Flamingo Motor Cars

I have been taking my car to Flamingo since 1990 - I have had a VW Quantum, a Honda Civic, and a Toyota Highlander. I have always trusted Joe and his team's diagnostic work and pricing - Joe is always helpful in prioritizing maintenance and repairs and making recommendations. Their prices are fair - they give great referrals for other services (like tires, bodywork, etc.) and do GREAT work!!! Plus they support and promote important community issues and causes. I recommend Flamingo to ALL my friends who have German or Japanese cars!!!! Pros: Great expertise and customer service more

We've been going to Flamingo for all of our repairs the last few years. Two poor experiences with other shops were a big part of the reason. The first problem was a brake pedal that would go all the way to the floor while the car kept rolling forward. First Texas Honda charged me several hundred dollars to replace the master brake cylinder. After that "repair", the break pedal would go all the way to the floor while the car kept rolling forward. No change whatsoever. First Texas Honda claimed otherwise, which I found pretty mind-blowing because the problem was so obvious. So I took the car into Flamingo on the advice of a friend. Joe adjusted the brakes, and they have worked perfectly ever since. The second problem was an intermittent engine oil leak on our 2003 VW. Hewlett VW did an oil leak test, which showed no problem. That didn't surprise me since the problem was intermittent. Hewlett refused do anything more about the problem (under warranty), and claimed that a leak of two quarts in a month is perfectly normal. Later, I took the car into Flamingo with a rough engine problem. Joe found that engine oil was leaking from the valve cover and that the spark plugs were covered in oil. He fixed the leak and replaced the spark plugs and wires. The car no longer leaks oil and works perfectly. That's been my experience since. Flamingo gets your problem solved, first time. One thing you will find with Flamingo is that they do tend to check your car out pretty thoroughly and recommend repairs other than what you brought the car in for. It may seem like they are trying to make extra bucks, but I don't think so. If you prefer to postpone other repairs all you have to do is to let them know. It's also true that sometimes the customer service is a little slow. That is because they are so busy - for a good reason in my opinion. Pros: competent, honest auto repairs, local small business with austin flavor more

I just think this business rocks Austin!!!!!! I've been taking my cars to Joe and his crew for about 13 years now. Of course I HATE having to spend money on auto work and repairs. So I spend it here because these folks are honest treat me with respect. They go above and beyond for their customers. These guys take the time to explain what it is that they do and they don't treat you like an idiot like many other mechanics I experienced before finding them. more

Auto repair with an Austin flair. Don't buy the whiny opinions from those who apparently don't understand Austin,s casual way. They probably whine everywhere they go because they don't get their tushy kissed... This is a shop with a great sense of style and humor. They are always busy because they are good at what they do. Joe and the guys will treat you right. I recommend them. more

Joe is a good man and all that work at Flamingo are good people. This place is an Austin institution and like all great Austin places it's an honest establishment relying on word of mouth and a good reputation to bring in repeat business. If you want a clean production line service with a guy in a suit telling you what BMW recommend and then trying to sell you some floor mats while some no-name guy works on your car in a back-room then go to the BMW service center. If, however, you want guys that have worked on all German and Japanese cars for most of their lives telling you the honest truth about yours, charging you a fair price and doing things the right way while taking time out to explain everything to you in clear lay-person terms give Flamingo's a call. You might not get the best customer service over the phone and you might hear some cracking sarcasm but at the end of the day, once you're there in person, they'll get the job done right for an honest price and leave you knowing exactly what and why they did it. Pros: Knowledge and Competence Cons: They're always very busy and don't do repairs at the weekends ! more

Don't come here expecting to get taken for a ride. The staff is very knowledgeable. Their customer skills are not the best, but they are honest. I had gone to 2 other places and was told I needed lots of repairs. After coming here they told it like it is. They told me what I needed, what could wait, and what was not necessary and what was a ripoff. They have a long waiting time since they are very busy. But again having an honest mechanic more than makes up for this. Pros: Excellent job, vehicle kept clean, just as promised, no extras Cons: Have to wait for appointment, ugliest waiting area more

I should have come here before I attempted to repair my vehicle at Flamigo. My phone call to get an estimate went exactly like this. "I was wondering if I could get an estimate on having an O2 sensor replaced on my vehilce." the person on the other end of the phone responded "I don't know can you?" I should have hung up that very moment but I contined by explaining what type of vehicle I owned. The guy at the other end of the phone told me he had to get the codes on the vehicle which I already had but he refused to quote me an estimate as he "Prefered to get the codes himself". This seemed to be an indicator of the terrible service to come and I just abandoned the attempt. So much for supporting Austin Buisnesses. more

Flamingo Automotive is great. The only problem is that they are over-booked and take a long time with your service, but only out of perfectionism. I have had several experiences with them and always the owner went above and beyond: staying late on a Saturday, replacing my spark plugs for free b/c I'd had a major repair a year earlier... he takes a personal interest in all the jobs (despite the large quantity of cars and staff). I've never trusted a mechanic before, but I trust the crew at Flamingo 100%. Pros: Dedicated to fixing problems... even if they have to work extra hours. Very friendly. Cons: Hard to get a time slot... very busy. more

I've had Joe Lamping work on my cars for 17 years now. He's the best. AN HONEST MECHANIC! WHAT A CONCEPT! Joe will not only give your car expert care, he'll tell you what to expect in the coming months as far as repairs go. more

I had been recommended to Flamingo when I was new to town. I liked them at first and even moved within a block of the place so I could continue to take my often-broken car there. I knew my car had issues but it the list they gave me was longer every time I took it in and didn't get all their recommendations fixed. The last straw came when I took it in the week of Thanksgiving to test and replace the battery. I understand that I should have gone to an auto parts store instead, but these guys had always treated me well and even remembered me by name. After explaining to the attendant that I NEEDED the car to be done that Wednesday morning so I could travel for work and was assured it would be done the night before. I called to check that night and it was not done and they had not even looked at it yet. I reminded them to call me as soon as it was done - I was leaving town. Cool. Wednesday morning I still had to call them and was told it wasn't done. When I called back (AGAIN) at 1pm they said "Oh yes, it has been done". Then when I arrived they wanted over $160 for a new battery and wanted to explain a host of other issues, which had become the normal MO. I declined the explanation - I had heard it all and I was already late. The attendant shrugged me off even though I was a loyal customer. I finally gave up three years of business there to try another shop. This other place took my car in, fixed the issue and didn't bother me with all the other problems. The car still ran and that is what I wanted. I was a committed customer of Flamingo's for years and they still gave me poor service and tried to shuck-and-jive me out of more money. I'll never go back. Pros: come across and generally interested in you Cons: too busy; try to fix more than you want; timeliness more