oil change at the dealership

Yes, I don't trust dealerships. On a used vehicle I bought, the carfax I ordered listed a dealership did the 30,000 mile service on a traded in vehicle right before putting it up for sale. It listed things like replace battery, do valve adjustment, do transmission fluid drain/fill, do oil / filter change, change brake fluid, change power steering fluid.
I thought to myself, what dealership would have wasted all this money on service right before putting a traded in vehicle up for sale.
Could this be a lie, and probably they never did any of it.

I prefer to deal with a true blue trusted local independent mechanic who I've know for many years and who doesn't even charge me for small repairs out of how honest and how much integrity he has. I don't think any dealership can be trusted for even an oil change, and I feel sorry for those people owning a relatively new car who go to dealerships only to get a $700+ repair bill every time.

It's better to buy the OEM parts from the cheapest online dealership parts department you can find (even if it's located in another state), and have them ship you the parts (at prices close to wholesale), and have your local mechanic who only charges $80 an hour labor do the install and ask for the old parts to be put in a box and given to you. This way your can be sure the work was done, and you wallet is a lot heavier with cash by using this strategy.
Agree Bill, but sometimes folks do not have access to a trusted local independent shop. I thought I did at one time until there were too many mistakes made, just to get the cars done. He was not interested in doing the small oil changes either, not enough money for him.
So what's a gal to do? And I did know him for many years. But when I have an oil puddle on my garage floor after his service and I go back to him with his "sorry my other mechanic did not tighten the bolt correctly" THAT was enough for me,...no attention to the smallest detail. It's a good thing I wasn't on a long trip on a highway! I could go on and on...
Needless to say there are good and bad with independents and dealerships as well....
 
Agree Bill, but sometimes folks do not have access to a trusted local independent shop. I thought I did at one time until there were too many mistakes made, just to get the cars done. He was not interested in doing the small oil changes either, not enough money for him.
So what's a gal to do? And I did know him for many years. But when I have an oil puddle on my garage floor after his service and I go back to him with his "sorry my other mechanic did not tighten the bolt correctly" THAT was enough for me,...no attention to the smallest detail. It's a good thing I wasn't on a long trip on a highway! I could go on and on...
Needless to say there are good and bad with independents and dealerships as well....
Nice post rcs. I believe in every town there exists that perfect honest meticulous local mechanic who fixes things at reasonable prices, and perhaps 5 others who are decent but expensive and not optimal. Seems like you found one that is decent but not optimal.
The way I like to find that perfect good local mechanic is to ask around. Ask cashiere's in local stores, ask friends, family, etc.

I ask my question to them as follows: I'm looking for a good honest local mechanic who does repairs at reasonable prices.
Then I'll try the mechanic out and see.

A big thing for me is finding a mechanic who will let me supply my own OEM parts which I buy from the lowest online dealership parts department at near wholesale prices and have them shipped to me (sometimes from a different state).
Many mechanics like to use the cheapest aftermarket parts they can get from a parts supplier and mark them up 100% on the bill.
It maximizes the mechanic's profit, but you end up with parts which last a year or two instead of at least a decade for OEM parts.
 
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I’ve gotten quite a few satisfactory oil changes at my preferred VW dealer, which I was doing for warranty protection as much as anything. Now with the Mustang definitely not keen on this dealership using synthetic blend in a turbo.

Thinking of using VIOC instead. Anybody know if they report to Carfax reliably?
I doubt they would. They forced FS on my free oil changes for my Cmax hybrid in the day when SS would have been fine.
Was on my receipt as well.
 
Nice post rcs. I believe in every town there exists that perfect honest meticulous local mechanic who fixes things at reasonable prices, and perhaps 5 others who are decent but expensive and not optimal. Seems like you found one that is decent but not optimal.
The way I like to find that perfect good local mechanic is to ask around. Ask cashiere's in local stores, ask friends, family, etc.

I ask my question to them as follows: I'm looking for a good honest local mechanic who does repairs at reasonable prices.
Then I'll try the mechanic out and see.

A big thing for me is finding a mechanic who will let me supply my own OEM parts which I buy from the lowest online dealership parts department at near wholesale prices and have them shipped to me (sometimes from a different state).
Many mechanics like to use the cheapest aftermarket parts they can get from a parts supplier and mark them up 100% on the bill.
It maximizes the mechanic's profit, but you end up with parts which last a year or two instead of at least a decade for OEM parts.
Totally agree Bill! The local guy would not let me see the invoice from the company he received the parts from, that in itself made nervous and not like his business tactics. I get it, there is going to be a markup for them to make money, but why be so sheepish about it.
 
Tips cannot be counted on. That's the issue with deciding what a "fair wage" for servers. How much is somebody worth who is bringing your food? Think about that for a moment....When we reach a time when "TIP" is automatically added to your bill, then you have a point. Many on this forum are unbelievable cheap.

How many times does this actually happen (warranty work not done)-is that your view or do you have statistics to back it up?

Not to mention most servers are making $2/hr. If you can't afford to leave a 20% tip when dining out, stay home and cook.
 
Kendall , Phillips 66 and Motorcraft have a semi-synthetic 0w-20 . All are related . Been out on the market for long period of time .
The Motorcraft 0W20 blend is no longer available. It is full synthetic only. They changed our bulk over a year or so ago. I still have some quart bottles in NOS, but they cost more than the bulk full synthetic.
 
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Totally agree Bill! The local guy would not let me see the invoice from the company he received the parts from, that in itself made nervous and not like his business tactics. I get it, there is going to be a markup for them to make money, but why be so sheepish about it.
I used to think paying mechanics a labor charge was enough. But the mechanics got smart, and think it's ok to markup the cheapest aftermarket parts they can find 100% to add to their profit. Most mechanics are doing that now.
But I only go to mechanic(s) that allow me to bring my own close to wholesale priced OEM parts.
I want the parts to last a decade (not a year or two with their cheap aftermarket garbage parts).
I have four vehicles, so I use that as leverage to convince the mechanic to let me bring my own parts (as I tell them I will give them a lot of business with 4 vehicles).
 
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I used to think paying mechanics a labor charge was enough. But the mechanics got smart, and think it's ok to markup the cheapest aftermarket parts they can find 100% to add to their profit. Most mechanics are doing that now.
But I only go to mechanic(s) that allow me to bring my own close to wholesale priced OEM parts.
I want the parts to last a decade (not a year or two with their cheap aftermarket garbage parts).
I have four vehicles, so I use that as leverage to convince the mechanic to let me bring my own parts (as I tell them I will give them a lot of business with 4 vehicles).
Here in Utah-you bring your own parts-they won't offer any guarantee. It's pretty much standard language.
 
I doubt they would. They forced FS on my free oil changes for my Cmax hybrid in the day when SS would have been fine.
Was on my receipt as well.
I use VIOC all the time. They report to car fax every time. I use it to keep track of oil changes on our Tucson's warranty.

It takes about six weeks for it to appear on a report.

I use Walmart sometimes and they report to carfax as well.
 
Here in Utah-you bring your own parts-they won't offer any guarantee. It's pretty much standard language.
Agree,..same thing here in Michigan, no warranty or guarantee
 
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I think I’ve read here that a semi-synthetic 0W-20 would have to be a minimum of 70% synthetic base oil to meet modern specs; so even a ‘semi-synthetic’ 0W-20 is closer to a full-synthetic oil than anything else.
 
Nice post rcs. I believe in every town there exists that perfect honest meticulous local mechanic who fixes things at reasonable prices, and perhaps 5 others who are decent but expensive and not optimal. Seems like you found one that is decent but not optimal.
The way I like to find that perfect good local mechanic is to ask around. Ask cashiere's in local stores, ask friends, family, etc.

I ask my question to them as follows: I'm looking for a good honest local mechanic who does repairs at reasonable prices.
Then I'll try the mechanic out and see.

A big thing for me is finding a mechanic who will let me supply my own OEM parts which I buy from the lowest online dealership parts department at near wholesale prices and have them shipped to me (sometimes from a different state).
Many mechanics like to use the cheapest aftermarket parts they can get from a parts supplier and mark them up 100% on the bill.
It maximizes the mechanic's profit, but you end up with parts which last a year or two instead of at least a decade for OEM parts.
You can ask them where they get their parts and the brand. Most people are not concerned about this. BTW-I am not convinced of the accuracy of this statement. I don't think they have the time quite frankly to have customers coming back upset because their part failed. Most mechanics these days are out three months or more-believe me they have PLENTY OF WORK.
 
You can ask them where they get their parts and the brand. Most people are not concerned about this. BTW-I am not convinced of the accuracy of this statement. I don't think they have the time quite frankly to have customers coming back upset because their part failed. Most mechanics these days are out three months or more-believe me they have PLENTY OF WORK.

Correct. The vast majority of shops want to use the best parts they can source. Nobody likes unhappy customers and doing things twice. Dealing with parts warranty on the back end is a nightmare as well.
 
I used to think paying mechanics a labor charge was enough. But the mechanics got smart, and think it's ok to markup the cheapest aftermarket parts they can find 100% to add to their profit. Most mechanics are doing that now.
But I only go to mechanic(s) that allow me to bring my own close to wholesale priced OEM parts.
I want the parts to last a decade (not a year or two with their cheap aftermarket garbage parts).
I have four vehicles, so I use that as leverage to convince the mechanic to let me bring my own parts (as I tell them I will give them a lot of business with 4 vehicles).
I do all of my own maintenance and repairs so this business about buying your own parts and then having someone else make the repairs confuses me a bit.
Do you take the car in for repairs, have the mechanic diagnose the problem and then call you to order the correct parts? Do you then take the parts to the mechanic when you get them?
I find that I often need additional parts when I get into a job. Does the mechanic call you to get them too? Does the mechanic charge extra for dealing with a middle man (you) and the delays causing the car to sit in his shop? What if a part fails prematurely? I guess you would be responsible to take it off and send it back and then pay again to have it installed correct?
 
I do all of my own maintenance and repairs so this business about buying your own parts and then having someone else make the repairs confuses me a bit.
Do you take the car in for repairs, have the mechanic diagnose the problem and then call you to order the correct parts? Do you then take the parts to the mechanic when you get them?
I find that I often need additional parts when I get into a job. Does the mechanic call you to get them too? Does the mechanic charge extra for dealing with a middle man (you) and the delays causing the car to sit in his shop? What if a part fails prematurely? I guess you would be responsible to take it off and send it back and then pay again to have it installed correct?
Hi blkwtr, it's actually quite simple. My local honest trusted mechanic doesn't charge me for diagnosis. He tell's me what is wrong, and what parts to get, and he trusts that I'll come back in about a week to get the work done once the genuine Honda parts arrive that I order at close to wholesale prices. It's worth it to me because I don't want a car full of cheap aftermarket parts with limited longevity.
 
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