Dave's Ultimate Automotive, Austin TX

The staff was very friendly, knowledgeable, and damn fast with their repairs! I will be going back in the future if necessary.

I love Dave's! Brett is fabulous with customer service. They give clear advice and are interested in keeping your business, not just making a quick buck. Cannot recommend highly enough.

Y'all did great! You said to give you 20 to 30 minutes for my state inspection and I walked out in about 16 minutes. Thanks, Mic

I highly recommend Dave’s Ultimate Automotive. They diagnosed the problem correctly, repaired it quickly and charged a fair price. Hard to find that in the automotive repair industry in Austin. I will definitely be a repeat customer.

NEVER TAKE YOUR CAR OUT OF THIS PLACE IF THEY CAUSE A FAILURE. DOCUMENT ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING THEY DO TO PROTECT YOURSELF AND HARD-EARNED MONEY.

I came here after having terrible experiences with other shops. Everything started okay for two years until this year. My wife noticed significant scratches on the door handles of two of our cars, which looked likely caused by hitting the lifts. Of course, the shop representative will think it is unlikely and blame the customer, but since the evidence of their pictures pointed their way, begrudgingly offered to have one of my cars repaired with their body shop partner. That would mean I would be without a car for an unknown amount of time, which is not cost-effective.

Now, this is where problems started. Before I brought those cars for service, I had brought my wife’s older SUV, which gave me some trouble for a diagnostic. The repairs were an estimated “$3,800”, obviously not worth the investment. I said I would do the repairs in my free time; when I took it out, the A/C was not working, so I drove back and asked what happened. He looked surprised and was like I don’t know what happened and left it again; he called me again to have it picked up and said, “it could be that since many things are wrong, the computer shuts things off to protect itself just do the repairs and bring it back to see what happened to the A/C. ” After doing the major repairs myself and seeing the botched work from previous shops, I corrected the major issues with oil leaks. When I returned, I asked him if the A/C was still not working and if they could check my ECU for a possible shortage since I noticed the ignition coil connectors were not the original but cheap ones. He obviously did not remember me and had not written anything about the A/C, so it was easy to dismiss me by saying that he would charge to diagnose the A/C and would charge double diagnosis for “my repairs” to find what “I did. ” I have been through this and realized there is no trustworthy shop, so I just walked out.

Be very wary of major repairs if you choose this shop and document everything they do. It is just as good as any oil change shop; anything else you will get you milked. They take no accountability, and the blame game goes one way: the customer. It is annoying how when you call them out on anything that can make them liable, they have a surprised look and downplay it to make you leave like they will do something about it later. But when the time comes for you to ask for help, they will point the finger in your direction because it is just safe to assume customers are at fault. After all, you are the one coming to them.

The sad part is they have no clue about anyone's background. They assume everyone who walks through their door knows nothing about cars and treat you like an idiot to avoid taking action on their fake promises and mistakes.

Update:
I have gone back multiple times to Dave's since this initial review. I can honestly say that they are one of the most honest and trustworthy mechanics. As a young woman, I often have to worry about shops trying to string me along with unnecessary repairs and shadiness. Dave's has always been very honest with what is going on with my vehicle and answers all of my questions - even if they don't have an answer that I may like! I will be going to Dave's for as long as I am in Austin, and will ALWAYS recommend them to someone who needs a good mechanic.

I would definitely recommend this place! They were professional, fast, and very helpful. I walked in needing a brake light bulb replaced because I could not remove the screws but had the bulb. They helped me get the screw off, showed me the trick, and didn't even charge me for their time. I will absolutely be coming back for any car repairs or other services needed! Their help today was appreciated so much.

Matt was great. Gave us emailed itemized estimates prior to working on car. Work was done on time. Staff very pleasant. Prices fair.

Very high quality, honest service. My service advisor, Brett, and the mechanics worked very diligently to ensure I was well informed of issues affecting my vehicle and the best solutions for them. The craftsmanship was top quality as well.

Dave's Ultimate Automotive on N. Lamar is our go-to automotive service provider. Chris, Greg & Robert are very friendly, helpful & professional. D. U. A.is highly recommended!

Dave's is a wonderful auto repair shop. Their staff is friendly, knowledgeable, and very accommodating. The mechanics do high quality work with totally transparency. Highly trustworthy business that I will recommend to anyone looking to service their vehicle.

Always fast, accurate and professional. They’ve never tried to up-sell me on something I don’t need. Feel comfortable sending my wife here. Great rewards system for repeat customers too.

I would give ten stars if I could. Dave’s made sure they could do the work on my car, and stick to their quoted price. They went out of their way to make sure they fixed a problem that turned out to be more challenging than initially expected. I avoided having to take an old car into an expensive dealer for a high dollar repair. Now, I’m driving a fifteen year old car that feels brand new! Thanks, Dave’s!

Perfect repair
Car was misdiagnosed by another shop
Dave’s found the issue
Repaired and a discount!
This is my 2nd time using Dave’s
I am never disappointed

Traveling from vacation, 600 miles from home, we were stranded in the middle of Texas due to a coolant plug malfunction. Dropped the truck off at Dave's late one Friday afternoon and they had it diagnosed and repaired by Monday evening. Thanks Dave's for getting us back home so quickly.

I took my car here to get a leaky tire patched, brakes inspected, tire rotation if needed, and a state inspection. They called me back and said the patch was simple, brakes looked great, and the tires weren't in need of rotation. The only thing they charged me for was the state inspection.

Matt at the front helped me and he was incredibly kind, clear in communication, and an all around professional.

I would HIGHLY recommend this location to anyone looking for a mechanic who cares about doing right by the customer!

I've only gone to this place twice, as I already have a mechanic that I love in south Austin, but a couple of times I've needed assistance in the North area and they have never disappointed me. Friendly, helpful and efficient!

Solid, kind, and honest service here! I’ve brought in my car a couple of times and had a great experience with each. I was given a suggestion and quote for new shocks but with no pressure to get them replaced, but ended up doing so. And doing a little research for each service, pricing was fair. Definitely recommend.