Why I Ceased Having My Engine Oil Changed by the Dealer

SiXK · 04-30-2009, 03:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by semtex

It's not just dealerships either. Several years ago when I got my 350, I went and bought a new set of wheels from Discount Tire. The car only had 500 miles on it. They ordered the wrong offsets for the fronts, so I had to return a couple of days later when the correct front wheels came in. Seeing how they only had to lift the front instead of the whole car, two of their guys just slid service jacks under the car (one on each side). They didn't bother to make sure they were on proper jack points and just jacked the car up. Well, they jacked it up alright. When I got the car back, I got in and I was like what the hell??? There were these two big humps right in the middle of the floor mats on each side. Their service jacks had indented the floor of the car! I was SO freakin' pissed!!! Did I mention my car only had 500 miles on it at that point? So now anytime I need something done with tires, guess what I do? I take the wheels off, load them up in the wife's Murano, and drive them over to the tire shop then remount them myself when I get them home. It's sad how some people just lack any sense of professionalism and just 'wing it'.

good grief. what was the resolution to that? did they pay to have it fixed? unbelievable because jack points are such a simple concept.

one time the guy at discount tire argued me down on proper torque specs for my car until I went out and got the owners manual and showed him.

Musashi · 04-30-2009, 03:21 PM

Royal Purple is better then Mobil 1. Both are great synthetics.

nogoodname · 04-30-2009, 03:23 PM

it would have been too simple to just use the car lift and jack the whole car up, change the tires in like 10 mins, but instead they did a sketchy way....dumb ppl.

semtex · 04-30-2009, 03:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LSUTurboTiger

good grief. what was the resolution to that? did they pay to have it fixed? unbelievable because jack points are such a simple concept.

one time the guy at discount tire argued me down on proper torque specs for my car until I went out and got the owners manual and showed him.

I had to go get an estimate from a body shop and they cut me a check. Your story reminds me of one time I went to a quick lube place and the guy insisted on inflating all my tires to 45 psi because that's what the sidewall said the max pressure was. I tried to explain to him that just because it's the max, that doesn't make it the recommended pressure, as shown on the sticker inside the door. The idiot just dug his heels in and insisted. He said "Well that's Nissan's recommendation, right? Nissan doesn't make the tires now, do they? Bridgestone does, so I take Bridgestone's word for it over Nissan's!"

Musashi · 04-30-2009, 05:48 PM

Semtex, I do the same thing... I jack the car up in the garage and just bring the wheel and new rubber. You have to make everything idiot proof these days!

Chan Chee Hoe · 04-30-2009, 06:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by semtex

I had to go get an estimate from a body shop and they cut me a check. Your story reminds me of one time I went to a quick lube place and the guy insisted on inflating all my tires to 45 psi because that's what the sidewall said the max pressure was. I tried to explain to him that just because it's the max, that doesn't make it the recommended pressure, as shown on the sticker inside the door. The idiot just dug his heels in and insisted. He said "Well that's Nissan's recommendation, right? Nissan doesn't make the tires now, do they? Bridgestone does, so I take Bridgestone's word for it over Nissan's!"

I think 40 psi is the best combination for comfort,economy & handling...in my view.

drmike · 04-30-2009, 07:22 PM

The one time I took a vehicle to a dealership, I regretted it. I took my wife's new Toyota pickup to a dealership in the Dallas area (Toyota of Richardson) for a recalled seatbelt mount, and they offered to do an oil change while I was there. Bad call on my part. When they changed the filter, they left the old gasket stuck to the block, and screwed on the new filter (with its gasket). The stacked gaskets sealed until I got on the highway. The engine spit all of the new oil on the ground and then started knocking. I pulled over and called the dealership, and they sent a tow truck.

The the dealership told me the engine would be fine, as they filled it back up with oil. Uh, no, guys, it has a bad rod knock. Oh no, they said, it will be fine. Well, the rod knock was so bad that they had to yell over the engine! At that point they realized that they couldn't weasel their way out of this one, and they sent me off for a compact rental car while they ordered up a replacement engine. I pointed out that I showed up in a truck, so I shouldn't be stuck in a Turdcel. In the end we compromised on a RAV4.

Three weeks later, I got the truck back. Happy ending, the new engine was better than the old one! Much more peppy. But certainly not worth the pain.

wstar · 04-30-2009, 07:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by drmike

When they changed the filter, they left the old gasket stuck to the block, and screwed on the new filter (with its gasket). The stacked gaskets sealed until I got on the highway. The engine spit all of the new oil on the ground and then started knocking. I pulled over and called the dealership, and they sent a tow truck.

And there are thousands of stories like this. Bottom line: nobody cares about your car more than you do, especially not someone who's changing your oil for money.

drdre8424 · 04-30-2009, 09:29 PM

these stories are scary!
Maybe this is cuz im in the military, but EVERYONE NEEDS SUPERVISION.

Forrest · 05-01-2009, 03:35 AM

this thread scares the crap out of me, i dont need these thoughts in my head

snotrocket · 05-01-2009, 03:06 PM

damn my car is at the dealership right now getting an oil change and a spoiler installed

AK370Z · 05-01-2009, 03:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by snotrocket

damn my car is at the dealership right now getting an oil change and a spoiler installed

which spoiler? regular or s-tune?

Anatoray · 05-01-2009, 07:48 PM

Currently, I have the benefit of being the only 370 to go through the dealership I bought it from, so the car is always serviced by the head mechanic, and he takes particular joy in talking to me about the car while he works on it for the brief half hour. Still, I am superstitious about taking my car anywhere, and may even hold off on my next oil change until I visit my parents in Milwaukee this summer.

My dad's long time friend from college runs a mobil gas station/garage, and has been doing ALL of the work on our cars since I can remember.

snotrocket · 05-01-2009, 07:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AK370Z

which spoiler? regular or s-tune?

got the regular. just got back and the freaking spoiler is cracked

the tech said it was damaged in shipping (hole in the box) but they already drilled the holes in so they had to put it on. i ask "why the f did they drill holes in the car if they knew the spoiler was damaged?" he said "they never really checked if it had any damaged." i said "well if the box has a freaking hole in it it, it might be damaged!" i am so pissed right now. now i have to go back and get the replacement installed when it comes in. also on a side note its funny how i had to wait over 2 weeks to get this spoiler in but now that they have to replace it, it will be here monday. idiots.

here is a pic

Greg · 05-01-2009, 09:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LSUTurboTiger

good grief. what was the resolution to that? did they pay to have it fixed? unbelievable because jack points are such a simple concept.

one time the guy at discount tire argued me down on proper torque specs for my car until I went out and got the owners manual and showed him.

This post and in fact this whole thread. Just shows how important it is to have a great, long running, business relationship with a reputable service and or tireguy etc.. It may take some searching but their out there.

04-30-2009, 07:22 PM	#37 (permalink)
drmike Enthusiast Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Kern Co., California Age: 53 Posts: 356 Drives: '03 Mini S+'94 Miata Rep Power: 17	The one time I took a vehicle to a dealership, I regretted it. I took my wife's new Toyota pickup to a dealership in the Dallas area (Toyota of Richardson) for a recalled seatbelt mount, and they offered to do an oil change while I was there. Bad call on my part. When they changed the filter, they left the old gasket stuck to the block, and screwed on the new filter (with its gasket). The stacked gaskets sealed until I got on the highway. The engine spit all of the new oil on the ground and then started knocking. I pulled over and called the dealership, and they sent a tow truck. The the dealership told me the engine would be fine, as they filled it back up with oil. Uh, no, guys, it has a bad rod knock. Oh no, they said, it will be fine. Well, the rod knock was so bad that they had to yell over the engine! At that point they realized that they couldn't weasel their way out of this one, and they sent me off for a compact rental car while they ordered up a replacement engine. I pointed out that I showed up in a truck, so I shouldn't be stuck in a Turdcel. In the end we compromised on a RAV4. Three weeks later, I got the truck back. Happy ending, the new engine was better than the old one! Much more peppy. But certainly not worth the pain. __________________ txwerks.com (side biz) xcor.com (main biz)

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04-30-2009, 03:21 PM	#32 (permalink)
Musashi Enthusiast Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: New Jersey Posts: 357 Drives: 09 370Z 6speed Rep Power: 606	Royal Purple is better then Mobil 1. Both are great synthetics.

04-30-2009, 03:23 PM	#33 (permalink)
nogoodname Lifetime Premium Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Montreal Posts: 22,357 Drives: E46 M3 Rep Power: 1765	it would have been too simple to just use the car lift and jack the whole car up, change the tires in like 10 mins, but instead they did a sketchy way....dumb ppl.

04-30-2009, 05:48 PM	#35 (permalink)
Musashi Enthusiast Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: New Jersey Posts: 357 Drives: 09 370Z 6speed Rep Power: 606	Semtex, I do the same thing... I jack the car up in the garage and just bring the wheel and new rubber. You have to make everything idiot proof these days!

04-30-2009, 09:29 PM	#39 (permalink)
drdre8424 Base Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: https://t.me/pump_upp Posts: 133 Drives: 09 Pearl 370z Auto Rep Power: 0	these stories are scary! Maybe this is cuz im in the military, but EVERYONE NEEDS SUPERVISION.

05-01-2009, 03:35 AM	#40 (permalink)
Forrest Track Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: california 707! Posts: 677 Drives: 09 370z Blk 6mt sprt Rep Power: 258	this thread scares the crap out of me, i dont need these thoughts in my head

05-01-2009, 03:06 PM	#41 (permalink)
snotrocket Base Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: louisiana Posts: 99 Drives: 09 370z Rep Power: 16	damn my car is at the dealership right now getting an oil change and a spoiler installed

05-01-2009, 07:48 PM	#43 (permalink)
Anatoray Track Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Kentucky Posts: 794 Drives: 09 BLK 370Z Rep Power: 17	Currently, I have the benefit of being the only 370 to go through the dealership I bought it from, so the car is always serviced by the head mechanic, and he takes particular joy in talking to me about the car while he works on it for the brief half hour. Still, I am superstitious about taking my car anywhere, and may even hold off on my next oil change until I visit my parents in Milwaukee this summer. My dad's long time friend from college runs a mobil gas station/garage, and has been doing ALL of the work on our cars since I can remember.