5-minute oil change is a lie. The car ahead of me has been in there for over half an hour. I cannot leave because there are cars behind me, blocking me in. I think this lady has seen more filters than an AC repairman.
Update: Car ahead of me took 50 minutes. I pulled into the bay and sat for 10 minutes. They did nothing and I finally left.
Never use those quick lube places. Find a reputable mechanic and get it done there.
I had started changing my own oil about 10 years ago and my wife had a fit that I was spending $70 on oil and filter plus some supplies here and there compared to the $50 oil change.
We took the car there next time with the coupon. Wife came with me so she could make sure.
Oh, I only use synthetic, it says so in the manual. That was an extra $30.
The car takes 6 quarts, not 5. +$15
The filter wasn’t included. +$20
No, that’s not my air filter. I just replaced it last time.
Can you please deflate my tires back to 32 psi? 60 is too high. It says so here on my door frame.
+??? & Tax came out to $130.
5 minute oil change took like 30-40 minutes.
I still do so my own oil changes.
The fact that these places always exclude the filter from their price and treat it as a “gotcha” add-on is deeply hilarious.
You have to replace the filter when you change the oil. That’s just how it works. It’s not special and it’s not extra. It’s literally the intended procedure.
The reason I do it myself is because they’ll use a generic crappy no name filter and oil with no additives for older engines or anything.
K&N Air Filters would like to have a word…
I literally never change my air filter during oil changes because once a year I take my K&N out, treat it and put it back in. They work better, they produce less waste and they pay for themselves after a year.
The oil filter. Not the air filter.
Then I misunderstood because I do see them charging extra for air filters too.
Oh, I’m sure they do. And charge eight times more than what they’re worth.
I’m actually okay with someone charging an extra $15 to swap an air filter… if they are only charging a few bucks for the filter. It’s labor cost and I have fought with stupid air filter clips enough to know it’s not for everyone.
They also use shit oil, you’ll be lucky if it’s the right weight you were even supposed to have, and you don’t have to look very hard before finding someone who’s left one of those places with no oil put back, or the oil cap left off, or a leaky filter or drain bolt, or stripped drain bolt threads, etc.
I’ve always changed my own oil.
Also, a special shout-out to Valvoline Restore and protect oil. It really does make your engine cleaner and free up piston rings. My 08 Prius has 272,000 miles on it and the last 16,000 miles I’ve been using that oil (lots of vehicles around those years were using low tension oil rings) I’ve gone from burning a quart around every 2,800 miles, to burning a quart every 5,000 miles.
Yeah, I heard the stories and couldn’t bear to be at their mercy.
If you care at all about your car please follow this advice.
Quick lube places survive off of up sells like wipers, belts, and filters. Plus they’ll impact on your oil drain plug which will strip and stretch the threads. The oil filter will go on with no oil on the gasket, and every single ugga they can dugga will be used to tighten it on there. The oil they use is the cheapest they can find.
Find a good mechanic that won’t try to sell you every minor repair your car needs.
I’ve been using Valvoline, but I bring my own oil and filter, and they actually do use a torque wrench on everything I can tell. It’s $60 (with coupon) for my 6.7 that I also have them rotate my tires, I’m in and out in 30 min, and I don’t have to dispose of the oil. Just turn down the the other services, especially the air filter (that I typically replace while I’m waiting in line), and they’re not too bad. I just wish they’d do my fuel filters, but LiAbIlItY.
You do see how that’s a terrible idea, right?
I mean, they pull oil from the ground, only makes sense to put it back from where it came. 🤷🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️
I’m pretty sure it was posted as a joke.
I used to go to a quick change place until yep, they did indeed strip the threads of my drain plug. The next oil change I got was at a nicer place and cost less. They replaced my drain plug. I just had to drop it off for a couple hours.
That’s assuming they remember to put the drain plug back. My brother lost an engine that way
It’s important to use a regular shop for routine maintenance because you’ll build a relationship for when something major goes wrong. The extra cost is worth it.
Plus, imagine what kind of “mechanic” works in these places. Accepting low wages implies they can’t get a job at a real shop because they suck, or because they have no experience.
Yup, I used to hit up those places because quick and cheap are my favorites!
But, sure enough, one of them screwed everything up so bad, the next place refused to even attempt it.
The dealership where I bought my last car offers free inspections each year, so I just have them do the oil during that.