Where does your oil change oil come from?

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Hey Guys,

IF you get your oil changed at a place other than a large chain or dealer, don't just assume you're getting the proper oil and/or parts (filter, washer, etc). Double check the work to the best of your ability. Some places may intentionally or unintentionally use the wrong type of oil and/or not replace parts.

Hello, do you have any links to news articles or some other source for this information? I'd be curious to read into it...

Sorry, I haven't researched it online.

This info was from a briefing one of our detectives gave about a couple of cases currently being investigated/tried. There is actually substantially more to this situation - I just gave the reader's digest version.

And, yeah, I can see where it could sound like something you'd find on Snopes. You don't know me and this IS the internet after all.

I went to one of those large chain quickie-lubes to get an oil change once. My car was fairly new at the time and I was naturally concerned about doing everything by the book, so I opened up my owner's manual beforehand and checked the oil specs before pulling into the place.

When I pulled in and scanned all of the signs on the walls, I felt reassured to see a sign claiming that "we use only factory recommended products." As the worker got the car lined up over the pit and prepared to drain/refill the oil, I noticed that he grabbed a hose that was connected to a large oil container marked with the rating of the oil.

I remembered that the spec in my owner's manual was different from what the sticker said on the giant tub of oil being hooked up to my car, so I questioned him about this as he began the filling process.

Him: We're using the factory recommendation.

Me: That's not what the factory recommends for this car.

Him: No, THIS is the factory spec (pointing to the giant tub).

Me: I have the manual right here, and here's what my manufacturer calls for, right here on this page... see? And it's not what you're putting in. Your sign over there says that you use the factory recommended products. Here's the factory recommendation. Use it!

Him: $*#@!

So he ripped out the hose and told the guy in the pit to drain it again as he went over to a stash of oil products in individual retail bottles and opened some of the correct ones.

He was p*ssed but he learned a lesson about keeping his company's promises and doing things by the book. And I never went to a quickie-lube again. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/jpshakehead.gif

i always changed my own oil last week i went to dads to change his and my step moms. i think the rateing was sh

Do my own and use only Royal Purple in my truck and castrol GTX in my wifes car. At least I know what Im getting then.

RYan

You get what you deserve when you go to one of those places.

Hey, be nice. I didn't know better at the time! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/blush.gif

Even worst------

My nephew told me his car was leaking oil AFTER he had an oil change at S**RS because they had a coupon special going on. Guess what? I found out they had not tighten the oil filter completely and it was almost ready to fall off. He was lucky since the distance from the store to his house was about 7 miles. Now I wonder what kind of oil they used? Myself, I've always changed my own filters and used only Amsoil.

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turbodog said:
You get what you deserve when you go to one of those places.

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Guys, it's just like any business. You NEED to know who is working on your cars. Please don't group all fastlubes in the same group.

I've worked at a Lube shop for the past 8 years, thru highschool, and now into College. We are an independantly owned shop, with the owner on site daily. We also pay very close attention to factory specs. As to oil leaks, we do our best, and because of the hundreds of cars we do a week, something is bound (by odds) to come back for a problem. If it does, we always take care of the car, and usually offer to personally clean up the customers driveway if any mess was left.

It's like repair shops, from being in the auto repair business, I wouldn't trust most of the repair shops in my town.
just my $.02,

Don't hate me (yeah, I'm talking to YOU TurboDog! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif)

But man! Oil changes? Quaint, dirty, expensive, time-consuming and down-right unpleasant. I remember doing them. Still have to on the gas car every few years. Sucks. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif

I know I'll get clobbered, but if you REALLY don't like oil changes, there is a better way. Drive a car that uses no oil. Hey, no spark plugs, transmission, or exhaust either. Bonus. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Show of hands. Who likes performing or going in for oil changes? Tuneups? And who likes going to the gas station? In four years, we've got 60k miles without doing one of those.

OK, ok. I couldn't help myself. Carry on.

OK, Darell, devil's advocate time....

Are you having ANY preventive maintenance done on your Rav4 EV? Tires? Tire rotation? Washer blades? coolant hoses? Radiator flushes? Washer fluid? Brake Fluid?

I get those done at the same time as the oil change.

The Prius has a 6,000 mile oil change interval, so I go in and wait 30 minutes while the dealer does everything. Because it's a 2002, I've not had to pay for any of them.

Now for the devil time...../ubbthreads/images/graemlins/evilgrin07.gif

It takes me 30 minutes to get the oil changed once every 6 months. I fill the gas tank at least once every 4 to 8 weeks.

If you added up the seconds that it takes to pause and plug in your Rav, and then pause again to iunplug it and store the cable, how many minutes a week are you spending on "daily routine'? 2 minutes, 5 minutes? More?

If it takes more than 10 minutes a month, you are spending more time maintaining yours than I do mine.


/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Daniel (all in fun)

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Samuel said:
EDITED/CHANGED:

Hey Guys,

IF you get your oil changed at a place other than a large chain or dealer, don't just assume you're getting the proper oil and/or parts (filter, washer, etc). Double check the work to the best of your ability. Some places may intentionally or unintentionally use the wrong type of oil and/or not replace parts.

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i usually changed my own, like other posters, so i know what, how much, and how it was being done.
but when it became harder to "recycle" the used oils, because the locations would claim that they were full, i had to go SOMEWHERE and get it done.

for some strange reason the big arse barrels of the exact same oil (assuming i wasnt being ripped off) didnt work the same.

then my neighbor had his done and they kinda forgot to put the oil back in. how many times would the OWNER accidentally forget that? i dont know why he didnt realize it being his truck was new enough to have WARNING lights? but he totally destroyed the engine.

So now i BUY the oil off the shelf, the same stuff i was putting in, that i was sure worked well, and WATCH them put it in.
then re-check the oil levels after it runs through the filter for longer.

mabey i am paranoid, but then mabey my car has 1/2Mill miles on the same engine /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

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gadget_lover said:
OK, Darell, ....If it takes more than 10 minutes a month, you are spending more time maintaining yours than I do mine.

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I gotta say...unless you are almost not driving at all, it's gonna be hard to beat a BEV for the time spent refueling and maintaining.

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Darell said:...Drive a car that uses no oil. Hey, no spark plugs, transmission, or exhaust either.

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OK, ok, I'm closer than I used to be.

I use no oil for oil changes and I have no spark plugs (so...I've got 2 out of 4 covered)!

My motor lubricant is made from natural gas (fully synthetic). I'm afraid you've got me on the transmission and the exhaust. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

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then my neighbor had his done and they kinda forgot to put the oil back in.

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I've never had that happen, but I had a friend who had them put twice the amount of oil in. Guess that they forgot they had already filled it and filled it again.

Thats just as bad as no oil because the stuff hits the bottom of the cylinders then and foams up and can't be pumped through the system and so you get no oil getting to where it needs to go too.

I'm thinking I'll be going to the dealership and paying the extra 5 bucks that they charge for an oil change vs the cheapo guys in town. But then, the dealership gets theirs from a big drum as well...

I"m actually pretty happy with the saturn dealership in town. Took my car in when I thought the breaks needed to be repaired (after another discount mechanic told me that they were so bad he couldn't even save the rotors and that I should bring it back to him ASAP for new breaks) and it turned out they were just fine. They could have replaced them on me anyway and I'd have never known the difference.

Now i just need to get it in t have the CV joints lubed as they are starting to squeak.

It will be nice in the future when BEV cars require less maintenance /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

I do all the maintenance I can on my Jeep and my wife's Mazda. Unfortunately the Mazda seems to have been designed so you can't do much unless you have a %$*%$ lift.

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the Mazda seems to have been designed so you can't do much

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The last time that I was in the quicky job lube place a lady pulled in with a Miata. They told her that the 20 minutes didn't apply to that car as they had to let the engine cool before they could reach around the exhaust system to get to her oil filter.

So even with a lift, it isn't easy with some of them /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

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gadget_lover said:
OK, Darell, devil's advocate time....

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Good luck! Let's see how the devil did...

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Are you having ANY preventive maintenance done on your Rav4 EV? Tires? Tire rotation? Washer blades? coolant hoses? Radiator flushes? Washer fluid? Brake Fluid?

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Of course I rotate the tires. And I should probably go change the wiper blades and top of up the washer fluid (haven't done that in three years).

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The Prius has a 6,000 mile oil change interval, so I go in and wait 30 minutes while the dealer does everything.

[/ QUOTE ] Does this include the time to drive TO and FROM the dealer, or just the waiting around drinking the stale coffee? You don't have a dealer next-door to where you work or live, do you? That'd be cool.

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Now for the devil time...../ubbthreads/images/graemlins/evilgrin07.gif

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Uh-oh. I thought we were doing it already!

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It takes me 30 minutes to get the oil changed once every 6 months. I fill the gas tank at least once every 4 to 8 weeks.

If you added up the seconds that it takes to pause and plug in your Rav, and then pause again to iunplug it and store the cable, how many minutes a week are you spending on "daily routine'? 2 minutes, 5 minutes? More?

If it takes more than 10 minutes a month, you are spending more time maintaining yours than I do mine.


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OK, so how much time are you allowing for the gasoline fillup? Just like with the oil service, we need to add the travel time. You've gotta get off the freeway, wait for the light, possibly wait for your turn at the pump (I mean if you head for the cheap stuff like me!) yadda yadda. NOT just the time to fill up. I typically don't drive even an inch out of my way to fill up, so no time wasted "getting there." And I have kept meticulous records on how much time I spend "filling up." /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif On average, I perform the plug/unplug cycle 20 times/month. My record is a total of 1.5 seconds for this cycle - my average about 2 seconds, and after a couple of beers, it can creep into the 3-second range. So I'll grant you the 3 second time. Three seconds x 20 cycles - 60 seconds/month used, no - WASTED, on filling up the EV. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

OK, what'd I win? Can I stomp on a devil?

Of course I spent 100's of hours a week on the car modifying this or that or the other thing! Working on LED lighting now. Just finished up replacing 20 incandescent bulbs in the instrument cluster with LED. Next are the turn signals.

Yup, you win, Darell. Personally, I can't walk from my car to the wall and back in only 1.5 seconds, much less coil up a cable and put it back on a hook that fast. Oh, I was allowing about 7 minutes per fill, about once a month. But I was just playing.

I usually combine trips, so I hit the gas station when I'm already going somewhere. Same with car washes and services. I shop or eat lunch when the car is un available. I waste more time at the silly cashier's window than anywhere else.

It will sure be neat when there are true Zero maintenance cars.


Back on topic; Local lube joint told the lady ahead of me that her tranny fluid needed replacing because it had a "brown look". He even showed her the pretty red color of fresh ATF on a white cloth next to the light brown of hers. He became outraged when I stepped in and suggested that the color alone was not a valid test for ATF condition. He lost her business and mine too.

The moral of the story; go to reputable businesses, and if you aren't sure you should keep an eye on them.

Daniel