Cleve-Hill Auto & Tire

Blew my front left tire out on a famous Buffalo pothole. Got fixed up fast and easy with the guys at Cleve-​Hill. Vern, Alan and and Glenn took great care of me. Highly recommend their service.

Since this place is directly across the street from my office, I have been here for many different services, ranging from replacing wipers or tires to oil changes and also major surgery on my old car. The place is actually pretty nice for an auto shop. They offer coffee, TV and free wireless. Not a terrible spot to wait.
The guys are also all really friendly and patient. I feel comfortable talking to them and asking questions about things that I don’t understand.
However, this place makes me a little nervous. After owning my last car for almost ten years, it was starting to have a lot of problems. Out of convenience, I’d usually bring it to Cleve Hill and just let them fix everything without getting a second opinion. This was lazy on my part because I had been hearing rumors about the integrity of their business for years.
I started questioning their business practices as well after a particular incident in which they «fixed» something that I did not ask them to «fix» and it resulted in an additional charge of $ 200 – 300 extra. Obviously I disputed it and we were able to find some resolution but it was a major red flag.
After that, I ran into another major issue with my car. When Cleve Hill examined the issue, they told me that it would cost around a grand to fix it. At that particular time, I did not have an extra thousand dollars laying around for car repairs so I brought the car to Mufflerman at the advice of a friend. Luckily, they were able to tackle the issue for around $ 300.
Shortly thereafter, I decided it was time to just suck it up and get a new car, so I haven’t had to deal with any car issues at all which has been a wonderful change. However, this past week I had to get my first oil change on the new car. I brought it to Cleve Hill first thing in the morning and asked them if I could pick it up on my lunch break at noon. They assured me that it wouldn’t be a problem. When I arrived at noon, they hadn’t touched the car yet which was a little frustrating since I had other errands to run. However, the owner (I think?) of the shop agreed to complete the oil change right away. He also informed me that my car required a special, more expensive type of oil (great) but that he’d waive the extra charge since the job wasn’t completed on time. I really appreciated this considering I only had to wait about 15 minutes.
All in all, I like this place for oil changes, easy services and minor repairs. While I genuinely like the employees and the convenience of location, I’m still not sure that I’d bring my car back for something major.

Wanted to update my review since I’ve been in here for more substantial repairs since my original oil change review.
A few weeks ago, my relatively new car was in an abysmal state given the harsh Buffalo winter. One of my tires kept losing air so every few days I had to pump it up. My car wouldn’t start at random times and I had to jump it every few days. Add to that, there was a strange noise coming from my motor (a whirring of sorts) which has gotten louder. I bought this car relatively new less then a year ago, so I finally stopped procrastinating and address these issues.
It was Friday at 3pm when I decided to take it in. Except, every car shop I called told me they are too slammed to be able to give me a same day turn around. Cleve Hill was the only one who said they’d make some time.
I told them all I thought was wrong with it: «probably the alternator, have no idea what that noise from my motor is, but another car shop told me it may be the bearings for my water pipe going bad… oh and my tire is bad, but I don’t want a new tire so I was thinking of doing a fix-​a-​flat.»
The guy behind the counter noted all of this, suggested they just patch up the tire for $ 12 or so rather then doing a fix-​a-​flat (which can kill some of the pressure sensors in the tires) and said they’ll look at it shortly. So I sat and waited, their waiting room seemed to be undergoing some repairs and had a bucket in the middle of it from a roof leak, but they still had some desks, free wifi and coffee. The desks were awesome… I simply sat down at one and worked for hours until they came back with: «so I have some good news for you.» Good news at a car repair shop?!
«It’s not the alternator, it’s actually the battery (much cheaper to fix). Your noise coming from the motor is not the watering bearing, but the A/​C Clutch. This is not a big deal. It would be super expensive to fix at $ 1,000, so our recommendation would be to just keep driving with it. Your A/​C might break, but it may last for another 5+ years as well.»
I came in expecting a bill of at least $ 500 for the alternator and ended up getting out of there for $ 224 (battery swap, tire, oil change). I also felt a huge wave of relief off my shoulders because finally my baby was taken care of! And all of this on a Friday afternoon?! They saved me a huge headache.
** I was struggling on deciding whether this place is 4-​stars or 5-​stars. My original thought was 4 stars, but after re-​reading the update… I couldn’t understand the downgrade given the great experience, so I’ve been going back and forth on it. I think things could still be better in the waiting room and prices are reasonable, but not cheap. Plus, I went in here once for an inspection and they quoted some pretty expensive repairs for my partner’s older car. When she decided to seek the services of a cheaper shop, they still charged her for inspection despite not passing her (which is reasonable, I suppose).but the amazing customer service move would have been to waive it.

These guys are so nice. There are different types of magazines in the waiting area, something for everyone. I came in for a winter car check up. The man at the desk was helpful in explaining the different types of safety checks for my car. I came here before 10a on a Thursday and they were able to take me right away. Prices seem fair, depending on what damage you’ve done to your vehicle. I’m sorry car for subjecting you to buffalo. You will never be the same again.

Cleve-​Hill Tire & Auto was a great experience. Their online reservation system helps sort out those scheduling issues in the privacy of your own computer, they were extremely hospitable and friendly, and they did a great job.
They put out the occasional awesome groupon, and that’s great. This last time, however, I missed the groupon but still needed the oil change. No fear! They have an Oil Change Special that you can print off for a nice, cheap price. Check out their services pages and you will most likely find some kind of special they are running that all you have to do is find it and print it out to get a great discount.
I guess I should add that this is the Buffalo location I’m talking about. While Main St. is a nightmare, this establishment is on a not-​so-​busy part of the street so it’s fairly easy to get in and out of it.
Anyway, definitely hit these people up for your auto needs. Great service, friendly people, and affordable for sure.