Global Auto Engineering & A-One Towing

Thank you, Juan! I ran out of gas on I-​80 and Subaru sent Juan from A-​1 to save me. I was stuck in the median and I was safely towed to a gas station. Juan was quick and courteous and I am so grateful!

This is an awesome and entirely professional business and I recommend their repair service as much as their tow service. I learned of them via their shop in San Rafael and lucked out to find there is a Global shop in Richmond, where I live now. The owner is thoughtful and can sense when a part might be more affordable and still good quality second hand (my cars are always at least 10 years old so far) and lets me decide. I see newer cars in the shop, so I’m not the only one who likes their work. The work they do is always great quality and reasonably priced. The turn around time runs between phenomenal (like, how quick was that?) and completely manageable. Totally recommend.

So. I had just finished a long hike with my dog. Driving back, my car decided to die on the freeway. My insurance company chose A one to tow my car. Juan was the driver. He was very helpful and arrived on time. The whole experience was very stressful but I’m glad the towing at least went smoothly.

I was set up with this place through Toyota Roadside Assistance. I work in Richmond and got in an accident on my way to work. My car was barely driveable but was able to be pulled into a private lot until the towing service got there.
I called around 12:15pm and the estimated arrival was 1:30pm. However, they called saying they were 10 minutes out little before 1pm, and they were very prompt. I was very pleased by the timeliness of the truck.
The driver was very helpful and professional. I could tell he was very knowledgable about what he does. There was a piece of metal wedged into the wheel, and he even got it unwedged so that it wouldn’t continue to scrape the tire.
I rode all the way to the auto body shop in Walnut Creek (where I live). I wasn’t in a very good mood due to the accident so I wasn’t super talkative. The guy seemed to respect that, and we rode down the road listening to Spanish radio — so awesome!
When we got to the shop, again he was very helpful in getting my car into their lot even though his tow truck wouldn’t fit. I thanked him for his service, and he was very nice simply smiling and saying you’re welcome.
Given the choice, I would have picked a different place based on Unilocal reviews, but looking back, I’m glad Toyota set me up with this place. I would definitely recommend them!

During the day, my suburban just happened to stop right in the middle of the roadtto the dog park with dogs in the back of the suburban. I was frantic, but thankfully, it was on a private road that leads to the dog park, so thankfully I felt self.
Call my USAA insurance company and they made the appointment for A-​One Towing out of Richmond. I ask how long would the wait be, they said one-​hour, and whola! They were at my car in one hour, and I even got a mini-​auto repair diagnosis… Alex, the driver asked what happened, I told him, and said I think it’s the Alternator. Nope, he said, you’ve still got lights, it probably is the Fuel Pump and you know what, he was right. Alex was very polite, and it was nice to chit-​cat during the ride back to my home.
Now, there are several companies that say their name is A-​One Towing or A1 Towing, but you’ve got to remember to call this one and NO ONE ELSE.

My insurance called the tow company and estimated time of arrival was 55minutes. The driver Juan was their in 30 minutes. Juan was courteous and professional. Changed tire and made sure it had the correct air pressure. Excellent tow company.

These guys were nothing short of Professional, polite, and easy speaking they dont make you feel rushed to hand over your keys and cash/​card without knowing what both you and they are getting into. on a street cluttered with used car lots, tire shops and a random mechanic on every block this is a hidden needle shaped gem in a hay stack… I called ahead a few days to set myvday and although when I called the day before to confirm I was pushed back a day later he was up front and honest rather then take my car nd say the work had to continue to a second day… over all not one thing I experienced in my first time ever going there (for a thermostat job on my 1998 caddy Catera) off a recommendation did any one thing make me believe these guys are worth less then five stars… great friendly service, car returned 100%better then I left it, and my pockets were not taken advantage of props to JT and I will most certainly return and recommend

I just had my first EVER experience in a tow truck. Called my insurance due to a blow out they hooked me up to A-​1 towing then said it would be a hour wait and in 15mins they were there! The guy he was neat, clean, polite and a good driver and the truck was clean and neat for a passenger. Thank you A-​1 Towing Please keep up the good work I will highly recommend you :)

They couldn’t figure out what was wrong with my car, but recommended a $ 300 tune-​up. That didn’t fix it and I was stranded again 2 days later, had to get towed again. Won’t be back, sorry.

I had to get my car towed from Pinole to Oakland. After calling 4 places, A-​One was the cheapest tow I found by a long shot. The driver was extremely nice and it was a good experience. Hopefully I won’t have to use any tow again but this guy was a cool dude and I was very happy with the tow price.

This company left 2 girls stranded in a park (popular hiking spot, not a hidden location) at sundown with no cell service because they could not use a GPS to get there. Tow companies need to learn how to read maps (that is how they functioned before the advent of GPS and cell phones). I left clear instructions as to how to find them and there are many signs pointing to the parking lot where they were stranded. Car breakdowns do not only occur in convenient locations. Not only are they incapable they are also rude. When I called to complain they simply hung up on me.
They were forced to leave the car there and accept a ride from strangers because the tow truck abandoned them without trying or even calling to say they gave up.

Prompt service and a pleasant driver that jiggled my starter so I could drive it to the dealer for repair. He was right I needed a new starter. They are the contracted company for Farmers Ins.

Beware. I initially posted a 5 star review because A-​One got my car running again after the dealer mechanic didnt. Unfortunately the car, «fixed» on 7÷8÷2011, went out again on 7/​16/​2011 – exactly 8 days later. I had paid A-​One $ 735.00. A bit much for only one week of driving.
The full story is this: I’m not good with cars. Due to my negligence I’m certain my engine needs to be replaced. Hanlees Nissan wanted to charge $ 6300 for the job, so I called A-​One Towing to tow the car from Hanlees back to my apartment (while I figured out what I wanted to do). A-​One asked me during the call what was wrong with my car and I simply told them it wouldn’t start. They offered to take it to their shop. I got a call back 4 hours later that I had issues with the radiator and spark plugs; I approved the work and I was able to pick up my car from A-​One the next day. It started and drove fine.
I did not expect a perfect fix – I know I’ve damaged my car – but I did expect the car to run for longer than a week, especially for $ 700 (and a bounced rent check lol). I believe A-​One saw a good opportunity to make a fistful of cash and, well, that’s precisely what they did.

These guys did a good job. I was able to setup an appointment to have my car towed from a supermarket parking lot to the repair shop. The guy showed up right on time and took me and my car over to Bavarian Professionals. I would definitely use them again.

Unbelievably rude and uncooperative. My mechanic told me to tow a car that had been in the garage for 5 years and pushed out recently into the drive, but NOT to turn it on (bad gas and other issues). Kevin was awful and kept telling me to just start the car. He said it over and over again and didn’t care what my mechanic had said. He wouldn’t drop it. Then, when I told him it was none of his business why I wanted the car told, he wanted to back down my 300 foot driveway so he wouldn’t have to do a 3-​point turn at the end. I said to just drive down because there was a bend and going forward is not the same as going backwards in a front-​wheel drive vehicle. I didn’t want him to hit anything. Then he complained he would have to back up several times to turn around. So what? Finally, he said that 2 or 3 twigs 8 feet above were in the way and he couldn’t do the job, even if I clipped them and I was standing there with the clippers. He was a total jerk. Another tow company came and did the job easily with no problems, same size truck didn’t touch any twigs on the way down, and took minutes and they drove off with the car. This was a horrible experience and Carlos on the phone was not much better than Kevin who was a total jerk. I told the person who referred me and they said they never would again. These guys are just awful.

It was New Years Day. my car disables itself and to make matters worse, leaves me tucked alongside a downhill one way twisty shady backroad I’ve never been on. To make description matters worse is that where i became disabled was an unmarked hidden valley road behind Mount Diablo in an area called «Morgan Territory Hills». A small steel marked designated itself as the 8.1mile marker told me roughl where I was.
It took a few friends, the local Park Service to get me less than abandoned, so that I could, at least come into cell phone range to phone my way out.
I have a regular and personal tow company, being New Years Eve wasn’t working that day; but gave me a phone number of someone that was. A-​One Towing gave me, through a dark, cold, foggy night, a solid rescue getting my car home. Given the distance and timing, this towing cost was very reasonable.
A great resolve, resulting success. given you have cell phone coverage.

It was sunny in the morning, but started raining and became freezing during the rush hours… My accord decided to quit on the overpass of Ashby on I80 North. So I called the towing and 911 because of the crazy turn would have another car hit me for sure.
I wasn’t clear about my exact location, so I saw the towing truck and the police parked on each side under the overpass 1 hour later. I waved at both of them… the towing truck saw me, went all over I80, and found me. The police… stood outside of the cop car and still couldn’t see me.
Well… like all towing companies they were trying to make you go to their garage to have the service. But the guy was very very honest and not pushy. He told me his first impression was that I ran out of gas, which means I only needed to add gas and had my gas meter checked. So he pulled over after we got away from the «danger» zone and put some gas in… Viola… my car started…
He only asked for the gas money… $ 3.50… My insurance would pay them up to $ 150 for towing (so can’t commend on the pricing).
For the guys honesty and has faster response than the police, a 5 stars.

On two different jobs, A-​One quoted me towing rates that were 60% and 40% more than Babbit’s in Berkeley. Maybe there’s an espresso machine in the truck, or a fully stocked bar, or something. I went with Babbit’s instead.

The Passat decided to take a dump in the Target parking lot today. We called for roadside service and as promised in 45 minutes Juan from A One showed up. It was a busy Saturday at Target, but Juan figured out how to quickly get our car securely onto the flatbed and off we went. Juan brought us and our car safely to the VW dealer (this better be under warranty!) and made the whole process as non stressful as possible.