel (they did it manually with a crank pump, I think, and it was probably taking too long for the price he quoted... but that was his mistake). So, as nice as they seem to be, I would not bring any of my vehicles back to them. They seem to like to pass on their mistakes to customers.

Took my family's three vehicles here for service and have been satisfied with their service. They don't have loaner cars, so you are on your own after dropping off your vehicle. Kat and Alex are great at writing up vehicle for service and explaining what was going to be done. They call when the vehicle is ready. Not a lot of bells and whistles to this place but they do get the work done. After taking my cars to Oakland Acura (about 10 miles away), I'd say I've found a winner.

I've brought my car there three times for service and have been completely satisfied each time. Dana and the other mechanics are very knowledgeable and act professionally, from an old motorhead who knows cars. They are courteous and actually do listen to your concerns and observations. They also go the extra bit to inform you of things that they feel should be attended to. This is not a discount, cheapo operation but a professionally managed garage that is fully competent in diagnosis and repair. You will not be dissatisfied with the quality of their work.

I've been a loyal customer for 11 years and wouldn't go anywhere else. I had noticed some fluid -- looked like water -- dripping from my car. Called Dana's assistant Cat and she had me come right in with it. They checked all fluids and several other things, diagnosed it as air conditioner condensation, filled one of my tires and sent me off, no charge. I trust Dana and his staff implicitly.

I wish I'd gone to Dana Meyer from the minute I bought my car. I would have saved tons of time, money, and general hassle - instead I mistakenly thought the Saturn dealership would be the best place to take my car. No way. Dana takes excellent care of my vehicle, gives great tips, works fast, has amazing prices, and great staff. Go here no matter what make your car - you won't regret it.

Dana Meyer is the kind of place where complete car idiots like myself come away feeling respected and well treated. Friendly, well-organized, and prompt service, thorough explanations of what has been done by the mechanics and what will need to be done and when. Options offered for lower-cost repair alternatives and the pros and cons of each. In short, expert, thoughtful, professional (and very prompt!) service. As another reviewer noted, they're not the cheapest, but trust is worth a great deal when we're talking about car repair. Great local business.

The woman who works the counter, Kat, always remembers me. of course that could be because my name is also Kat and I drive one of the rarest cars on the planet (seriously, not many people own a Pontiac Aztek because they are rather ugl-er..... they are cars with character), but still. Cheap? They're not a discount place. I typically pay $95ish for a basic service, but that includes an upgrade in oil because my car is getting on in years. Once my car started making scary clanking noises, and they found a way to squeeze me in just to let a (FABULOUS) mechanic listen to it and make sure it wasn't going to explode or something horrible. The mechanic immediately pointed out where a valve was getting stuck, oiled it up, and poof! instant fix. They are fast, and never keep me waiting for long (get my service done in under an hour). Other things they've done on my car: Replaced a headlight bulb - $55 (yes this sounds insane, but it DID take THREE mechanics to figure out how to get the stupid headlight off because Aztek's are not the most logically built cars and after watching them take the thing apart in 15 minutes, I determined it would have taken me at least 3 hours). Brake pads - with porcelain pads in Dec 07 around $400, but even after driving across the country and back, they are still at 90% 1.5 years later. They didn't even charge me for listening to the horrible clunking sound, just the quart of oil they put in. When I've gotten regular service, they do things like replace the wiper blades for no additional charge. So in short, they are TRUSTWORTHY, RELIABLE, EXCELLENT mechanics. You can find cheaper, but the peace of mind of knowing you're not going bot be cheated, told you need work you don't actually need, or taken advantage of is worth the little extra cash. I love Dana Meyer and remain a loyal customer. Incidentally, they also give GREAT references for other auto related stuff like tires (Don's), same-day weekend glass replacement (Frank's), and cosmetic body work.