Warranty and oils...

[Brettm1388]

New member here, and I am curious about something... I've been stalking this forum for quite some time and I've seen where people say, "for warranty" you should use this kind of oil. Has anyone had their warranty voided or heard of a warranty being voided because of an oil issue? I work for a Chevy dealership and have never seen or heard of a warranty being voided because the customer was using the wrong kind of oil. I've personally had to void a warranty because the customer went 30k on his factory fill and wondered why his engine was making noises lol. I wish I could find the pics of the internals on that 3.9L.

P.S- We only carry 3 different oils for oil changes, Valvoline bulk 5w30, Premium Blue 15w40 syn blend, and Mobil 1 5w30 and we do lots of conventional oil changes.

 

[CATERHAM]

I've never heard of a warranty claim being denied because someone used a non specified quality oil but still of a suitable viscosity. Some do tend to fret unnecessarily.

 

[jmsjags]

i honestly don't think they would go through the process of testing the oil to make sure it's the right grade. but i can see them asking for receipts of when you did the oil changes to make sure you didn't run the oil too long.

 

[2cool]

WELCOME TO BITOG!!!![color:#000000][/color]. There have been some cases (VW Pump-Duse and Chrysler 2.7) which had oil and design related issues. Since the problems were widespread and hence expensive for the Mfr., the default was to affix the blame for the problem on the consumer's choice of oil. GM may have made many, many mistakes in the past, but engines weren't normally a sore spot.

 

[Garak]

Originally Posted By: Brettm1388
New member here, and I am curious about something... I've been stalking this forum for quite some time and I've seen where people say, "for warranty" you should use this kind of oil. Has anyone had their warranty voided or heard of a warranty being voided because of an oil issue?


I haven't, but I've addressed this issue before. The only time I can see a dealer worrying about oil choice (and you can check with your service department on this) is if something looked ridiculously odd when there was an engine failure. Like you said, if someone leaves the factory fill in for 30,000 miles, you're going to void their warranty. I could see the service department checking if there was, say, a massive sludge issue and the customer could provide receipts for oil changes every 3,000 miles, but using something like City Star SA.

The vast majority of oil bottles on the shelf and in service departments (like yours) is top notch stuff. A grade higher or lower isn't going to make a huge difference, generally speaking, at least for cars that don't have really fancy oil specifications. I don't think someone's going to blow their motor in their new dexos1 specified Chev by switching from dexos1 Mobil 1 5w30 to Mobil 1 10w30.

There might be more cases with the Europeans and their specifications. I wouldn't try to run conventional 5w30 for a 20,000 mile OCI in a new Benz, for example.

 

[crazyoildude]

Your warrantee could be voided if you use the wrong viscosity or an oil that is not of the proper api rating..

 

[Bill in Utah]

I've had a mfg ask for all info on oil changes incl receipts and logs. They had a book to look up the UPC codes to see if the oil I used was correct for the vehicle.

Since I did follow the manual with the correct oil and filters the issue was fixed and paid for.

Bill

 

[Brettm1388]

Speaking of the Dexos1 spec, we had our Valvoline distributor rep come by and I was told that GM is being taken to court over the Dexos stuff. He said the testing itself costs $5million and the royalties for being licensed are $.32 a quart. That adds up to alot of money especially if GM wins, and Ford, Dodge and other manufacturers follow suit for an extra income.

 

[crazyoildude]

Bill what kind of issues diid you have with your engine?

 

[NHHEMI]

Originally Posted By: Brettm1388
New member here, and I am curious about something... I've been stalking this forum for quite some time and I've seen where people say, "for warranty" you should use this kind of oil. Has anyone had their warranty voided or heard of a warranty being voided because of an oil issue? I work for a Chevy dealership and have never seen or heard of a warranty being voided because the customer was using the wrong kind of oil. I've personally had to void a warranty because the customer went 30k on his factory fill and wondered why his engine was making noises lol. I wish I could find the pics of the internals on that 3.9L.

P.S- We only carry 3 different oils for oil changes, Valvoline bulk 5w30, Premium Blue 15w40 syn blend, and Mobil 1 5w30 and we do lots of conventional oil changes.


GM spec's those 3 weights in 99.9% of their vehicles. No need for your dealer to have other weights. Most GM cars take 5W30 conventional. A few performance vehicles like the Vette take the 5W30 synthetic. The diesel trucks would take the 15W40. All 3 of the brands you mention meet the spec's GM calls for in those applications so your dealer basically has the oil change needs of the vehicles they see covered.

I worked in the auto field for a lot of years including a stint in dealer parts and service and YES I have seen 1st hand where warranty was voided due to improper maintenance that includes the wrong oil( i.e. weight and/or spec's ). It happens a lot more frequently than people think it does.

I have seen it come into play as a consumer as well and with GM to boot. My Sister bought a 2006 Impala( new ) with the 3.5L. It was a really good vehicle but it started making funky engine noises that could not be identified. Before GM would authorize a tear down they required proof of "proper OC maintenance". Once it was provided the tear down was authorized and then eventually a new engine. Had that proof of proper OC's not been available the repair would not have been done. At least not without a lengthy and costly fight.

It was easier for her to provide proof as all the work was done at the dealer vs her having it done elesewhere. When GM asked about it the service manager told them it was all done there and on time. If it hadn't been then she would have had to provide the receipts for having it done elsewhere.

There was a member on here not too long ago with a Toyota( 4Runner as I recall )who had an engine failure. Before Toyota would proceed with the repair they required proof from him that his OC's were done and with the correct parts/fluids. They wanted enough receipts and data to verify he did the 7 OC's that would be required under their maintenance schedule.

You have Bill in this thread telling you about it as well. There are a few others who have had it happen or worked at dealers who will chime in as well if they read it.

 

[Bill in Utah]

Originally Posted By: crazyoildude
Bill what kind of issues diid you have with your engine?


61k miles head gaskets started leaking. Replaced the head gaskets and rebuilt heads. 108k it happened again. At that time the MFG said too bad and would not even discuss it being less than 50k on the repair.

It did not matter since the 3rd set lasted till the transmission died around 150k and the vehicle is junked.

But the receipts and logs were for HG @ 61k. And it DID help that I followed (actually did better as far as OCI interval ) than what the manual recommended.

Bill

 

[tig1]

Originally Posted By: Bill in Utah
Originally Posted By: crazyoildude
Bill what kind of issues diid you have with your engine?


61k miles head gaskets started leaking. Replaced the head gaskets and rebuilt heads. 108k it happened again. At that time the MFG said too bad and would not even discuss it being less than 50k on the repair.

It did not matter since the 3rd set lasted till the transmission died around 150k and the vehicle is junked.

But the receipts and logs were for HG @ 61k. And it DID help that I followed (actually did better as far as OCI interval ) than what the manual recommended.

Bill


Since you had to produce receipts that showed you used the correct oil for your Taurus, would you advise against using an oil that would be a quality product but doesn't meet the correct spec? I believe some of the boutique oils may lack the correct spec's for some engines.

 

[Bill in Utah]

Originally Posted By: tig1


Since you had to produce receipts that showed you used the correct oil for your Taurus, would you advise against using an oil that would be a quality product but doesn't meet the correct spec? I believe some of the boutique oils may lack the correct spec's for some engines.


I would (and do) the following;

1. Use what they say. If they say API SM or better 5w-20 then that is what I will use. If it does not say it NEEDS x then its not going to see it.

2. If they say 5k or 6 months it WILL be changed within 5k or before 6 months. If they say follow the OLM or 1 year it will get changed before the year or after a few known cycles of the OLM (I've only had the one that the light goes on, no display) then it gets changed before that "normal" cycle while in warranty and a few miles after just in case.

3. Make sure I have copies of everything, receipts, Filter box tops with the mileage written on them.

4. Get a few UOAs to verify that all is okay. The $10 UOA that I did cost the mfg of my 61k mile vehicle about $1700 when it was all said and done.

This vehicle was a "bullet proof" engine with all sorts of good history (ie it was not a first year motor, wiz bang this or tech that. It is a low tech motor) but it still had issues.

Because I did BETTER than the manual they fixed it. That is a fact without ANY question.


Bill

 

[Silver_civic]

Let me state something, and be VERY CLEAR: my work, as a mechanic at a fleet shop, for toyota, honda, and others that state 5w20 or 0W20 we use this. Gm that says 5w30, we use that. Chryslers that state 10w30 we use this. Point is, my boss talked to all the manufacturers and was told what we will and should use to maintain our warranty on our fleet vehicles.

 

[WANG]

I'd probably feel a little compelled toward an inappropriately aggressive response if someone told me that my head leaking head gaskets would only be repaired under warranty contingent on oil change receipts. I just can't see a cause and effect there.

I record all of my maintenance and repairs in a log book, but don't typically save the receipts as they are often illegible after a while anyway. I use the recommended stuff, haven't found a reason not to. It always seemed that it would be fairly obvious if a failure to be repaired under warranty was lube related. I think that I will start scanning the receipts, and digitize my logs entirely for warranty vehicles.

 

[Bill in Utah]

Originally Posted By: WANG
I'd probably feel a little compelled toward an inappropriately aggressive response if someone told me that my head leaking head gaskets would only be repaired under warranty contingent on oil change receipts. I just can't see a cause and effect there.

I record all of my maintenance and repairs in a log book, but don't typically save the receipts as they are often illegible after a while anyway. I use the recommended stuff, haven't found a reason not to. It always seemed that it would be fairly obvious if a failure to be repaired under warranty was lube related. I think that I will start scanning the receipts, and digitize my logs entirely for warranty vehicles.



That is what I do since thermal paper receipts. (and they fade every time you look at them or 10 minutes whichever happens first

)

And the mfg stated that the warranty (ANY INTERNAL PART) is dependent on following the recommended intervals with the recommended parts that meet their requirements. If you don't change the oil on time it could case the engine to stress and overheat.

Overheating could cause head gasket issues correct?

 

[The Critic]

Originally Posted By: Silver_civic
Let me state something, and be VERY CLEAR: my work, as a mechanic at a fleet shop, for toyota, honda, and others that state 5w20 or 0W20 we use this. Gm that says 5w30, we use that. Chryslers that state 10w30 we use this. Point is, my boss talked to all the manufacturers and was told what we will and should use to maintain our warranty on our fleet vehicles.


So why do you use 5W30 dino on the VWs then?