Arbor Car Wash & Lube Center

I have been in the Automotive business for 32 years. I have been using Arbor car wash for 3 years now for detailing my cars for retail customers. I have tried many detail shops before I found Arbor Car Wash. Absolutely hands down they have done the best job compared to any other company. I would highly recommend them!

First time here And the last!
Asked for a detail and got my truck back with messy wax all over, interior headliner has a few dirty spots and they don’t bother to clean them, I would mind paying extra, but what Really upset me is that I kindly asked the worker have you made sure my Cadillac is clean and ready and he said yes it’s been checked.
I know he had no idea but he went ahead and lied to me. I spoke to him and Spanish and it was probably worse because he figured I wouldn’t complain.
169.95 you get what you paid for.
Transaction car #844 black escalade Sunday 1÷31÷16
If anyone cares.

I’ve been going here for car washes for a few months and generally have had positive experiences. The price is reasonable (you also get $ 3 off with the «Go Local» card) and they USUALLY do a good job. I’ve gotten home once with some major streaks on the car (I should have done a walk around but didn’t expect any problems because that had not happened before) and once with some more vacuuming needed. They have always gotten my car in and out quickly.
However, if I could find another car wash I trusted with my car I would not return. The upsell is just ridiculous. It’s not just one thing they try to sell you, I recently was here and in the 2 minutes it took to get to the spot where you leave your car THREE different people tried aggressively pushing another purchase on me. And they don’t leave it alone when you say «no thanks.» I tried contacting the manager about this issue through the website but got no response.
So — ultimately, if you don’t mind the aggressive sales, I would recommend them for your car wash needs.

Staff was extremely nice, they have plenty of seating while you wait and overall I was very pleased with my car when I picked it up after its wash. This place is not cheap at all, in my opinion it’s over priced but i guess that’s what to expect when living in north Austin.

Very upset by windshield chip service. These guys act like vultures. Yesterday one circled a small chip on my window without asking, leaving a mark that is difficult to remove. There is no reason to abuse anyone’s property to try and make a sale. All I wanted was an oil change, not something else to have to deal with. If I could leave no stars, I would.

January 18, 2015 I roll into Arbor Wash to get an oil change.
I let the lube tech know that my car needs Dexos oil, to which he says «no problem, it’s going to be $ 30». Good enough for me I think and away we go.
My wife and I eat lunch next door and return to find a $ 70 oil change bill. I ask if they used liquid gold for oil, but overall think «Dang, I should have made sure I wasn’t getting screwed, this is on me». We pay and leave.
I get home and think to myself that no honest place in America would charge 70 bucks for 5 quarts of oil. So I go out to my car pull the dipstick and all looks fine (a little dirtier than I would like, but overall ok).
That when I notice something.
Here is the engine ‘cover’ a bit dirty from some drips: Photo 1
Here is the oil filter cap: Photo 2
What do you think? I thought it was clearly untouched.
I call the lube shop up and ask casually «Do you guys change oil filters when you change oil?» This steers the conversation into «I’m certain we changed your filter sir, I was the one who did it».
So I head back up to the lube shop. Guy tells me, «see that blue around the cap, that’s what we use to clean the spilled oil up.» I told him, maybe 8 months ago it was cleaned up, but no one has touched this for a long while.
We open the cap (guy almost had an aneurysm it was so tight) and we see this: Photo 3
Guy says no words to me, just walks off with the filter to get a new one.
Comes back and says «Sorry you had to come back up, let’s get you a car wash». Mind you, we just got a car wash because it was free with the oil change. I tell him to get me a refund as I have no confidence he even used the Dexos oil he claimed to use. He assures me they did, similar to how he assured me he personally changed the filter. He counters with ‘next change free’, I say refund again and the manager (who finally appeared) agreed to refund my money. I wont be back and I would advise anyone reading this to think twice before using this place.

I went here for just a wax. I have a black car and wanted to help lift up some stains by birds and get a good black wax.
They did an ok job, although I had just come from the car wash so I had already washed my car myself. I am not impressed with the $ 90 wax. At genie, they have a buffing machine really help the wax penetrate. I would expect this for the cost of the service.
I would definitely wouldn’t pay this much for this type of wax, and this is all I had serviced.
If you want a really good wax, I’d suggest a different place.
They are very convenient and quick.

Wow, folks really either love or hate this place. I’ve been to Arbor dozens and dozens of times over a number of years. Sometimes full service wash, sometimes quick lane, a couple times a year hand wax. Even had a 6 month anytime wash gift for Christmas once.
Always been impressed with how well the place is managed. It can be a busy Saturday afternoon or a slow weekday morning and a regular wash always seems to take about the same length of time. They just add or drop the number of employees on the line. Comfortable space to wait both inside and outside, easy to keep an eye on your car’s progress.
One hand wax on a busy day my car was apparently parked in the wrong place and just sat there waiting for a while. After I thought certainly by now they’d be working on it, I went to the front desk and mentioned the wait and the manager literally jumped up ran out of the building and began waxing the car himself. Of course he quickly had help and I was on my way.
I do wish they’d drop the chipped windshield side business. To me that has always felt a little uncomfortable, and well, kind of shady. But every time I’ve told them no, they just move on to the next car. Not a big deal.
So here’s one long time and continuing customer who would encourage you to head here with your dirty car.

Advertised oil change at 39.95 then charge for an extra quart of oil and oil filter bringing the real total to 58.65!!!

I have no idea why arbor would have such a low star rating on Unilocal!My husband and I have been bringing our cars here for oil changes, car washings, details and windshield repairs for like 5 years and we ALWAYS experience fantastic, fast service with professionalism and appreciation. It might be one of the only businesses in Austin where we can expect A+ service every time. The long time employees there always remember us and welcome us back. Keep it up, Arbor!

Every couple of months Groupon runs a three use car wash special for about $ 21.00. Can’t beat this this deal.
They vacuum the inside, clean the windows, dust the dash, damp cloth the door jams, machine wash, followed by an extensive hand dry.
I’ll be back :)

Listen, they have a system and I respect that. But good luck getting any two people to give you the same directions. There are no signs indicating what the system is and if someone tells you what to do, expect them to be aggressively rude about it. They also won’t volunteer the information so you’ll have to ask for them to berate you.
The service itself is thoroughly unremarkable.

Quick vacuum & carwash FREE. Will return. Staff was courteous. Plenty of chill room… Refreshments while you wait.

Really liked the staff at this location. I usually go to the one in Lakeway, but I’m glad I came across this one.
Their prices are fair and the service quick. They do a great job when your car needs just a little pick me up!

After a few years of coming here I highly recommend it. I think my other visit was a fluke because the last 5 visits were great… I feel bad for not updating sooner! Great wash and prices.

**BEWARE ARBOR GLASS TRICKERY
The is my go-​to oil change and car wash station. I’ve been here at least 10 times (I know this because the 11^th oil change is free). Yesterday I experienced something so dirty I cannot stop thinking about how scummy I feel.
I pull up. The nice old man gets my mileage, takes off my sticker as usual, asks about what car wash I want, etc. I get out and another man shows me 2 tiny cracks on my windshield, as small as a speck of dirt. He says to me that he will fix this «at no cost to me» and that this service is available to me «4 times per year». He makes it seems as though this is part of my oil change service. However, he asks for my insurance card, escorts me inside to this girl sitting in the waiting room on a laptop and says she’ll take care of me.
After about 10 minutes, the girl says she’s ready for me and explains that she’s calling my insurance so I can make a claim about the windshield damage. WINDSHIELD DAMAGE?! INSURANCE CLAIM?! No one said that! The SPECKS of glass were so small I could barely see them with my naked eye and now I’m making my own claim?! I let her know that I am not interested in this, considering the «damage» is so small. She says that the work has already been done and calls over the guy that lured me into this mess to begin with. I oblige, but never again. And I want everyone to beware of this scam. SO DIRTY.

WASH YOUR TROUBLES AND ALL THAT GRACKLE POOP AWAY!!!
I’ve beenn goingg to Arbor car wash for years, and they are always courteous, if not a little pushy on selling more expensive packages. You just have to be assertive, and if you just want a run through, let them know. Sometimes, I shoot the works, sometimes not. They give rainchecks if you don’t need a wash with your oil change, or if it rains the day you get yoru car washed. Also, a little secret is that if you need your tires checked /​aired, they will do it free of charge if you pull up to the oil change bay, even if you are not buying any services that day. This is my go to place for car washes and oil changes, and I don’t expect that will change any time soon. :)

Awful!
I came in for a thorough detail and what I got was a quick, greasy, $ 200 wipedown! I even upgraded. I am 100% sure I did not get what I paid for. As soon as I got home I had to go through and wipe everything inside down again and give it another vacuum.
I got there 20 minutes after they opened and I still waited almost 2 hours. Unbelievable for what I ended up getting.
Do yourself a favor– save the money and either go somewhere else, or do it yourself.

I came here today for another oil change. The price is fair and on par with other places in town, but the quality, the staff and the extra perks are what make the difference. Today Clarence, a member of their staff, came to talk with me after the oil change was complete, and he explained why my check engine light was on. He didn’t pressure me to do any repairs and let me know that if I came back later with the oil change receipt, I could get a sale price on the work. I didn’t feel rushed and he answered all of my questions thoroughly. I also enjoy that I get a free car wash. I was pleasantly surprised to see that with my receipt I get a free Mighty Fine burger – that’s awesome because next on my task list was to get lunch! They did a great job on the wash as well, although the inside could be cleaned a little bit more.
Last time I was here for an oil change was also a great experience, which is why I am back. Thanks Arbor Car Wash & Lube Center for making my task pleasant and enjoyable! Thanks also for having & training such great staff members!

Not happy with this place.
I have gone here twice over lunch breaks to get my car washed and don’t think I can stand to go here anymore.
The first time I was bombarded with upsell pitches. There was a hard push on the detailing services (which I don’t need because my car was two months old at the time) as well as repair of a miniscule chip they found on my windshield. They stated that they could take care of it under insurance immediately so it doesn’t spread if I would give them my insurance card and had full glass coverage (which I do). They handed the card back to me and stated that my insurance won’t cover it. When I pushed that I do have full glass on my policy they stated that AAA insurance won’t cover their shop. It was a pretty long wait to get my car back (about half an hour) and I noticed that when I got my car it was clean but the floor mats were unhooked from the floors which is annoying because they are a real pain to re-​attach plus create a safety hazard should they get pushed under the pedals.
I went back today over lunch break and again got detailing and waxing services pushed on me. I asked the guy vacuuming the car if he would mind leaving the mats attached to the floor hooks. He looked a little annoyed and said «yeah». Forty five minutes of waiting later and I got my car back. Not only were the floor mats unhooked again but the passenger side mat was actually folded over itself! The driver’s side was also still quite dirty with debris that should have easily been lifted by the vacuum cleaner.
I wasted my entire lunch break here and will still have to take my car to a self-​serve wash to re-​vacuum my floor mats.