What's wrong with the dealers ?
- Thread starter Crazy Canuck
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I change my own oil, but we have a pretty good GM dealer in town that uses Penzoil and AC filters for $19.95 (pretty reasonable). The Ford dealer we have is terrible and I have no idea what they use because I refuse to darken the door at that place.
I guess I'm lucky so far. The Ford dealer has done really decent oil changes so far for my 3 vehicles. They take it in within 20 minutes of me getting there, a 12 mile drive. So the oil is hot. I can watch what they are doing and they use Motorcraft filters and oil. I checked. I even bring my own oil for the wifes truck and they give me back the empties. For $22 for them to do it versus $16 if I buy the oil and filter at Walmart, assuming they even have it when I need it, it's a bargain. Plus if I need an oil sample taken they do it properly. I include the instructions and a $5 tip
. For 35 years I changed my own oil, but it's no fun any more. Especially with today's vehicles. Everything is buried and tough to get to
. Of course after writing this I'll probably get sc****d the next time
.
Whimsey
Whimsey
I did it once.
They crossthreaded the oil plug. Then to get it to stop leaking they found a bolt, cut it off, and put it in there.
Later I went to change the oil and couldn't figure out why #1 the plug was torqued in there so hard #2 why i couldn't get it out.
To top it all off they refused to fix it for free. So I ended up having to pay for a new pan (them putting in a heli coil didn't work).
They crossthreaded the oil plug. Then to get it to stop leaking they found a bolt, cut it off, and put it in there.
Later I went to change the oil and couldn't figure out why #1 the plug was torqued in there so hard #2 why i couldn't get it out.
To top it all off they refused to fix it for free. So I ended up having to pay for a new pan (them putting in a heli coil didn't work).
Fellas I used to think that the dealer was over-priced but had the best knowledge etc. NO MORE!!!!! I have a 94 Nissan pickup V-6 4x4. They were going through it after I bought to make sure everything was up to par. Well you would think that a freaking Nissan dealer would know that this engine takes 4 quarts of oil. NOPE they put in 5. Now that happened in a Jeep GC i owned once (dealer again, go figure) and it blew the rear main seal out. Man, it bites when you cant even trust the people that sell and supposedly are experts with your vehicle. By the way, local quick change oil place is great. 1st class service, no pushy sales, guys do great work. Wish all were this way.
I have never had any terrible experience with any shops, and used to take my cars to the cheapest quick-lube places I could find, after asking for references.
I would also go for months without checking anything in the car, not oil, not coolant, not tranny.
Then I got serious about repairs. Got Chilton's and Haynes, and then FSM, and lots of tools. Change my own oil on 4 vehicles. Get the best oil I can find, the best filter. It about having the mindset of "I take care of my vehicle".
I would also go for months without checking anything in the car, not oil, not coolant, not tranny.
Then I got serious about repairs. Got Chilton's and Haynes, and then FSM, and lots of tools. Change my own oil on 4 vehicles. Get the best oil I can find, the best filter. It about having the mindset of "I take care of my vehicle".
In addition to the nightmares described earlier, I’ve heard that some of these lifetime oil changes are nothing more than recycled oil. Wish I could verify this but at least I’d keep an eye on the el chep-o oil changes to make sure you’re getting what you expect.
Not a dealer experience but - I watched a mouth breather at JL install bulk 10W-30 in my 97 powerstroke once. Didn’t say a word. Then I made them drain it all and install 15W-40. The manager and I got in a heated argument after he tried to send me on my way with 2 quarts of 10W-30 in the oil filter. They came around after I threatened to leave my 19.5-foot truck in their service bay all day. Two quarts of 10W-30 may not have hurt anything but after they refused to change out the filter, I wasn’t going to back down.
Needless to say, been changing my oil ever since and enjoying every minute.
Not a dealer experience but - I watched a mouth breather at JL install bulk 10W-30 in my 97 powerstroke once. Didn’t say a word. Then I made them drain it all and install 15W-40. The manager and I got in a heated argument after he tried to send me on my way with 2 quarts of 10W-30 in the oil filter. They came around after I threatened to leave my 19.5-foot truck in their service bay all day. Two quarts of 10W-30 may not have hurt anything but after they refused to change out the filter, I wasn’t going to back down.
Needless to say, been changing my oil ever since and enjoying every minute.
For the same money, if I change the oil by myslef I can use synthetic. If the dealer changes the oil I pay the same money but get Castrol GTX. Nufff said.
edit: I forgot to add that 9 out of 10 times the dealer overfills the engine with oil. I guess you can have too much of a good thing.
[ March 11, 2004, 01:46 AM: Message edited by: TheNauseator ]
Many of the new car dealerships in my area offer free oil changes every 3Kmi
for as long as you own the vehicle. There car prices are competitive with everybody else as well
. You make an appointment & they do it while you wait. They use bulk oil, but OEM filters. It's pretty smart marketing on there part because they pressure owners into other services once the vehicle enters the service bay. You are under no obligation to have anything else done, but many people must fall prey to the pressure! If you are not into changing your own oil, dealer oil changes cant be any worse than going anywhere else!
G/luck
Joel
G/luck
Joel
Yeah Johnny, I think the lack of something useful to do is getting some here in trouble.
Side note, on Pittsburgh politics, I recently finished reading a history of Pennsylvania. Are you old enough to get a laugh out of the praise for David Lawrence author had? (Mayor of Pittsburgh and governor in the 60's or some time.)
Side note, on Pittsburgh politics, I recently finished reading a history of Pennsylvania. Are you old enough to get a laugh out of the praise for David Lawrence author had? (Mayor of Pittsburgh and governor in the 60's or some time.)
Call SELLING dealer about my Diesel Dodge.
What engine? Diesel, We dont work on those, We dont even sell them!
Had a recall issue on a Camry.Service writer calls and tells me I need tires now.I got at least 2 years on them before replacement.
That was enough to scare me away.
What engine? Diesel, We dont work on those, We dont even sell them!
Had a recall issue on a Camry.Service writer calls and tells me I need tires now.I got at least 2 years on them before replacement.
That was enough to scare me away.
Many Reasons why you should change the oil/filter yourself.
1. Its Cheaper if you buy your own oil and filter.
2. If the oil filter is too tight, they won't change it.
3. Stripped oil pan threads.
4. The morons overfill with too much oil.
5. If they do change the filter, its not properly tightened and start leaking.
6. You know the job will get done correctly if you do it yourself.
7. They really don't care if you car gets screwed up, you have to prove they are at fault.
1. Its Cheaper if you buy your own oil and filter.
2. If the oil filter is too tight, they won't change it.
3. Stripped oil pan threads.
4. The morons overfill with too much oil.
5. If they do change the filter, its not properly tightened and start leaking.
6. You know the job will get done correctly if you do it yourself.
7. They really don't care if you car gets screwed up, you have to prove they are at fault.
I was at the dealership today because of a recall issue. I talked with one of the "service advisors"
a.k.a. auto technicians and he said that on an average day they service about 90-100 cars. The dealer has 6 service bays. I can only imagine what my warranty/recall repair looked like.....
It also pays to shop around for dealers much like you would a doctor.
The first thing I usually do is ask everyone I know where they take their cars. Local car clubs are great for this. They'll quickly eliminate about 75% of the dealers in the state in just a few minutes of talking.
Jump on forums and ask about the remaining few, then when you have a change, go and check them out. Of careful consideration is the proximity of the lifts to each other. In certain high priced real estate area's, service bays usually don't have enough space for someone to walk in between two car's on lifts. This is where alot of those "tiny scratches" come from. Those are also the dealerships where tool dings (from dropped tools) are the most common.
Second check out their parts department...see if they can identify your car and some relatively simple aspects of it. (Like oil filter and oil).
Talk to the service manager if you can find them, talk about modifications, etc etc.
This does take a long time to do, but if done correctly can save you alot of grief in the long run.
The first thing I usually do is ask everyone I know where they take their cars. Local car clubs are great for this. They'll quickly eliminate about 75% of the dealers in the state in just a few minutes of talking.
Jump on forums and ask about the remaining few, then when you have a change, go and check them out. Of careful consideration is the proximity of the lifts to each other. In certain high priced real estate area's, service bays usually don't have enough space for someone to walk in between two car's on lifts. This is where alot of those "tiny scratches" come from. Those are also the dealerships where tool dings (from dropped tools) are the most common.
Second check out their parts department...see if they can identify your car and some relatively simple aspects of it. (Like oil filter and oil).
Talk to the service manager if you can find them, talk about modifications, etc etc.
This does take a long time to do, but if done correctly can save you alot of grief in the long run.
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