Dealer Idiocy

[Keto]

A buddy of mine has a 2006 Honda Civic, which he's been using Amsoil 0w20 in. He just did his last change a week ago, but only had 3.5qts left (4.5 needed for a oil/filter change). The only other oil he had on hand was a quart of Pennzoil Platinum in 5w20, so he dumped it in with the Amsoil.

He took the car into the dealer for an unrelated issue, and in talking to the Service Advisor, the oil change came up...

Long story short, the SA told him he shouldnt leave that mix in there, it was a "bad idea" because theyre "two totally different oils", and offered to do a oil/filter change for him. He declined due to the fishy smell. Of course he called me and asked if I ever heard of such a problem with Pennzoil Platinum or Amsoil or the slight variation of weights.

Of course, I told him the SA was blowing smoke up his ***. A quart of Pennzoil Platinum will work just fine with Amsoil.

It never ceases to amaze me that dealers will go to such lengths just to get that $24.95 for an oil change.

 

[The_Jeff]

Back in the day "additive clash" was a topic... not a hot topic, but a topic.

Naturally the dealer wouldn't be able to explain the 1/2 quart of syn mix left in various crevices during his bulk change.

 

[charbaby]

In my youth, I mixed oils that you wouldn't beleive.
I've mixed 5 different brands(each one being a different grade).
I was just happy that I was able to change my oil.
Today, I still mix oils. When I discovered BITOG and the "Product Rebates, Sales and Promotions" section, I bought up as much sale, closeout syn and conventional oil that I could find due to the information that was posted there. Most of the conventional oils cost around .49 cents and the syn oils were around a dollar. Although Im not killing myself to find oil, Im still looking for the oil deals as to keep my stash plentiful and periodicly fine a few straggler qts of oil for a buck(Syn, synblend, MaxLife etc). Today my mixing consists of 2/3 qts of syn with the remainder of conventional(5w/10w-30 for summer & 5/20-5/30 for winter). This is just something that I've always done. I'll possibly try to stay with the same oil company ie; PP/PYB but, it doesn't always workout that way.

 

[Cutehumor]

mixing is a fact of life. the 1/2 qt of conventional oil left in the oil galleys mix very well with your amsoil.

 

[sciphi]

Wow. Amazing how much ignorance is willfully propagated.

Hmm, dealer slop or good-quality synthetic. Tough call.

 

[rg200amp]

You can run it out for a regular OCI. That dealer probally wanted to up sell him for anything.

 

[Reginald]

The dealer where we bought our vehicles urged me to pay them $75 to "clean and adjust" the rear brakes on a pickup that had about 7,000 miles on the odometer.

In response to a question about gear oil, a parts guy at the same dealership recommended a synthetic, GL-5, 85w140 lubricant plus a limited-slip additive for the five-speed gearbox (the factory specs 75w90, GL-4 or GL-5; I ended up buying some MT-90 from a speed shop). Then he suggested that I let them "flush" the differential of my truck for a mere $90. When I asked exactly what this flushing consisted of, the parts guy became very vague. Apparently, they have magic goo--Pixie Dust in liquid form--specifically for cleaning everything inside a differential. I declined.

To be fair, the same place has given me good advice a couple of times. But dealing with them is like rolling dice. One guy will tell me how to save a few bucks or how to do something myself. The next guy insists on replacing every moving part in a vehicle when all the customer wants is a light bulb.

 

[XS650]

Originally Posted By: Reginald

To be fair, the same place has given me good advice a couple of times. But dealing with them is like rolling dice. One guy will tell me how to save a few bucks or how to do something myself. The next guy insists on replacing every moving part in a vehicle when all the customer wants is a light bulb.


Even the Mafia can be nice guys occasionally.

 

[caddis]

Stealerships,you gotta love'em. I recently had my vehicle in for a recall that needed replacement. Out of there good heart and concern for my safety, they did a complimentary check up and let me know that my Lexus w/160k miles needed new shocks as they factory OEM originals were shot and leaking.

I thanked them for there concern, but indicated I was comfortable with the 4 new KYB(factory OEMs) that I personally installed just 3 weeks earlier. They were covered with mud and salt from that recent storm, but I told them they still seemed satisfactory to me.

 

[demarpaint]

Wow they must really think people are stupid! I had a van in for service once and they offered me a tire rotation for $8 IIRC. For $8, why not? You know they're going to try and sell a brake job, but this van only had 6000 miles on it. The tires were marked on the insides, so I knew if they were rotated or not. I ended up picking the van up at night, so I checked to see if they were rotated the following morning. They weren't, so I called and informed the service manager that his man must have forgotten to rotate the tires (benefit of the doubt). He insisted they were done, when I told him the tires were marked and were not rotated, he was [censored]! He said come in and I will rotate them, I asked for a refund. That little stunt cost them the sale of another van a few months later.

Frank D

 

[Steve S]

Originally Posted By: eljefino
Back in the day "additive clash" was a topic... not a hot topic, but a topic.

Naturally the dealer wouldn't be able to explain the 1/2 quart of syn mix left in various crevices during his bulk change.
Clash could have been a topic but it never was a problem.

 

[Pablo]

Originally Posted By: demarpaint
Wow they must really think people are stupid!


Most people think it's not possible to mix oils. IMHO.

 

[Nyquist]

Originally Posted By: Keto
It never ceases to amaze me that dealers will go to such lengths just to get that $24.95 for an oil change.


Only $24.95 for a basic conventional oil change!? It's $35 in my neck of the woods at most places. The cheaper others leave greasy footprints in the car and lots of smudges on the fenders. I've also caught one who didn't change the filter.

 

[demarpaint]

Originally Posted By: Pablo
Originally Posted By: demarpaint
Wow they must really think people are stupid!


Most people think it's not possible to mix oils. IMHO.


The sad reality is there are a lot of people who would die if they had to think about breathing, let alone thinking about adding or mixing oil. These are the dealers delights.

Frank D