wife p. o.'d me

Pennzoil motor oil
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urrlord

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central ga
this morning as my wife was getting ready to leave for work she mentioned that yesterday she had wal-mart change the oil in her mazda tribute.
now this really annoyed me as back in the spring i had done a Semi Synthetic o/c where i had to fight with the oil filter due to poor placement/design that made it almost impossible to get a filter wrench on.now the oil probably had another good 2500 miles on it.
her reason for the oil change was---as she was out shopping the brake warning light came on.so she asked them to check the brake fluid and do an oil change "since it was only 30 dollars".
well SWMBO came in from work today and told me the brake light had came on again and wanted me to check it and show her where to check it.as i was doing this she told me the rest of the story.when the Walmart tech pulled the vehicle into the service bay he told her there was no brake light on.she thought he checked it anyway.
he did not bother to check it .this was evident since the master cylinder was only a quarter full.
so now i'm ill about her getting the over priced o/c in the first place esp. after reading the service ticket and finding they used castrol 5w30 bulk.this engine is spec'd for 5 w 20.which fact is prominently displayed on the oil cap.i know there is not a huge difference.i'm just not a big castrol fan and i'm not a big w-m fan either.
i'm ill about the tech not checking the brake fluid and as i looked over the service ticked they claimed they vacuumed the car(the wife did that that morning)checked the air filter,which i doubt because it is a pain to access and it is right near the master cylinder which he obviously did not check.and a host of meaningless other checks.
so right now i am contemplating going up to W-M tomorrow and opening a portal to hades back in the automotive dept.since they sent my wife back on the road without doing as she had requested,in a possibly unsafe vehicle.
 
That's irritating.

If you're in warranty they may have jeopardized your warranty - or so I'd tell them when I went back in.

I'd either ask for my money back or insist on an oil change with the 5w-20.
 
yep, that's why I have a private subie mechanic whom I get to watch perform all service. Gives me peace of mind, and for less than the dealer.

Gotta ask yourself if it's worth your effort to start WWIII... I used to before I set the law down in our house with regards to who manages the service of vehicles. That would be me. So there's no trigger event for me to blast off anymore
wink.gif
 
Id bring it back, have them put the correct oil in (there IS a big difference between 5w20 and 5w30) and admonish them for the brake check as it is a big safety issue. At my walmart they take oil right off the shelves for sevice - when I'm there reading oil can lables the service woman is alway picking up an arm full of oil. We are right next to 3 race tracks so there are a lot of motorheads around.
 
Don`t be too hard on her. She thought she was doing a good thing :^) I`d give her an A+ for effort.
 
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What year is the Tribute? I didn't know of any of the years the filter being hard to get to. 5w30 won't hurt it just the gas mileage. I wouldn't get mad about it just tell her to tell you first before taking it anywhere.
 
Sounds like the cats at your local wal mart are Iffy Lube rejects. The tech couldnt even figure to check the brake fluid? And then taking credit for your wife's vacuum cleaning, that's just low. You should get them to replace the oil with synthetic of your choice, just simply on the basis of them installing the wrong product.
 
Yup. If you want something other than 5w30 or 10W30, you have to ask to make sure you get it. Actually they were trying to change that at my old store, the greeter is supposed to ask you to pop your hood, and check the oil level right there. Also see if it has a grade on the oil cap, then recommend that grade to the customer. Once it gets inside the last thing they generally want to do is delay everything to make sure that is what the customer wants unless its obviously wrong.
Yes, Im serious about the brake and coolant not being checked. No I do not know why. But in general anything that nets them too many claims is not done.
 
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Well...the way I see it is this; Don't get upset when the spouse gets an oil change even if they use the wrong viscosity. Be thankful that she had the mental presence to get the oil changed as many females don't know to do it at all.

So go back and apologize to her if you reacted angrily.

As for Wm...I would go back and ask for a refund or the correct viscosity oil. When you find the auto manager first ask him what viscosity oil your engine gets...see if he knows any better.

You might consider educating her on oil viscosities on a Saturday morningso she knows the difference. With all of my vehicles I write the oil capacity and viscosity on the engine cover with a silver sharpie so even the dumbest idiot can see what the engine takes and how much.
 
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Originally Posted By: Max_Wander
Originally Posted By: Onmo'Eegusee
WalMart policy is not to check brake fluid or coolant.


Seriously?? You may be sarcastic, but I would readily believe that!


when i went to tech school we were always told to never top off master cylinders. the only time we were to add fluid was when doing a flush after a pad swap or after replacing a hydraulic component.
 
Here`s what I would do:

If my girl borrowed my Z for a day,and came home saying a light came on and she was concerned and went to Walmart so they could look at it,said they checked it out and had them change the oil (because she knows how ocd I am about my car,especially its oil),I`d be totally overjoyed that she thought enough of me and my car to go to that effort on her own.

I`d treat her to a night out,her fave restaraunt,etc........then without her knowing,change the oil to my preferred flavour :^),and never even approach Walmart. So go tell your wife how proud of her you are that she was watching out for your car,and take her out for an awesome time!!!!!!!!
 
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At least she didnt say "Honey, that oil light thingy came on about a week ago and i forgot to tell you".
 
Originally Posted By: bdcardinal
Originally Posted By: Max_Wander
Originally Posted By: Onmo'Eegusee
WalMart policy is not to check brake fluid or coolant.


Seriously?? You may be sarcastic, but I would readily believe that!


when i went to tech school we were always told to never top off master cylinders. the only time we were to add fluid was when doing a flush after a pad swap or after replacing a hydraulic component.


Wows, who woulda thought eh. Maybe they don't want to mask what could potentially be a leak in the system?? can't think of any other reason for that policy
 
The wallmart auto center is NOT synominous with piece of mind....I'd be as upset as you too, and would demand my money back for not using the right spec of oil. Yeah maybe it wouldnt hurt using 5w30 or 5w-20, but thats not the point. Could void a warranty, not to mention the other questionable services your wife recieved...
 
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