Dublin Car Tek

NOTE: I don’t know enough about cars or mechanics to give a full 5 stars, so 4 stars is as high praise as I can give here.
Car Tek serviced my car once before for what ended up being a bad battery and I can only give good marks there.
But I give GREAT marks for today, as I dropped my car off this morning w/​out an appointment because it «sounded like sh*t. (That’s my non-​professional assessment, of course.) 2 hrs later they called to tell me my alternator was probably busted and everything needed to be pulled apart to confirm and repair. The quoted price seemed reasonable to me and they had parts in stock. I’ll have my car back in the next ½ hour, before their shop closes for the day.
All in all, I’ve only ever been treated with respect and kindness. I’ve gotten my car back quickly, much faster than I expected, and at reasonable cost. I recommend Car Tek to anyone in the area who needs fast, reliable service.

Just an FYI and shoutout to Dublin Car Tek on Dougherty Road in Dublin for awesome «kit (white) glove» service. Do not hesitate to have them service your vehicle! Owner Tim Johnson and Shane are beyond accommodating. In my recent crisis-​mode with a dear friend from out of state in the ICU for a lengthy period and then realizing simultaneously on day before release that his vehicle required service in order to make the trek back from Bay Area to NV, Tim and Shane went well above and beyond not only squeezed in replacing both front and back brake pads, re-​did the rotors, took care of alignment and even fully handled coordination and transport of the vehicle to get a new windshield from a glass place all for a more than reasonable price. Shane and Tim handled us as you might expect them to handle one of their own family members. Tim and my hubbie talked out the best pads for my friend’s vehicle, given not only frequent distance driving but also steep hill climbing. I cant tell you how highly i regard this business. My husband and I have brought both our cars to these guys before and have been very happy each and every time. By the way, they even pushed things through when we prompted for a sooner departure day (one day sooner) than originally requested. Awesome experience. Call them for your next automotive need!

Chris seems respectable.
Shane treats you like I don’t know nothing and can;t even explain a transmission flush without getting RUDE! I am 20 years his señor. I worked on car most of my life. Shane if rude. Chris sold the job & Shane lost me as a customer.
Shane needs go back to customer service school. Or get another job that dose not require talking/​working with the public.

I went to Dublin Car Tek to have my front brakes and rotors replaced on my BMW. Needless to say this type of maintenance on a BMW is pricey anywhere you go for quality work. They allowed me to use coupon for discount off brake service in the Value Pak too, which saved me $ 50. We scheduled appointment and they got my car in and out same day. I appreciate the ride to/​from the nearest BART station which was very helpful.
Within a month or so, my brake lights and parking brake indicator comes on again. Fortunately after speaking with Owner and Shane we scheduled to bring car in for oil change and find out what was happening with these indicators coming on and off sporadically.
The guys looked at the problem and fixed it. I appreciate the follow-​up call a few weeks after to inquire if I was satisfied and how my car was running. I really appreciate the call and meant to give you all a great Unilocal review weeks ago.
Thank you again for the service and making it right!

Went in kinda last min. I had an hour for lunch and needed to have a smog check from a «star» station. Not sure what the difference is between star vs. Standard smog check, but in any case it costs more. Went in and asked if they could do a star smog check. They took me right then and it took about 30min. Pretty cool for last min request. Car passed smog, and I left a satisfied customer. Nice technician and friendly service.

I am extremely impressed with the customer service and work I received from Car Tek. I took my Tahoe in for a water pump replacement. When I got it back, the engine looked brand new. I even received a call from them a couple weeks after I got it back asking if everything was running ok and if I had any concerns. I also got a 10% first time customer discount. I am recommending them to everyone I know, and everyone reading this too!

They are Diamond Certed, and accept Unilocal,a lot of courage for small Biz’s to do. Ryan Tue Mgr on duty is careful and not just thrown to thrown to the wolves and listens to get your input about the issue your vehicle is experiencing. A bit on the expensive side, bit you get what you apt for quality service. Giving that extra mile to us as customers, may just make difference for where we repair at. They try to get your vehicle back out on the road again asap, depending on the part companies/​drivers. Very reliable and good place to go.

Went in begrudgingly to get my car fixed, left with a huge smile on my face. Ryan was so incredibly friendly, and made me feel welcome from the moment I stepped in the door. My co-​worker told me the place was amazing so I checked it out. Was not disappointed. I had a great conversation with Ryan, he was very genuine, incredibly knowledgeable, and had awesome values. I am a lifelong customer without a doubt.

There is no better place to take your car when you need service done on it then car tek. I’ve known Tim and his Dad since he opened the first Chevron Full service gas Station on 7007 San Ramon Road, Dublin, CA. Tim and his crew have the same work Ethics as his Dad did and will continue to do so for years to come, so if you need your car worked on, or your oil changed this is the place to go, good people good prices.

So, it’s Friday after work and I’m winding my way back to San Leandro from Half Moon Bay when out of nowhere my, «Check Engine» light comes on. You just know what I’m thinking. I’m trying to figure out either how I’m going to get my car repaired on a Saturday or how am I going to adjust work to fit in this sudden repair. Not to mention the $$ I’ll wind up spending.
Long story short, I end up calling this place Saturday around 11am and telling Ryan that if he can take me, I’m on my way. I get out there, he does a diagnostic to see what the problem is. Afterwards, he comes back and tells me that he’s 99.9% certain that his course of action will solve the problem. The most amazing thing of all is that the total cost was WAY cheaper than I had imagined. Whew!
I think I was there all of 90 minutes. Talk about having a wonderful weekend! I could have floated all the way back home. This place literally saved my neck. Much thanks to Ryan and his staff at Dublin Car Tek.

I have used this place on two other occasions for my diesel truck with «ok» results. At the beginning of March I had to get my 2000 Nissan Maxima smogged. With a little bit of trust from my previous experience at Dublin Car Tek I went here. I found our that my wonderful state of CA had changed the smog program and now certain vehicles need to go to a «star certified» smog center and found that Dublin Car Tek is such a place. I was told that they did not take any coupons because my car needed to go to this special station and that they were one of only 3 in the entire tri-​valley area. After some mental debate and not having excess time on my hands I told them to go ahead. $ 80.00 later I took my car home. Once home I opened the mailbox and found a valpak coupon book and my mind began to wonder. Alas, once I opened the book I found 4 coupons for «star certified» smog stations, all for $ 26.95 or less. I learned 2 valuable lessons. ALWAYS do my research and look for those coupons and NEVER to use Dublin Car Tek for any of my car services again. A little too much deception and flat out lying to my face.

Another happy experience at Car Tek. Our Tahoe’s emergency break’s cable snapped and Ryan coached me through the process of manually releasing it while not being kicked in the face by the released peddle. Evidently he has personal experience to vouch for the amazing kick these peddles pack!
Got the cable replaced and was once again pleased by Ryan’s knowledge, willingness to help and above all above-​board honesty and integrity. The bill was less than expected — how often does that happen??? And the 10% discount on labor over $ 200 was an added bonus.
If you’re in the market for good, honest and dependable upkeep and care for your car I would highly recommend them. Plus, it’s so nice to be able to trust that your car is going to get the best care possible, without having unneeded repairs and sky rocketing costs to deal with.

The charge me $ 190 just to look at the check engine light!
They told me everything after that to fix the problem is totally a separate charge.
WTF, AutoZone charge $ 0 to get the code.
Looks like this shop only serve their own friends, like the review above.
DO NOT GO THERE.
Quality Tune right across the street is million times better than this place!

My first visit to car tek was several years ago– I was new to the area and didn’t know where to take my car and not get ripped off. I asked around and a friend referred me to Ryan at Dublin Car Tek. I called to make an appointment and explained the issue I was having in the best detail I could– Ryan told me to come in that afternoon and he’d take a look. I was so surprised, I thought for sure I’d have to wait a week. I came in and he said «let’s take it for a spin and see if we can get it to repeat the problem» WE DROVE UNTIL IT DID IT.
Based on my experience with previous mechanics and dealerships I thought it went like this: you tell them the problem as best you can– they have no idea what you’re talking about– you drop off the car, they keep it for a day or two (while you’re out transportation) to call you and tell you they couldn’t get it to act up and that will be $ 200.00 thank you.
Nope. Not anymore. Ryan has a magic foot– he got it to do it, asked questions I wouldn’t have thought of telling him, to understand the problem better and explained what the problem was. The tranny was old and was surely slipping and would eventually need to be replaced. He told me how much transmissions cost and my heart sank. I asked how long it would last in the condition it was in. He said it’s unpredictable– It could be a week or it could be a year. I told him I definitely didn’t have the money to replace the tranny right now so I would have to drive it into the ground.
I took the car to Car Tek for service and upkeep and it lasted another year and a half, before I sold it with the tranny still working!
Over the years I felt like the guys at Car Tek became my friends. I look forward to taking my car there. I know they care about the work they do and it shows. Allen can fix any problem, quickly. Cameron is super dedicated and focused. Angel is an incredibly hard worker. Pat is always moving and helping out. Ryan is super smart, HONEST, and can come up with a solution to anything you can put in front of him. And Tim really cares about what he does– you can see the heart and passion in that shop.
I would recommend Car Tek to anyone, with any problem. A good, honest mechanic is not easy to come by now a days.
Car Troubles don’t scare me like they used to. I have «Automotive Security» now. And I’ve never once over-​paid. Thank you Car Tek.

Me? I’m pretty pissed off. I’m not a mechanic, but I’m not a dunce either. I know the basics when it comes to maintenance but don’t have the place nor tools to do some of the heavier stuff myself. I really wanted to find someone I trusted as much as my own father (good luck, right?).
So, I went in for an oil change roughly 2,500 miles ago (June 2011) and just now found my front right brake pad nearly grinding against the rotor. How the hell are these two related, you ask? Someone at the shop decided it was a brilliant idea to top off my brake fluid during my oil change and not tell me.
The non-​dunces out there will know that brake fluid level can be a direct indication of brake pad wear (assuming there are no leaks, etc.). Fluid doesn’t magically disappear, which is why it should never be topped off without checking and/​or throwing new pads on. But who has the time and luxury of putting their car on sticks every month to manually check break wear?! That’s part of the reason the brake fluid indicator on your dash exists is so you can avoid that.
My theory? I’m a female. They thought they could make a buck off my ground-​down rotors.
Ladies – please educate yourselves about your car & basic maintenance. Don’t let anyone tell you you’re not capable of reading and understanding the majority of that little vehicle handbook in your glove compartment.

Update – and downgrade. Wanted to be sure my review was fair, so I reviewed my car maintenance records. Although I surely needed brake pads, CarTek replaced brake rotors after less than 30k miles. Previous ones were on the car at least twice as long, and had been replaced by OEM. A front axle boot was also replaced, reportedly requiring an alignment (first time that ever came up, despite the same repair on various other Hondas). None of these «needs» were communicated to me beforehand, but the $ 250 extra expense did get communicated onto my bill.

I took my car to this place for some electrical work and a synthetic oil change and front wheel alignment. The oil chg and wheel alignment were straightforward enough… the electrical work, wow, what a mess. They quoted me a quote to quote me. Yes, you read that right. Then, they said it would probably cost $ 180 – 220 to tell me what was wrong. I thought a quote was supposed to do that, and not cost so much. I got charged $ 30 to be told that it would cost $ 180 – 220 to get me the real quote.
Then he asks me for the wiring diagram. If I had that and a few tools, I’d do the work myself.
Also, they are not the friendliest place around, kinda feels like I’m visiting the Bronx or something. I think their plate is plenty full, so no need to fight hard for more customers. That’s the impression, anyhoo.
But the prices and service for typical stuff (fluid changes, brakes) seems to be pretty good. And clearly they do a good job at the most basic kinda stuff. And the prices are okay, but not fantastic. I was charged the same price here that I was quoted from other places. Exactly the same.
Also, I was told to have my brake fluid, steering fluid and tranny fluid changed, but that was done only a year ago, so I know they were trying to «sell» me on unnecessary services.
I don’t know what the hype is all about. I think this place is decent (hence the 3 stars), but for more complext work, I’m taking my car to another business in San Ramon. FAR more sophisticated, far friendlier and even holds about 8x the number of cars.

Simple phone call asking about their service and whoever answered the phone made me sound like I was an idiot for asking.
I called asking about sending my car over for a headgasket job, and I asked what was built into the «estimated cost». The price isn’t why I was motivated to write this review. It was the attitude of the person on the phone. TOTALLY rude.
sigh. On to the next mechanic.

When my car’s headlight blew, I immediately thought — Great. Another $ 85 down the drain.
Unfortunately, my car’s headlights are housed oddly and they are practically impossible to change out without the right tools. The last time I had to get the headlight changed it cost me $ 85 at the dealership! Yeah. Scamming bastages.
After that experience, and a few others at said dealership (I won’t mention any specifics, but lets just say the dealership rhymes with poopyiac and located in an Irish city), I was pretty jaded about taking my car in. It’s true what they say: if it isn’t under warranty, take your car ANYWHERE but a dealer.
Anyway, back to the topic at hand — Car Tek! I called, scheduled an appointment (they are open on Saturdays!), explained the situation, and arrived promptly at 11am. I was quoted a price of about $ 40, signed off on the work and hung out in the waiting area. 20 minutes later, I walk out with an extra $ 40 in my pocket, a shiny new headlight, and a big ol’ smile on my face.
Big thanks to Tim and the mechanic (Ryan? I think?) for taking the time to treat me and my car with respect. Not only did they change out my headlight quickly and efficiently, but they also noticed my engine running a little oddly, and made sure that I was aware of the problem. (Stupid poopiac.)
THIS is what good … no … GREAT business is all about. Finding places like this make me: D. Thanks Unilocal

This is a hidden gem, smack dab in the middle of car central (gas stations, Kragen, Autobahn, parts and maintenance galore) but it his literally hidden behind Subway so don’t become discouraged when you’re cruising down Dougherty and miss the turn off onto Sierra Ln.
Car Tek is there and they are ready for you!
I came here for a desperately needed oil change and got just what I needed. They did not push for special parts or any of the bells and whistles other* Oil/​Tire places try to add on to the bill.
The service was responsive, quick and very informative.
They even finished sooner than they had estimated… which was so nice since I was there during my lunch hour.
If you go to their website you can print out a coupon, I saved $ 5.00!
I would definitely come back and recommend it to a friend.
(*see Jiffy Lube)