California Department of Motor Vehicles

The nicest DMV that I have ever been to.
By a terrible stroke of bad luck, my registration renewal never arrived (we’d had a rash of mail theft in the Mercantile Lofts, after someone gained access to a master key) and I accrued a $ 168 penalty.
I explained my story and while it was the truth, even *I* wouldn’t have believed it. The lady at the counter was so nice and not only waived my penalty, but we had a nice chat as well. I walked out feeling really good about life and it’s good customer service like what I experienced that makes the day go by easier. These people do not have easy jobs at all — please do them and the person behind you in line a favor and give them a friendly smile :)

For a DMV, this place is decent. I feel like the workers are constantly working as fast as they can (although they seem very happy while at it), and the workers I was assigned to were all very helpful.
The only downside, as with any DMV, is the ridiculously long wait-​time. I came 10 minutes before they opened, and there was already a line of 50+ people. Finding parking can get tricky too, because all these people are stuck inside.

I have one word: appointment. Make one. And never look at the DMV the same way ever again.

Pleasantly surprised by my experience here.
Came here one day after MLK, saw the parking lots surging and the line around the corner at around 11. Tried briefly to park before giving up and going home.
Coming back the next day, I came at around 840. The line was nearly wrapped around the building, but since I had class at noon, I was prepared to grind it out. 2 – 3 hours, bring it on.
That wasn’t the case. Although the hours are 8 – 5, it seemed like they just opened at 9, the line began moving pretty quickly and before I knew it I was right outside the door. Within 25 or so minutes I was inside with a number and waiting. I filled out my forms and after probably 30 – 35 minutes I had my number called. The employee wasn’t the nicest, but she handled my business pretty quickly and efficiently and even had some patience with me when I made a mistake filling out the form. I got my picture taken for my new ID and my temporary license, before I knew it, I was out. All within 2 hours — I was stunned. I think it’s truly hit or miss — considering the last DMV I visited I waited well over 3 hours.

I cannot stress enough how important it is that you make an appointment before visiting the DMV. Located right near USC, this place is always PACKED and can be overwhelming without an appointment. However, if you go online and make an appointment, your life will be so much easier.
I recently swung by to change my Kentucky driver’s license over to a California driver’s license, and was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was. There’s a special line for people with appointments, so I had no wait. All I had to do was fill out a form (bring your passport!), take a very quick eyesight test, take a picture, and then take the 30 question (multiple-​choice) driving test, based on the CA Drivers Manual. You can take the test either on a computer or by hand. I highly recommend studying the manual and taking practice tests because not all of the questions are obvious. I believe the entire process took about 30 minutes and cost $ 30.
I can’t believe I’m saying this, but thank you, CA DMV for making my visit as quick and painless as possible!

I was at window 17 when this happened but the guy who was there told me they are suspending my license even after my suspension was over. I did everything I needed to do for the DUI I had. He wasn’t clear why and told me if I I don’t sign a form stating my license suspension, then it’ll be on my record, he didn’t even let me look and told me I couldn’t get a copy or take a picture because it was a government form. Attempting to rush me he takes it away and says just sign it or he will report and it’ll be on my record. So after I signed they have told me I needed to do an interlock system even though I already notified the DMV I haven’t had a car for a year already.

When one goes to the DMV, it is not an activity that one looks forward to.
It is an activity that one has to do, whether you lost your license, need a renewal or have something from a laundry list of DMV issues.
I had the former, I lost my license and while I hope there is no one out there posing as me, I was not happy there were hundreds of people in front of me on line.
Now why am I giving the DMV two stars? Shouldn’t it be one? No one takes people to the DMV as a date idea, no one takes their kids there if they can find child care. People do this for restaurants which I have ranked lower. Well, it is because this DMV is better than the other ones (in some ways).
The negatives are that there is a long line to get a waiting card which I thought was the line to see a worker. Nope, how wrong I was. I had a 2 hour wait so I ran home, got lunch and came back with only five minutes to spare (phew). The worker I had looked very tired (if I worked at the DMV, I would be snoring so I admire anyone who can stay up this long here), and helped me out.
Also, they have an upstairs room and when I asked a worker for directions, she told me to read a sign which was vague. It would have been much faster to tell me, maybe four seconds?
The positives: unlike at other DMVs I’ve been to, the worker was not mean, he was friendly. He helped me really quickly and did not make snide remarks when I asked questions.
Overall, two stars for a long line and one snide worker but not one star because of the nice worker who helped me get a new license and the fact that the DMV was not designed to be a destination where you take a date or your parents who are visiting town.

My experience here was unexpected, 5ive been to this location before and its always really crowded. Today was different, I came in 15 min before close and was quickly assisted. I waited about 30min, the woman who assisted me was friendly and made registering my vehicle painless. I’ll visit again, of course only when I have to

Being there was a nightmare! I waited from 8am to 1pm and they DIDN’T solve my issue!!! And in the meantime, one crazy lady assaulted another lady there out of the blue and ended up being tazed by the cops. Got carry away by the firemen on a stretcher! Awful!
The two stars I give to the lovely lady that really tried to help me and one week later mailed me my papers with a lovely handwritten letter apologiZing to me. That was sweet and unexpected.

Really? Are people expecting some 5 star hotel concierge services from a DMV? I’ve been there 4 times so far but never experienced anything negative or rude. All the staff I’ve spoken to and who handled my case were very kind and decent. I know it’s always packed and you have to wait for a long time, but is it that shocking to you?

They close at 5. I went without an appointment. I came few minutes before 4pm. They were on number B150 something and i had B186 which isnt too bad. They called me up. Of course the ppl that work there dont have the greatest attitudes hardly even make eye contact but thats every DMV, it’s like their thing to be rude and intimidating or something lol. Anyway, i was there to transfer a vehicle title to my name. They called me up, it was about 3 minutes for the whole thing. Of course the technician wasn’t the nicest person but whatever I got what I needed to be done I’m not there to make friends. I was done in no time. I paid the fee and that was it. Got my paerwork. Was out around 4:40ish. So was there for about an hour w out an appointment. Just go with someone or take like some distraction. You won’t feel the time. Oh yeah the restrooms are like the grossest ever lol.

It isn’t the wait time, I’ve been to the DMV over at Melrose and the wait time is about the same. I wish people were more friendly.

I have been in line w/​o an appointment for 45 minutes now and am close enough to the front of the line to see that not one person in 15 minutes has been helped in this line — probably 20 now… not one

Worst service ever! Early bird gets the worm.
Do not come at noon! I repeat do not come at noon! Reason being is because it is lunch time and you do not want to piss-​off these ladies when they’re tired, frustrated and with food coma. Saturdays are by appointment only; they will serve you, but you will have to wait.
* Kiosk registration machine is available
* Plenty of parking — except during lunch hours
* No interpretation services
* Have a completed application when in line
* A lot of weird people from all ethnicities
* Rude unfriendly staff
* Mondays and Tuesdays are the worst
Overall be prepared to wait. Schedule your time accordingly and do not procrastinate!

I never went here because of the reviews and every time I passed I saw the longest line I’ve ever seen at the DMV. But working in DTLA means any DMV business I have to do I must do here. I made it here at 4:52 and was out by 5:47. I didn’t have any issues or any unpleasant attitudes. The lady who checks you in was very nice and so was the man who helped me order a replacement license. I thought the wait time was reasonable considering there were 52 people ahead of me. I would definitely come back.

The worst dmv ever! Everyone is so rude here, I don’t understand why the employees are so mean and why management doesn’t do anything about it! The parking is a joke, what’s the point of coming early to the dmv to get in line when you can’t even park, because the dmv gates are locked at 7:30am??? Really??? You open in 30 minutes!!! Open the gates at 7 so we can park! We can’t park on the street, so where should we put our car??? This office is ran horribly. Someone needs to come here and clean house! If you want to be treated rude, this is the place to come! Worst experience ever!

I hate this DMV. It is always really packed and the people that work here can be really rude. I NEVER come here, but I was scheduled to come to this DMV to resolve an issue.
I was not able to change the location. When I came for my appointment there was a very short line to my surprise. I went to the appointment line and I waited about 10 minutes for the lady to assist one person.
The non-​appointment line was going much faster and there was only about 8 people. The longer I waited in the apportionment line the non-​appointment line was actually getting bigger so I decided to just wait.
When She finally assisted me she send me to the second floor. The second floor was a whole other story. They had two rooms up there. One looked like it was to take a written test and the other one was for investigation.
The security guards were very nice and when I walked in they assisted me right away. The lady was really friendly and she was bilingual. She assisted me in 15 minutes and I was out way sooner than I expected.
I still give them one star because when I use to come to regular appointments I would always have issues with them. I feel like most of them are conceited and never want to admit when they do something wrong.
One time I came to make my mom company and we were waiting in the waiting area for about an hour. They were about to call her number when all of the sudden they skipped it!
I went to the entrance and I told them what happen. The lady at the front rolled her eyes and told me if they skipped the number it was because I left. I told her that we were sitting here the whole time and I saw when the number flashed and skipped to the next one.
She said they don’t do that. They call the number twice and if no one goes to the window they call the next number. I told her I was right there and the number just skipped.
She was so mad she told another lady working there. She asked us what was the problem and I told her the same thing. She was asking and checking something when she said I’m sorry miss, but you missed your number.
I tend not to be drama queen, but waiting for an hour just made me into one. I told her I had witnesses that noticed that too and she got so mad and said you can just admit that you left or you didn’t hear your number.
I was so pissed already she left and I stayed standing there. She came back and told me to go to a window. She told me if I would of not been so rude and just admitted that it was my fault she would of helped me right away.
First of all I was never being rude. Second, she made me waste an extra 30 minutes trying to resolve this. She would just leave and come back saying it was my fault.
After this I vowed not to come back here ever again. Unfortunately, I was unable to change the location last time and my experience wasn’t as horrible as the last time I came voluntarily.
I was actually quite pleased with the second floor. Too bad it is still part of this DMV and I probably will never be coming back for that issue since they said it was resolved.
I will continue to go to other DMVs even if I have to drive a few extra miles. Heck, I will even drive an extra hour to avoid coming here.

Son unos… impacientes esos empleados del dmv
No hayudan ni $M$$dres…
Aun ponemos de nuestra parte y colaboramos …
Y nada… y luego te sacan como si fueras a dormir aiiii… en el DMV

Awesome DMV. The hours and the staff are great. I made an appointment and I was in and out in less than 15 minutes.
Plenty of space in the DMV lot and across the street

As much as I put it off, I was finally forced to go to the DMV. And of course, like any DMV, I expected this one to be terrible. However, lo and behold, this DMV somehow managed to exceed my expectations in just how terrible of an experience it truly was.
I will start off by saying though that for what an unbelievably chaotic and stressful place this is (I think just being in there shaved off a few years of my life), the employees are surprisingly patient and friendly (ish). True warriors to go into that mess each day.
Okay, so why was this such a terrible experience?
1) This place is straight up in the hood of DTLA. Hood as in I thought I was going to be mugged in broad daylight just walking the streets.
2) Parking was absolutely atrocious. There is a small lot in front of the building and an overflow lot across the street but definitely not enough parking. I had to park about 3 streets away.
3) This place is unbelievably crowded with no real structure. Hordes of people just mingling around. Luckily, I made an appointment but it took some asking before I even found where the appointment line was. Also, once they assign you a number, the TV announcing the numbers is very small and hard to see. Keep your ears perked!
4) Wait after wait after wait. Line for appointment only. Wait for number to be called. Another line at your assigned window. Wait for vehicle inspection. Line again to turn in vehicle inspection for registration. Etc. Etc. Etc. You get the idea. Give yourself a big ol’ time window if you need to register your vehicle.
PROTIPS:
— If you are applying for a new driver’s license, be sure to bring your passport and study for the written exam!
— If you are applying for a car registration, be sure to bring your car title! Also, a smog check is required as well as a vehicle inspection.
— This place accepts debit cards but NOT credit card. Check and cash also accepted.

I didn’t think I would write a review of a State office. This had been one of my better experiences at DMV.
The secret to this better experience was a simple appointment made only 2 days prior to my visit. I processed my DL and registration in less than 30minutes including waiting in line.
Ms. Taylor also was very pleasant. Efficient and capable. Had a few chuckles and I was done.