Alternative Auto Care

Address:	136 W 5th Ave, Columbus, OH 43201, USA
Phone:	+1 614-294-0580
Site:	alternativeautocare.com
Rating:	4.6
Working:	9AM–6PM 9AM–6PM 9AM–6PM 9AM–6PM 9AM–6PM Closed Closed

Location

Photos 29

Reviews 6

Ryan Dittoe

Yesterday during rush hour my brakes locked up on 670 and I had to crawl off the highway to a parking lot. Look, I can tell you which cars have which features, tell you why certain design characteristics are attractive or not, and make fun of the Chevy Impala all day long, but Id rather eat my own eyeball than open the hood of any vehicle. I found the closest Google result so I clambered the rest of the way with my hazard lights on and my middle finger out at the jerkoffs who couldnt take the 15mph-flashing-light-hint that something was wrong and kept flailing their arms at me. I walked into the shop and immediately was helped by Josselyn and Heather who made me feel a lot better about fixing the grinding sound that made me so sure I was about to combust. I left it overnight and picked it up today after hours because they stayed late to make the repairs since they dont reopen until Monday. It was 7:30pm and they still hadnt eaten lunch. I can backseat drive all day long but when its time for maintenance, I dont know the first thing about that stuff. I never leave reviews for companies or even bother recommending them to friends, but I hope all of your cars break down so that you get to experience Alternative Auto Care for yourself; hands down the most forthright, kind, adept automotive repair shop Ive ever dealt with. They even gave me a candy bar and made me care (a little bit) about brake shoes or socks or some damn thing that gets me back on the road. Lastly, this is an all-women run business with huge support for LGBTQ clientele and the local neighborhood as a whole. Im thankful to have found them! 5/5, would crash into a wall to hang out with them again. Shop small, support local!

Antonia Thornton

The experience was great! It took awhile to figure it out, but that wasnt their fault, it was my car. But they did an awesome job keeping me informed on what was happening and show genuine concern for my car and its well being and my well being. The issue was my car was intermittently not starting. They found out what the problem was and even got to the root of the problem. The root of the problem unfortunately due to an oil leak and fixed that as well because obviously it would cause more problems. Im glad they looked deeper at the problem and found what really was wrong instead of putting a band-aid over the problem and then having more later. They found out a few answers to some other issues I have been having with my car and we are talking about our game plan for the next visit and how they can look it all over and prioritize everything. I have a 14 year old car with over 209,000 miles and understand that it needs care. They figured out my issue, but took it even further and figured out what it became an issue in the 1st place. They fixed both issues and I feel very confident in their work! My car has been great ever since and I am definitely taking it back to them in the future, not only for the needs that I know of for my car, but for any other unexpected needs and wants that will come up. I love this shop and you cannot go wrong taking your car to them and having them find the root problem and fixing it! Great service ladies! Thanks!

Wenzhong Hu

I used to go to the dealership to get my 2006 Ford Focus serviced. When my car need 60000 miles service,I thought maybe I can find a honest garage to lower my bill(my understanding is that dealer will charge more than a regular garage). I found this shop with good reviews. I brought my car in around 10:30AM, got the estimation around $340.00 around 1:00PM, sounds OK. When I went to pick up my car at 3:00PM(I need it to pick up my son), they didnt complete all the services yet, which is understandable. They completed inspections and oil change/tire rotation and asked around $200. all the leftover services they gave me another estimation, again $340.00. So my bill suddenly rose to $540.00. I didnt ask why since Im in a hurry. I checked the bill and found oil change cost me around $50.00 and I immediately realized that their service are overpriced since I could get oil change done in dealership around $30.00. I cancelled my leftover service with this garage and went to the dealership to get them done with the bill $223.00(for example, this garage asked $90.00 for fuel filter change in estimation when the dealer only charged me $45). All in all, the services are overpriced. will not come back.

Brian Whitacre

I have a general distrust of mechanics, as Im sure many other people do. In the past Ive had work done at big-name repair shops, but this time I decided to try something local to see if the experience was any better. I could not be happier with the service I received at Alternative Auto Care! I needed repair work on the exhaust system in my car. I scheduled an appointment a week in advance. The work was completed on the same day that I dropped the car off. The costs were very reasonable - in fact, they completed the work for half of what I had budgeted. The staff was very professional and courteous. When all work was completed the staff did a courtesy check on my car. It seems common for a mechanic to call while working on my car and report other problems that need to be repaired. I often feel very pressured to have these repairs completed. Alternative Auto repair completed the courtesy check AFTER my repair work was done. I was given a printout of their diagnosis. I felt NO pressure to have this work done on the spot, let alone by that specific shop. I will be taking my car to Alternative Auto Care for future service needs!

Gregory Oehlers

My son Griffin is a Senior at THE Ohio State University. He experienced some issues with his 2001 Land Rover and with me living in Toledo Ohio I felt helpless with the situation. After searching for a repair facility in the University area we chose on contacting Alternative Auto Care. My son was very pleased with the treatment he received seeing he has little knowledge of automotive function and repair procedure. They diagnosed the problem prompty and gave Griffin a full explanation of what was needed. If any student in the area needs help I highly suggest you contact these people. If you are an out of town parent you can feel at ease with the professionalism you and your child will receive. I can say this with confidence as I am the New Car & Truck Sales Mgr at Dave White Chevrolet in Toledo. Thanks to all at Alternative Auto Care for their assistance.

Tony Wheeler

I procrastinated having my brakes looked at after grinding for a few days and, naturally, they became worse and worse leading right up to Christmas. I took my car to Alternative mid-afternoon on the 23rd of December, and every single one of the employees was friendly and in a great mood. One of the mechanics told me that if she couldnt get the parts to the garage early enough that night-- get this-- she would come in early on Christmas Eve to ensure I could make it home to my family for the holiday. Sure enough, she gave me the call early in the morning on the 24th to let me know the car was ready. It rides great now and the total price for services was beyond reasonable. Highly, highly recommended!