Why I Hate Dealer Changes, How About You?

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Long story short the Malibu in my signature had the engine replaced with a used unit by extended warranty. However due to the extended warranty ending I am abiding by the warranty details from the place that provided the replacement. They are guaranteeing the unit for 1 year or 36,000 miles. The detail is it has to go to shop for oil changes every 3000 miles.

Lucky or not luckily the dealer we got her car at offers free changes every 5000 miles for this car for life, and agreed to do them at 3000 mi for the duration of the clause. Thus its bulk dino, and AC Delco cartridge filter. I was doing them with PP and a K&N or M1 cartridge every 7000 or so before. The motor was replaced due to a distorted exhaust valve seat, causing loss of compression.


I hate dealer changes, this is why.

- The dealer doesn't take appointments after 3:30 Mon - Fri. Period. I have to leave work early to get this car in.

- It takes an hour, half of it is the car sitting in the lot waiting to come in. They have a camera view of the garage, there isn't anything going on the last three times I've been. The car is top cartridge filter, 2.4 Ecotec.

- Oily handprints, on the hood, the pillars, and the dash. This is just the last time.

- They don't use the paper floor mats like every other dealer. Minor, but these techs seem to work very dirty.

I know I can talk to the service advisor and all that, but I really just need to get through a year, after that I'll do them again. Plus I don't need some tech doing any funny business. I could go to another shop, but I hate the idea of paying for oil changes that I don't think the motor needs. Her current driving has her driving 3000 miles in six to seven weeks. It's all highway too. I do however like since they did the work, and have records if anything happens it should help with any claim.

I guess I don't have much to say, except this is why I like changing my own oil. Then if I take an hour I probably cleaned the engine bay and had a beer.

Thanks for reading my whining. How has your dealer experiences been for oil service? Do you use it or no way?
 
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My local Honda dealer offers some kind of "multi point inspection" free with every oil change. I guess it's supposed to generate more $$$ for them as they recommend more work. Back when I used to take my car to the dealer for oil changes, I was completely clueless and actually relied on this inspection as an indication of what I needed to do for the car.

So I bought a used car back in 2012 and first thing I did is took it to the dealer for fresh oil and a multi-point inspection. Everything was just checked off on the list as being fine,including air filter. A few days later I went to look at the air filter out of curiosity and found the air filter housing completely packed full of leaves, grit, dust, sand, what have you. Even I knowing nothing about cars knew this was wrong. (Yes, I should have checked it before I bought it I know)

So I was disappointed. I realized at that point I couldn't really rely on them to give me honest opinions of the shape of my car -- either way, good or bad. That's when I started doing my own changes which led to lots of other work as well.
 
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- Oily handprints, on the hood, the pillars, and the dash. This is just the last time.

- They don't use the paper floor mats like every other dealer. Minor, but these techs seem to work very dirty.


This is my biggest complaint about dealers--you spend all this money, then you have to go home and SCRUB everything. Can't they clean their hands and use floor and seat protectors?
 
I've gone to a dealer quick lube for maintenance and besides that they always put 5W-20 in the Elantra in my signature, which allows for it in cold weather but recommends a xW-30 or 10W-40. I never had an issue with the engine doing that though.

The Sentra goes in for an oil change Thursday since it was included in the purchase. After that, I may have them touch it if I can bring in my own oil just for record-keeping.
 
what year and how many miles on the original engine and why was it replaced with a "used engine"??
Most dealers replace engines with a crate motor.

Car dealers are hit and miss at best but most hire minimum wage people to do the oil changes. And who knows what oil they are really using and if they even changed the filter.

There are some States that have to list the engine oil by name on the customers receipt at least then you may stand a chance because anyone at anytime can send an oil sample to blackstone or another lab and that could be a consumer fraud issue.
 
Originally Posted By: PolarisX
How has your dealer experiences been for oil service?


I'd have to be completely paralyzed before I'd taker my car somewhere for an oil change.

I frown on people who hire their oil changed. I look down my nose at them!

GettyImages-494750710_16x9_992.jpg
 
"Oily handprints, on the hood, the pillars, and the dash. This is just the last time." Same here, also had oily handprint on the seat. That was on my 2014 RAM 1500. The mechanics in back are the only ones who will touch my new Challenger for anything now, including free oil changes.
 
Been changing my own for 55 years. Will continue down that same road.
 
When I take my cars in for service, the get left with plastic or blankets on the driver's seat, extra floor mats too. Why risk it? Can't do much about the hood though.
 
The last time I was at the dealership for an oil change, they wanted to change my fuel filter(I'd done it myself and advised as such, but they kept insisting on it) and to "clean the carbon out of the throttle body and cylinder head." The latter was a $100 service.

I sometimes worry about carbon build up in the heads in my old MGB tractor engine, especially at times like today when I shut it off after getting home from work and it dieseled for about 10 seconds. I think that one was probably from crawling through traffiic with hot ambient temperatures in the last several miles before I got home-a perfect recipe for rich running and lots of extra carbon in a carbureted engine. I may try a water clean on it, or else just pull the head(a simple enough job on this engine) and clean it that way. I'm not aware of carbon being a problem in modern fuel injection engines where everything is working as it should. As for the throttle body-it was a bit dirty, but mostly with what looked like stuff that had come past the air filter. It's an electronic throttle body that doesn't like to be forced open, so I just asked my dad to work the pedal while I used carburetor cleaner and a rag to wipe the [censored] off the butterfly and the area around it. It takes me about 5 minutes(15 minutes counting all the time to get the air box out of the way so that I can pull the intake off the throttle body) and is good as new.
 
Stealership scum do not touch my car.

It's really sad; we have a GM dealer about a mile from the house, I wouldn't let them tune up a lawn mower. We USED to have our vehicles serviced there, it was so convenient, because I travel quite a bit for my job, but it's just not worth the hassle.

EVERY time my wife would take a vehicle in for routine service like an oil change, the stealership would do some "free inspections" and she would come home with a 4-6 page print out of "recommended" work or even "critical" work. They would say the coolant needs flushed, the brake fluid needs changed, the brake pads have "4 mm wear left", etc. I would look over the list from the dealer, freak out, jack the car up, look at the brakes....and they have over 50% wear left, the taper isn't even worn from the pads. They told us we need the coolant flushed out, and we have a receipt FROM THEM that it was done about 4 months ago. The serpentine belt needs replaced, and THEY did it less than a year ago.

The straw that broke the camel's back so to speak was when I was on out of town business and my wife took her car in for a burned out tail light. This was AFTER having spent several thousand dollars that YEAR...They replaced a tail light and charged my wife $40.96. They got their $40 and lost a customer. That was many years ago.

I maintain my own Excel spreadsheet and I can take care of my cars far better than people who view me simply for my cash. And they have demonstrated their carelessness and outright lies on too many occasions to call themselves professional. They are scum and my rant is done.
 
I do my own but luckily know a great guy at my Toyota dealer
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if anything complex and beyond scope, i trust them. Also know a great indy mechanic too for big jobs since dealer is too expensive.
 
Talk to the service writer about the dirty shop.

Explain that you spent $$ after your last trip there to clean up the car.

Next time you go there, it might be better.
 
Originally Posted By: Ihatetochangeoil
Stealership scum do not touch my car.

It's really sad; we have a GM dealer about a mile from the house, I wouldn't let them tune up a lawn mower. We USED to have our vehicles serviced there, it was so convenient, because I travel quite a bit for my job, but it's just not worth the hassle.

EVERY time my wife would take a vehicle in for routine service like an oil change, the stealership would do some "free inspections" and she would come home with a 4-6 page print out of "recommended" work or even "critical" work. They would say the coolant needs flushed, the brake fluid needs changed, the brake pads have "4 mm wear left", etc. I would look over the list from the dealer, freak out, jack the car up, look at the brakes....and they have over 50% wear left, the taper isn't even worn from the pads. They told us we need the coolant flushed out, and we have a receipt FROM THEM that it was done about 4 months ago. The serpentine belt needs replaced, and THEY did it less than a year ago.

The straw that broke the camel's back so to speak was when I was on out of town business and my wife took her car in for a burned out tail light. This was AFTER having spent several thousand dollars that YEAR...They replaced a tail light and charged my wife $40.96. They got their $40 and lost a customer. That was many years ago.

I maintain my own Excel spreadsheet and I can take care of my cars far better than people who view me simply for my cash. And they have demonstrated their carelessness and outright lies on too many occasions to call themselves professional. They are scum and my rant is done.


If it's so convenient, so just let them change the oil, and don't let them inspect your car.
 
Even a poorly build engine will last 1 year...pretty [censored] warranty. How far you going to drive it in that time anyway? Change it yourself and skip the frustration would be my advice.
 
I don't feel that way at all. I think that the Ford Quicklane service is good enough that it's a selling point for Ford.

I drove the oil to 8,300 miles when the oil life monitor went off and UOAd. Everything was fine and I could have taken it to 10,000 miles if I wanted to. Motorcraft oil is first class, and I get to see the work being done.

I never get the hard sell, and the people in front of me are often driving remarkably well-preserved Fords and older Japanese cars whose owners know a bargain when they see it. (Motorcraft oil is close to Honda factory spec).

For $40 it's a bargain. I'm sure that they make money on it, but not much. I figure that they want their trade-in to be maintained and to give people a reason to drop by the dealer once a year.

PS. They rotate the tires, too.
 
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I love free oil changes at dealer or anywhere.

I had 2-3 free oil changes with 1994 LS400 more than 20 years ago, it went smoothly without problems. Lexus dealer service was the best in the 90's.

I had 4 free oil changes and some other maintenance items when I bought my 2000 E430 , I used all of them without any problem. The car was much cleaner after the service.

I had 3 free oil changes for my 2004 S2000, the last oil change was performed by a tech who owned a 2002 S2000. I was in the service with him all the time he worked on my car, we talked about the S2000 meets and things. He did the work more careful than myself.

Summary: I had good experiences with my local dealers
 
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