Alfa Center

Quite frankly, I’ve never had a better experience with an auto repair shop in all my life. I contacted The Alfa Center, having never worked with them before, and inquired about having some work done on my ’86 Alfa Graduate. The u-​joint on the car was locked up and was causing some pretty terrible vibrations at slower speeds. Beyond that, I had a variety of other issues including some electrical gremlins, an exhaust that was hanging far too low, a worn bushing near the u-​joint, worn transmission mounts, etc, etc. Upon calling I was informed I could bring the car in early on Monday morning. I did. To give the shop as much time as possible to finish the work within the day, I arrived at The Alfa Center at about 6:30AM (they open at 7AM). Upon arriving, I was greeted by John who was just pulling up to open the business. He was incredibly friendly and upon opening the shop I began to realize the level of professionalism that this shop exudes. The facilities are top notch; everything is concisely organized, clean, and well lit. I own several classic cars and I can tell you that one of the most important things one should look for in a mechanic’s facilities is cleanliness and an organized work area. To say I was impressed off the bat would be an understatement. John immediately moved some cars around and threw my Graduate up on the lift to examine the u-​joint. He pointed out the problems as well as a few others, gave me an estimate, and told me to be back by the end of the day. I left feeling very confident with my choice to work with The Alfa Center. Throughout the day I was sent text messages from John (with detailed pictures) that displayed the work being performed, job by job. I have never once received this level of attention from an auto-​repair shop. The car was ready by 3:30 with every single issue fixed as well as a few other items John had recommended. He also catalogued a few other issues to address in the future/​to keep an eye on. The initial estimate was exactly what I was charged so I have troubling buying some of the reviews on here regarding price inflation. I met the owner Carlo who was as gracious and professional as John. I cannot imagine anywhere else I would take my Alfa after this experience which, in all candor, was most likely the best interaction I’ve ever had in the automotive repair industry. The Alfa Center, from what I can tell from this preliminary experience, is a highly professional business run by extremely knowledgeable and sociable individuals who are just as in love with Alfas as their customers are. Their expediency, efficiency, quality of work, and communication were absolutely top notch.

Took my car for an oil change. They told me 80 bucks on the phone, charged me 120 in the shop. How could you blow an oil change estimate people? They also try to charge me for additional service I did not ask for.

Sadly same price inflating trick of giving a low estimate and blowing it out of the park in reality.
Went to change a light bulb and got charged 50% over the estimate given by phone. Sadly honesty is not their best policy

Johnny at the Alfa Center is AWESOME! He’s an expert mechanic that really knows Alfa’s inside and out! The shop is organized and clean. Customer Service is friendly and responsive. Johnny takes really good care of my ’86 Graduate, (my Baby).
As I am the original owner, I’ve had a lot of experiences with mediocre and really bad mechanics. All of my friends told me to sell her, DPT was on the prowl, and then came Johnny my life saver for more good times for me and my Alfa!

This week was my first experience with The Alfa Center. Both John and Carlo were very friendly and professional, and BOY do they know their Alfas. Even with my most persnickity 1981 Spider, they were able to get it to pass smog (if you know the year and the Spica mechanical fuel injection, this is a difficult job). Also fixed a couple of requested problems, and Carlo also fixed a couple of minor problems gratis, with some used parts and did not charge me. They do their utmost to provide you with quality service and repair at a reasonable price. I will definitely be going here again when my baby needs repair or maintenance. It is never going to be cheap or easy to maintain an Alfa, but The Alfa Center is the place.

sorry to say ivy was right

The Alfa Center has repaired and maintained my 1967 Alfa Romeo exclusively for the past 9 years, and the car has run happily and reliably the entire time. They know Alfas inside out and are very nice too. Between Carlo and Jim – if they can’t fix it – you probably need an exorcist. The shop is always full of interesting Italian machinery – sometimes a couple of lesser marques such as Ferrari or Maserati, but the emphasis is Alfa Romeo of course. They’ve done the routine maintenance, and made many separate upgrade, repair, and restoration improvements on my GTV, and the service and value are as good as can be. They won’t use inferior 3^rd party parts, and they’re also capable of rebuilding a transmission or steering box. (They’ve done both for me, and my 43-​year old car feels brand new). I have complete confidence in their workmanship and integrity.

I had to get my brakes done on my C240 Mercedes and decided against the $ 1,200 price tag from the official Mercedes dealer in the City and go for the neighborhood repair-​shop instead. Although they’re called the Alfa Center, they also advertise to repair Mercedes, Ferrari and the likes.
I was welcomed by the mechanics and owner and received an exact price quote, which was $ 450 or so lower than at the dealer. I made an appointment and received great service, a warm welcome and without me asking or paying for, they even fixed my brake lights which happened to be out on one side.
And, as they’re called the Alfa Center, there’s a whole bunch of great looking Alfa Romeo’s lined up in the shop also.
Thanks to Carlo (the owner) and the mechanics.

The Alfa center is owned and operated by a man named Carlo Cestarello. His is a complete jerk who will overcharge, over promise and under deliver. He has a strong reputation in the Italian car community for taking advantage of customers with no shame.