How to Find Vehicle Inspection Locations Near You

As a RideShare applicant or existing driver, you have several options when it comes to completing the vehicle inspection for Uber and Lyft. Common options are:

  • Go to a local mechanic such as Jiffy Lube
  • Work with RideShare Mechanic – a virtual mechanic that conducts your inspection over video chat.

This page will inform of all your options and the pros/cons of each, so you can make a decision on which is best for you. So now let’s dive a bit deeper on the different options you have for completing your vehicle inspection:

Option 1: Get a virtual vehicle inspection by RideShare Mechanic

RideShare Mechanic is a mechanic that will inspect your car using video chat with the help of you and your smartphone. Very simply, you schedule an appointment (or request an on-demand inspection) and then an agent reaches out to you to initiate a video chat to visually inspect your car. The agent will walk you through everything you need to show them via your smart phone’s camera.

Phone swipe
Complete inspection through your smartphone camera
  1. Fill out the form and schedule an appointment
  2. Agent will inspect your car
  3. Make a payment and receive completed inspection form
View how it works

Once all items on the 19-point inspection form are reviewed, RideShare Mechanic will send you your completed inspection form via e-mail, which you can upload to your Uber or Lyft account.

Option 2: Go to a local mechanic

If you prefer to get an Uber or Lyft inspection in person but a location is too far, or don’t operate during business hours that align with your schedule, then the best option for you may be to go to a local mechanic near you. In this situation, you can go to a local place such as Firestone Autocare or Pep Boys, for them to complete your inspection. Just keep in mind that you’ll want to make sure to print off the inspection form for them to fill out and also call in advance to make sure that they can provide this service. One nice thing with this option compared to the hubs is that you may be able to schedule an appointment for your inspection in advance, so you can avoid waiting in line.

Now let’s explore the Pros and Cons of each of the vehicle inspection options mentioned above:

RideShare Mechanic
Pros

Quick – complete your inspection in under 15 minutes

Convenient – conduct inspection from wherever your car is

Extended support hours every day of the week

Only interested in the RideShare inspection; no motivation to upsell you on other mechanic services

Cons

Drivers must pay – $43.99 for one inspection, $71.99 for bundle inspection.

Uber Greenlight Hub
Pros

Usually free for both new and existing drivers (check their website first to see if there is a fee)

Only interested in the RideShare inspection; no motivation to upsell you on other mechanic services

Knowledgeable staff that can provide in-person support for driver issues

Cons

Can only complete one type of inspection

Walk-ins only (first come, first serve); no option to schedule an appointment

Limited hours of operation

Must drive to their location, takes time and consumes gas

Traditional local mechanic
Pros

Can offer both Uber and Lyft inspection

Can offer walk-in or scheduled appointments

Cons

No free options, must always pay for inspection

Limited hours of operation

Must drive to their location, takes time and consumes gas

Staff is not knowledgeable about the RideShare industry… in case you need assistance

The official Uber inspection stations

For those who want to get an Uber inspection in person, there are two different types of inspection centers that are operated by Uber:

  • Uber Greenlight Hub
  • Uber Spot

Both are legitimate inspection sites that are officially affiliated with Uber. The greenlight hubs are offices that are dedicated to Uber operations and are populated with Uber employees. Uber Spots are shared spaces that Uber places employees in existing businesses to expand its locations at which Uber drivers can go to and get support.

Uber Greenlight Hubs – official offices owned by Uber

Starting just a few short years ago, Uber started a huge endeavor to improve its customer service and accessibility of in-person support to its drivers. They did this by opening Uber offices all over the nation, referred to as “Uber Greenlight Hubs.” These offices vary from state to state in regard to size and hours of operation, and several have been shut down and new ones have opened up over the years.

The goal was for them to be a one-stop-shop location for Uber drivers to go to for all their Uber-related needs, including account creation, onboarding, vehicle inspection, support, technical issues, and receiving their Uber emblem. Drivers also have the chance to mingle with other fellow RideShare drivers in these Uber offices, as some were quite spacious and had fairly large waiting areas.

Regarding the vehicle inspection, the mechanics that are stationed in the offices are contracted out. In other words, they are not Uber employees, which makes sense considering that it may be viewed as a conflict of interest if they were!

The Uber Greenlight Hubs were wildly successful in improving the driver’s experience, and you can see this by the sheer number of people that go to the centers, indicating that they find them to be valuable. In most states, drivers are never required to visit the Greenlight Hub, but many choose to do so simply because it’s valuable to them.

Of course there are many drivers who also have issues with the Greenlight Hub as some of the practices can be quite frustrating. For starters, drivers cannot schedule an appointment in advance, and all appointments are on a first-come, first-served basis. This also means that you have no idea how long it will take for your turn. If the wait is long, a driver may spend well over an hour at the hub just waiting for her turn.

Another issue that frustrated drivers is that the hours of operation vary from one Greenlight Hub to another, and the hours were often not updated on the Uber website, or were not consistent with the hours shown on Google, so sometimes drivers were showing up only to see that the doors were closed.

Although there are many positive things about the Uber Greenlight Hubs, the use of them all comes down to convenience for drivers. The Greenlight Hubs may be far from drivers or have minimal availability outside of normal business hours, which may not work well for many drivers’ schedules. Many drivers who have had the chance to experience going to an Uber Greenlight hub enjoy seeing so many Uber drivers in the community, but after the first visit, many drivers dread having to go back because it’s just not convenient.

Uber Spot locations – pop-up inspection stations with varying hours

In order to further expand its in-person support to drivers in various markets, Uber complemented its Greenlight Hubs with Spot Locations, which were (often temporary) locations at which some Uber employees would be stationed to provide support to drivers. This could be inside stores with which Uber had partnerships (Verizon stores were quite popular in California for these types of offices).

It is notable that the small pop-up areas were often limited in their ability to handle certain support issues for drivers, but they were able to conduct vehicle inspections.

And with many more of these small offices available compared to the larger, official Greenlight Hubs, drivers were given the benefit of finding a place that may be located closer to them to complete their vehicle inspection at no cost.

Perhaps the biggest downside to any of the physical locations by Uber, whether it be a Greenlight Hub or Spot location, is that the driver was only able to complete his Uber inspection form.

How to find Uber inspection centers near you

If you’re interested in going to an Uber inspection site near you, the easiest and most reliable way to find an available location is to find it on the Uber official website. The format for finding the Greenlight Hub is “https://www.uber.com/drive/YOURCITY/contact/”, (replace “YOURCITY” with the nearest major city to you) then scroll to where it says “Find an Uber Greenlight Hub Location.” Then you will be presented with the address of the Greenlight Hub near you.

If you are interested in finding inspection centers other than the Greenlight Hub, you can type in the URL in the following format: “https://www.uber.com/drive/YOURCITY/inspections/”, (again, just replace “YOURCITY” with the nearest major city to you). This page will show you all the local options for inspections that Uber is familiar with. If you have any trouble finding an inspection center, just do a quick Google search for “Uber inspection near me” and you’ll have a good chance to find the nearest inspection center to you.

Places to get a free Uber vehicle inspection

The first question that comes to mind for many Uber drivers, especially driver applicants who haven’t yet started earning money with Uber, is “How can I get a free inspection?” Well, there are a couple places at which you can get a free Uber inspection.

The most of the Uber Greenlight Hubs and Uber Spots. Keep in mind that it’s not free in all Uber centers, but it is free in most of them. Perhaps a bit of online research on the official Uber websites mentioned above would help.

car on the phone

Find a Lyft inspection location near you

Finding a location for a Lyft inspection is pretty similar to the process of doing so for Uber locations. If you are reading this article, then you are likely a Lyft driver applicant or existing Lyft driver looking to renew your vehicle inspection, or update your profile with a new car.

Either way, the easiest way to find a Lyft inspection location near you is to do an online search or complete your inspection with RideShare Mechanic!

Uber and Lyft inspections at mechanical shops near you

Sometimes you will be in a situation in which the Uber Greenlight Hub in your area is either far from you or not open during hours that align with your schedule. If this is the case for you, then you may want to consider using RideShare Mechanic’s virtual vehicle inspection service. But if you prefer to have your vehicle inspected at a physical location as opposed to over video chat, then you may want to consider taking your care to a local mechanic shop to complete the vehicle inspection.

Mechanic at work in his garage

To find a local mechanic near you who can conduct your vehicle inspection, simply do a search for “Mechanic near me” either on Google or Yelp. The results that whos up will likely be for places such as Jiffy Lube, Pep Boys, Firestone Autocare, or some local mom-and-pop shops. Anyways, once you find the nearest mechanic to you, be sure to call them up and ask if they can perform your Uber or Lyft vehicle inspection.

Remember, you’ll likely be responsible for printing off the form and taking it with you to the mechanic for them to sign. You can also ask a few places to find the best price; the majority of places can charge anywhere from $17 to $35 for an inspection.

Uber and Lyft vehicle inspections via video chat

Although Uber and Lyft have strived to make things easy with the on-boarding process for drivers, the mandatory vehicle inspection is the biggest hurdle for most drivers to get activated. The reason is simple: it’s just not convenient to drive your car somewhere, whether it be to an inspection center, or a local mechanic. At the end of the day, you’ll need to take time out of your busy day, during the location’s business hours, potentially get stuck in traffic, and also consume gas to get there.

Let’s face it: most drivers have the goal of getting on the road quickly, and this whole process of going to a physical location for the vehicle inspection is not a very pleasant experience for most drivers. There is one company that is completely changing all of this and providing an exceptional user experience with the vehicle inspection process. That company is RideShare Mechanic.

To schedule your inspection, fill out this form and specify the type of inspection you need

RideShare Mechanic is a virtual mechanic that inspects vehicles for Uber and Lyft drivers via video chat, using the camera on a smartphone. How does this work? After you schedule an inspection online, a friendly inspector will contact you to initiate a video chat to perform the inspection using a video chat app such as Facetime or Google Duo. Once your connection is established, the inspector will instruct you to show the items that are required to check from the inspection form.

So with the help of you holding your smartphone and following the directions from the inspector (such as “honk the horn or activate the windshield wipers), RideShare Mechanic can verify if your car passes or fails the vehicle inspection. If your car passes, then the inspector will send you a digital copy of the signed inspection form (via e-mail), which you can then upload to your Uber or Lyft profile. If your car fails the inspection, then you will need to remedy whatever item caused your car to fail the inspection.

RideShare Mechanic provides the fastest and most convenient inspection process for RideShare drivers. You can complete the inspection from wherever your car is as long as you have a smartphone and a decent mobile connection. Furthermore, RideShare Mechanic has extended business hours to fit your busy schedule.

Once you try the service at RideShare Mechanic, you will not want to use any other service for your mandatory vehicle inspection; in fact, you can see the 2,000+ positive reviews on Google here: https://goo.gl/osZJBf

Choose RideShare Mechanic for Uber & Lyft car inspection

In this page, we have shared all the different options that drivers have in order to complete their vehicle inspections. While most new drivers today resort to services such as Greenlight or local mechanics, thousands of drivers have discovered the convenient service of RideShare Mechanic.

This is the company that leverages technology such as video chat to make the inspection experience pleasant, quick, and convenient. If you haven’t tried it before, then we invite you to schedule an appointment and experience it for yourself. Once you’ve experienced the service for yourself, you won’t want to do your vehicle inspections in any other way. And if you are coming back like our many repeat customers, we greatly appreciate your business and are excited to continue serving you in your RideShare journey!

★★★★★
"In the beginning, I was hesitant. I looked up reviews and comments. VERY convenient and REAL as it gets. Lady that helped me was very generous and helpful. Easy 10 mins. I will DEFINITELY recommend. Technology is stepping up. Do not need to go to a mechanic. Thank you!"
★★★★★
"Super quick and convenient. Completed the inspection in my own garage on a Sunday. The person providing the inspection was extremely friendly and pleasant to work with."
★★★★★
"I would definitely use Rideshare Mechanic for future vehicle inspections and would highly recommend this service to other rideshshare drivers. The service was quick and efficient and I never had to leave my home. Great friendly service."
★★★★★
"The person that did my inspection was very nice, polite & knew what she was doing. My experience was at the top #10 I would recommend this company to everyone. Also very convenient!"