Alan Test Only - Smog Test Station
28 reviews
Redwood City, CA
"I bought my Prius from this place in 2005, and I use it to get regular service checkups at all the right times (10,000 coming up, baby!). I…" read more »
14 Reviews for Alan Test Only - Smog Test Station
Hell yes, can't beat a cheap smog check! Definitely get the 50% off coupon on Craigslist. The shop's a little bit hard to find since it's kinda small... scratch that, it's REALLY small. It's pretty much a slightly larger 2 car garage with a couch in it for "waiting" purposes while your car's getting smogged. Yup, Alan does the work right in front of you and you should be outta there within about 20 min. Hopefully, you won't get stuck in line, but I think word's spreading quickly about this place. Bring a book or, if you're a nerd like me, bring your Nintendo DS.
One would think an auto business that charges 30-40 percent less than the competition is a deal too good to be true. Believe it folks. This guy is crazy. Good for him. Good for us.
Alan's Test Only smog station is fast and cheap ($35.00 with coupon) with no BS. The word is getting out about this nuthouse. There were 2 people in front of me and 2 behind. Just the way I like it, right in the middle.
The shop is located one shop down on Mac Arther Ave. and Middlefield Rd.
Craigslist Coupon (check under services):
$$$$$$ 50% OFF $$$$$$ COUPON
SAVE YOUR MONEY TODAY
WE CERTIFY 1.TEST ONLY 2.REGULAR SMOG
FOR 1996--2008 CARS $26.75+ CERT$8.25
FOR 1976--1995 CARS $31.75+ CERT$8.25
PAY CASH ONLY
MUST PRINT THIS PAGE AS A COUPON
WE OPEN 8:00AM---5:30PM
---ALAN TEST ONLY ---
2627 MIDDLEFIELD ROAD
REDWOOD CITY CA 94063
TEL:1-650-364-0538
NO FREE RETEST
EXPIRE 01/31/2008
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WOOHOO! I PASSED MY SMOG TEST!!!
Maybe this is not a big deal to some people, but for me, going to a smog test station is like going to the dentist after I've waited a liiiittle too long between visits. There's a ton of guilt involved. You feel like the dentist is just going to look at you and shake his head for letting the little problems go on too long without getting fixed and then he drops you a bomb that you need a root canal.
OK, I've never been told I need a root canal. But you get the picture. I've never been the type with a lot of extra cash in the bank to repair a car's minor problem, the moment I notice it. I do change the oil pretty regularly but don't get tuneups as often as I should.
Anyway - being that I'm always trying to save money, Alan Smog Test (not Alan's with the apostrophe and the s) was the perfect place to go. He had an ad on craigslist offering a good discount, which I think was about half off. $30 (if you pay cash). Normally it's about $60. Today I paid $32 because I didn't have cash, no big deal, I don't blame the guy for charging extra if it costs him more to use a credit card and he's saving me a ton of money.
PLEASE NOTE the $30 price is going to go UP soon, because the government is now going to require some new emissions type of test, starting at the end of this month, so if you're due for a smog check in the next few months, I recommend you get it done now. I think the price is going to go up at least $10. He had to buy a whole new machine to do this new test starting in October.
I know this guy is fair, honest, and fast. My old 1978 Toyota truck didn't pass the smog test here but I KNEW that would happen (you could kind of tell just by looking at it that it wouldn't!). I guess because I've driven so many older cars, i just assumed my Honda wouldn't pass either, and went in 2 weeks before my registration was due, so i could apply for the "smog assistance" program. So I was elated when it passed!
For anyone who doesn't already know, if your car fails the smog test, you may qualify for an assistance program to help get your car repaired. OR, if the car is just beyond help (like my last truck was) you can retire it for UP TO A THOUSAND BUCKS............. which is exactly what I did. That's right. A thousand bucks. That's a month's rent for me so I'm super thankful to Alan for telling me this (he had the brochures on his table) when my old truck didn't pass. I also felt pretty justified in this because I spent about 3 years paying insurance on this truck when I only used it about once every 2 months. I also just missed out on the program when I inherited my Dad's chevy chevette - which I rarely used though I paid for the insurance, and ended up donating it to the SPCA.
I meant to do this review for Alan a few months ago but didn't get the chance till now. If you want the discount price, look for his CL post and print it out yourself (I think i found it by typing "smog test" in the search box under "services"). If you can't find it, try calling ahead and see if he'll give it to you, or just show up and mention you saw the price advertised on a Yelp review. Hopefully he'll know about yelp and just go ahead and give it to you.
By the way, don't expect any fancy surroundings. The place is very basic. The bathroom is a little... um... kind of the polar opposite of the downtown SF Nordstrom's bathroom, if you know what I mean. You sit on a sofa that's got towels on it (but hey they're clean). It's on the "not so rich" part of Middlefield Road (few blocks south of Costco in RWC). Not the kind of neighborhood you'd necessarily want to go for a brisk walk in to kill time, if you're a chick, but I didn't feel unsafe while I was just waiting there at the station. Do i give a sh*t about fancy surroundings when I'm saving 30 bucks? No siree. I can think of a hell of a lot of things I'd rather spend 30 bucks on, that don't include sitting on a leather sofa or using a fancy bathroom in a smog test station. It's 15 minutes. I'm a tough girl. I can deal with it.
As long as I'm living in Redwood City and need a smog check, Alan test station is definitely the place I'm bringing my car.
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Cheap and quick smog check.
Went today. No appointment. Just drove in. $30 smog check with coupon from craigslist, home skillets. (add $2 if you pay by credit card). It only took about 20 minutes total. The waiting couch is right there in the garage so you can watch Alan in action.
FOR THE CRAIGSLIST COUPON:
You have to go to the "automotive" subsection of the "Services" on craigslist for the coupon. Do a search for "smog check coupon" and it should pop up.
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Great service. No appointment and cheap with the craigslist coupon. The waiting area is a bit gross. I stood outside, which was fine since it was a nice day, but I must have looked slightly uncomfortable because the place next door offered to let me sit in their waiting area. I don't think this area is normally frequented by single young women, but you can't beat the price.
No appointment needed, just drove up with my $30 cash, craigslist.org coupon and 20 minutes later drove away with my smog cert.
YAY.
Quick, clean, and cheap!
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car registration due this week, about to mail in that check and then I notice for the first time, in HUGE print on the top, STOP SMOG Certification required. Dammit..
So off to Craigslist I go..
$$$ 50%OFF COUPON $$$
SAVE YOUR MONEY TODAY
WE CERTIFY:
1.TEST ONLY
2.REGULAR
3.GROSS POLLUTER
4.OUT OF STATE
OUR REGULAR PRICE IS $49.75 + CERT ( $8.25)
BUT FOR OUR CRAIGSLIST CUSTOMER IS $21.75 + CERT
MUST PRINT COUPON
(PAY CASH ONLY)
we open from 8:30am-7:30pm
ALAN TEST ONLY
2627 MIDDLEFIELD ROAD
REDWOOD CITY CA 94063
TEL :1-650-364-0538
NO FREE RETEST WITH DISCOUNT
After reading "NO FREE RETEST WITHOUT DISCOUNT" I started wondering if this guy would fail you on purpose just to get another $20 out of you, but.. I passed.
Craigslist, you come through again! What a SWEET DEAL - $30 out the door!! Be sure visit craigslist and print your coupon before you go.
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Cheap with Craigslist' coupon. $40 including certificate for cars 1995 or older; $30 otherwise.
The neighborhood is a little scary if you are a single female who are used to living in Palo Alto, so you might want to find a male friend to go with you. The station has no designated parking lot and the waiting area is cold. But overall a good experence.
The waiting area was a bit scummy, but the place delivered.
Cheap and successful smog test with craigslist discount.
out the door $30.
Alan is great. I got my test, certificate, and electronic filing, for $30 cash. I did bring a print-out of the Craig's list ad to get this price.
I asked Alan about his business. He's been doing smog checks for 6 years, and has had his own business for 2 years.
He was polite and efficient, and has a decent enough waiting area. The test didn't take that long.
I passed. It was $30 with the craigslist coupon. Didn't have to wait long. I'm happy.
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quick and cheap
despite the ghetto area
normal people may be scared of the looks of that area, but turns out this one is a good one.
remember to use the coupon on craigslist to get discount
Well, I listened to my fellow Yelpers! I have had HORRIBLE experiences with TEST ONLY smog check centers in time past. But not today. I searched and searched for the Craigslist coupon, but to no avail - it's no longer there. So I called Alan's place and talked to his wife to see if I could still get the discount. She doesn't speak very good english, but she was very nice, and said "no problem". It turns out the discounted fee has gone up $10 due to the new fuel evaporation system check machine (cost was 3,500 for Alan), which went into effect on November 1, 2007, but I still got out of there for $40 cash, passed the tests, very little wait, and even got a laugh because they had a totally humorous friend stop by to hang out with them. Alan gets my vote. Your hands are tied to a certain extent when you own a Test Only center, due to the governmental regulations and restrictions, so Kudos to you when you make it work.
No frills but who cares. The guy was very cordial but spoke little English. Again, who cares.
As long as you have the cashola and the coupon from Craigs list, you can be in and out of there for a total of $30.00. I used to do smogs back in 1995 and it still wasn't that cheap! I went in at 11:15 am on a Tuesday and was done by 11:35.
I did try calling on the phone for more info but nobody answered so I just showed up.
Can't beat it
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