I had the best car buying experience I have ever had today at Van Bortel Subaru of Rochester!…read more I worked with Shawn P and not only was he professional, but fun and made the entire experience smooth and stress free. Was a no pressure deal and gave me a great deal without all the back and forth hassle you get at other dealerships! My entire family has used Van Bortel and Subaru for years. 3 generations of happy Subaru owners! I chose the 2026 Ascent Onyx Touring for its towing capabilities as I was coming from an F-150. It tows my Bayliner with ease and I hardly notice a difference! I would also like to add that the service department is also incredible. I had faulty trailer brakes on my trailer and one of the technicians Tom went above and beyond to help me diagnose the issue and gave me recommendations on how to fix it even though they don't normally work on trailers he still pointed me in the right direction. I am THRILLED and would HIGHLY recommend Subaru and this dealership to anyone! Thank you!!! -Nick

The car buying experience is five stars. The people in…read moreservice also earn five stars; the quality of repairs is good and the waiting area is quite good. But scheduling service is very difficult. I can't say enough about how great the car-buying experience, in every way. They work with you to get the car that fits your needs (I got one of the last manual transmission Crosstreks!) They're available to help with the process of changing registration and all the other items to get the new car established. They offer follow up with any questions, including about warranty. They carefully explain warranty options. This is my first subaru : compared to Toyota - Subaru's people and work on doing maintenance and repairs is just as good and the waiting area is almost as good as Toyota. Scheduling service, though, is another story -- much worse than Bob Johnson Toyota. At Toyota I could easily schedule a time to come in. My first February after I purchased my car I tried to set an appointment up at Subaru *a month in advance* at a time when I'd have work to do while I waited and all they had was early morning and evening appointments. When I called about this difficulty I was told I should just do drive-up service and I'm going to try that.I used that rather than an appointment only had to wait less than two hours for an oil change, so that was fine -- I could come in when I had work to do or the day was not very nice. The people were very helpful getting me a maintenance book for the used vehicle I bought But the second time I tried to use the drop-in service (for an inspection and oil change in August), I arrived shortly after 1PM and was told they were willing to fit me in, but that the wait would be perhaps til 8PM close; they said they were telling others they should come back the next day. I checked Subaru's online appointment system and the first appointments available from the time I write this review are 29 days from now -- and those appointments are very limited (early morning evening.) About 34 days from now there are appointments available. In my many years with Toyota, calling a week in advance was enough to get an appointment. This shows that the problem I experienced in February -- not being able to get an appointment within about a month -- is the same in August. In retrospect, I think, Subaru doesn't accommodate those who want to wait on a repair very well. My wife has had a Subaru and I found it hard to schedule repairs. Subaru a shuttle and $10 car rental on offer. They're much better set up for people who want to drop their car off rather than wait. Subaru's difficulty scheduling is probably because of how successful Subaru sales is. Kitty Van Bortel has built a great company with committed people who work at Van Bortel. I don't know how Subaru could solve this problem. On this August day I tried to get a drop-in oil change and inspection, I was told about the 150 vehicles they were trying to get through. And they were personable - gave me a card and said I could try to call in advance and personally helped back me out of the crowded entry to service. I have had one maintenance done with Subaru and was welcomed warmly, the staff was great, and the service was quick. But scheduling service is tough. (I'm also no fan of online-only setting up appointments to have work done).

I needed a hitch drawer primarily for a bike rack to be mounted on a 2024 Kia Niro PHEV. The hitch…read moreneeded to be ordered, which took two weeks. After two weeks of not hearing from them, I called and they said it had just arrived. The next appointment available for installation was a week out. They said it typically takes 90 minutes to install, so I decided to wait while it was installed. It took 4 hours. The mechanic who installed it apologized for the delay, and said it took longer because the schematic he had did not match the vehicle. The next day we made a 7 hour trip, and then returned the following day. We heard a rattle coming from the back of the car, so when I got home I looked under the bumper and found quite a mess. The rattle was due to the wheel-well and rear bumper cover not being reconnected. The wiring was very sloppy, with wire ties not trimmed, poor crimps and the wires hanging down without being attached to pre-existing wires. I went back to Brad's the next morning so they could see the poor workmanship and correct the problems, which they took care of in about 5 minutes. I asked to speak with the manager and suggested that I should be compensated for all of my time and trouble. The total bill for the hitch, wiring and installation was $775. The manager offered a $45 refund of the amount that was overcharged due to a error she found on the Curt website which incorrectly stated the retail price. If I had not had trouble and complained, I would have paid $45 too much, not to mention the very long install time and aggravation. At this point I researched the price of the hitch available from reliable resellers such as Tractor Supply, UHaul and others who all listed the delivered retail price of the hitch for $145 less than what Brad's charged me after the $45 refund. The installation of the hitch was $110, and the installation of the wiring was $135. Buyer beware, do your research first!

They closed the door in my face at 4:20pm after I called prior and they said they closed at…read more5:00pm... The sign on door said 5:00pm...The answering machine when I called at 4:30pm said they closed at 5:00pm.. When I asked an employee, who was outside trying too get his car started, "are they closed?".. he looked at me and said ".... maybe".. I said "at 4:30?".. He ignored me.. One (1) ghetto star they get from me they get...

They have done my car inspections most every one of the 17 years I have lived in New York…read more Extremely good, fast, and nice people.

Want to give a thank you to Howard Road Garage in Gates. They did a wonderful job of diagnosing my…read moreair conditioning issue and getting me up and running. It ended up being just an a/c relay, which basically cost $15. I paid mostly for the tests that assured me my air condition system was working properly and that my issue was an electrical malfunction. Before going to Howard Road Garage I went to one of the major complete auto care shops because my ac wasn't working. And they gave me a quote of 2500.00 saying that it was my compressor and the serpentine belt. I also was going to buy a set of tires with all of the additional bells and whistles for installation for the total work to come out to $ 4100. Good thing I didn't fall for the first Big Box company's suggesting and went for a second opinion. I paid approximately 10% of what the Big company tried to charge me for repair of my air conditioner. And now I can be cool in the summer again. Thanks Howard Road Garage. A family owned business. Small Businesses are awesome!

Absolutely the worst! They over charged me and then to make it better they left a wrench in my…read moreengine bay! DO NOT GO HERE!

There really needs to be something said about the attitude of the mechanics here…read more First of all, they've had my car for 2 days. I think asking for a status update is definitely a reasonable thing to do. But the response I got was grumpy and uncalled for. Instead of politely telling me they haven't received the part they needed to fix my car, they acted like I was inconvenicing them just for calling. Dude. You have MY car. If youre not sure when the part comes, that's fine. But you don't have to act like I'm a dumbass for asking. I quite frankly don't care how miserable your job is, so is mine. And everyone else's. The least I can ask for is some common decency. Especially when you've had my car for 2 days and haven't updated me.

Great place communication was spot on nothing like Mercedes-Benz of Buffalo. If I could give it 10…read morestars, I would impeccable service.

Went there with my parents visiting out of town and Ebra was very helpful and knowledgeable of all…read morethe cars. I am planning to purchase a car from the dealership in the new year because of his customer service. Highly recommend

A friend recommended this place when we were looking for somewhere honest to get our annual…read moreinspection done. We've now had our car inspected there twice, and also had some repairs done there. They are very honest with the inspections, they tell you what is wrong if anything and let you know if it is urgent or just something you should do sometime soon. They let us know that our brakes were getting to a point where they should probably have work done on them soon, and we scheduled that a few weeks later. For any work or inspection you bring your car in first thing in the morning, then wait till they call you to let you know it is done. You can't make an appointment at a specific time. How long it takes varies by how many other people got there first and how complicated what your car needs done is. If you're there without another car to go elsewhere, I suggest you take a nice walk down to the water while you wait.

Great service. Never had a problem getting an appointment. Quick service. Always responsive to…read morequestions. They give excellent advice. I never feel like they are taking advantage of my lack of knowledge. They explain things in a way that I can understand. Prices are reasonable and fair.

Well I had a little problem with my truck, "Black Nell". The engine light came on. So I drove over…read moreand they ran a quick test on it, there was a problem which pointed to the catalytic converter. They scheduled an appointment for a week out. I went out there first thing this morning and checked in. A few minutes later their shuttle driver brought me home. The gentleman's name was Domonic. I found Domonic to be just like every other VanBortel employee. Very polite and professional. As always I must say I'm pleased with all divisions of VanBortel. Sales, Service, Customer Care. And always remember to buy a warranty with your next car purchase. A great benefit they suggest to their customers. And it saves the $$$.

"Quick lane" is false advertising for the service end of this dealership. I drove 20 miles this…read moremorning for just an oil change, was treated by the service team with a paper mat placed in my car, and was told once I entered the waiting room there was nothing available til next day, and was told that in rather an abrupt way. Bad enough that this wasn't truly a "Quicklane" but also that the service team wasn't aware that they weren't taking more customers for the day by 9:30 am.