Excerpt from Gainesville Today article November 2006

WITH TODAY’S CHAIN restaurants, stores and auto repair shops, do you long for the time when you could patronize local, family-owned businesses? Places where they not only give you quality customer service but also know your name? That’s still possible at Bush Gator Transmission and Auto Repair, a family-owned company that began more than 60 years ago.

“My grandfather, C.J. Bush, started doing auto repair in the Newberry area in the 1940s and moved to Gainesville in 1952,” said Liza Bush, the company’s vice president. “My father purchased the company in 1964, and in ’71, moved his operation to Main Street.” Though Bush’s father is now semi-retired, you’ll still find her uncle Dewey working in the shop that Bush now runs with her husband. “We don’t have high employee turnover in our office,” Liza says. “Our customers see the same faces, and we develop relationships with them.”

Though they are most known for transmission services, Bush Gator offers the gamut of general repairs, from a simple oil change to replacing a motor. Now, the business is expanding to include a fleet maintenance division.

“There are many businesses that rely on their automobiles. We are trying to keep those vehicles on a routine maintenance schedule to minimize breakdowns,” Bush said. “We’ll pick up the vehicles and drop them off, and we even offer loaner vehicles.”

This expansion, however, doesn’t mean the staff is turning attention away from the individual customer. Bush Gator is ready to work on your car, truck or motor home. All service technicians are ASE certified, which means they’ve passed tests offered by the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence and they have a minimum of two years experience. In addition, the company is a member of the Automatic Transmission Rebuilders Association (ATRA).

“We have travelers and students from out of town who get transmission work done with us,” Bush said. “Because we are members of ATRA, if these customers go home and have a problem with any work we’ve done, they don’t have to come back here. There are ATRA shops in every state, and we can direct them to their nearest shop.”

But don’t wait until you have a major repair before heading to Bush Gator. “General service is key to making your vehicle last,” Bush said. If you bring your car in for service, our computer takes the mileage and sends out reminders for oil changes and other services when they are due. That’s the important thing about bringing your car to one place for service — we can maintain a vehicle history.”

It’s easy to make an appointment by phone or online, and with Saturday hours, after-hours drop-off and free local towing and loaner cars with major repairs, the process is truly customer-friendly. As you winterize your car and prepare for holiday travels, let Bush Gator get your car road-worthy. G