look_ma

So today I finally had a day off so I decided to get some maintenance taken care of on my truck. So I went to a Firestone down the street, had a coupon and asked for an Oil change, Tire rotation, and Tire balance. He said about 45 minuets all in all, so I was cool with that. While in the waiting room I heard my truck pulling in. I have a really bad habit of trusting NO ONE with my truck. The dude put it on the lift, raised it up, took the lug nuts offs, took the front tires and put them on the back and the back to the front. Then he put the lug nuts back on. Weird I thought to myself, he didn't balance. Then he went ahead and did the oil change, slammed down my hood with his greasy paws and drove my truck around to the front. The guy up front is like; ok it will be $50 (including tax, for all 4 wheels, 6 quarts change, filter, labor, rotate, balance) bucks, a descent deal. I was like, that was for oil change, tire rotation, and tire balance. He acknowledge, then I broke it to him I didn’t see the guy balance them, he assured me the guy did. So he waddles out side and ask the guy, about 30 seconds later you see my truck back in the bay. Now the guy was cool about it and so was I, I wasn’t an ******* and didn’t try to get anymore off (mainly because he was cutting me a better deal than the coupon).

Point of the story:
Where do you take your vehicle to get general maintenance done? The last place Midas got oil on the steering wheel, grease on the paint etc. I won't go to a dealer because they won't let me watch.

Also, has this ever happen to you car wise where they said they did it, but in reality they didn’t do sh1t?

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ray

I bring my Camry to either the Toyota dealership I bought it from, or the Toyota dealership 1 mile from where I work.

bachviet

I take our cars to local Honda dealers.

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DJjeff1080

Why don't you guys do it yourselves. Oil is like $1-2 a quart, a filter is about $4-5, and once you do it a few times you can get it done in about 20-30 minutes.

Most of those places do a "15 point inspection". That is a joke. Check the fluids, tire pressure, air filter, and "lube the chasis". When was the last time that someone lubed your chasis? Why does it really matter?

Sorry I don't understand why people spend so much for so little. If you really want someone to do it for you, Walmart does the basic oil change for $15, and an oil change with an inspection for like $20.

look_ma

WALMART TECHS ARE COMPLETE FUSKING IDIOTS!!! That is like taking your computer to best buy to be fixed. It is such a joke.

Hmm, and me do it my self, why? So I can crawl all on the hot ground in Texas summer, no thanks. I would rather pay the extra $5 and have someone else do it. And I cannot balance my own tires...yet : ) .

Now maybe when I buy a house that has a garage and I can drive up onto ramps, then that will be a differet story.

DarkFury

We're only talkin' a simple oil change here... not a transmission replacement.

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ray

And I pay $21.95 at Toyota. Everything is fully guaranteed and any parts installed or replaced are Toyota-brand. For that extra $1.95 I would rather get it done at a dealership.

DarkFury

Wow... most dealerships around here charge like $26.99 for a basic oil change (which only includes 5 quarts... and my HEMI takes 7 quarts. )

Plus you have to wait about an hour to even get it in.

cheapie

exactly. i took my new nissan van to the dealership for an oil change. took almost an hour. it was expensive. and they spilled oil all over the frame that leeked all over my parent's driveway.

i can go to wal-mart and get full-sythetic for $30. that's a lot cheapier than anywhere else.

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Bires

I wish there were a site like resellerratings for auto shops. After a simple oil change ruined one of my wife's seals last fall(!), I don't trust anyone.

I guess the best policy (although it takes work) is to ask around, then watch them do a few things before deciding.

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Five years...

ray

The Toyota dealerships I go to guarantee your oil change and checks within 45 minutes.

DarkFury

Must be nice for Toyota owners I guess... (maybe cause they got their money "up front" in the initial cost )

attgig

happened with my tranny fluid at a Firestone. I thought my tranny was gone after I left the place....so, I went to a dealer, and they were like...your tranny fluid is NOT changed at all. it's old. i just got it done at the dealer, and it's been running fine. Firestone pissed me off.....I did buy their lifetime wheel alignment package, but I don't trust them anymore, that I haven't gone since....what a waste.

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brainsmile

I don't mind doing my own oil but what do you do with the dirty oil?

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attgig

the local advance auto parts takes old oil for free =) now I always do my own oil.

check your local auto parts store. they may have an oil recycling program =)

Airencracken

I have free matenence.

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bachviet

It costs me $24.99 for a basic oil change with inspection at local Honda dealers. I could pay under $20 for just an oil change at Honda/Acura certified shops.

look_ma

But once again, I have not found a dealership yet that will let me watch. I am not asking to be underneath the lift with the guy, just in clear view of my truck.

p.s. DF: SEVEN QUARTS, holy crap.

Bires

Too bad. My Firestone shop in my home town (Expertire in Medford, OR) was the best. They cut me all sorts of discounts (on services and tires) did lots of work for free while doing other things (tightened/respec-ed cables and nuts, etc), and the car always felt a little bit better after leaving their shop. I miss them.

DJjeff1080

I just got home from towing a friends boat 250 miles with her truck. She had just had the oil changed yesterday at the FORD dealership ($39.99) and about 75 miles into the trip, I stopped to get a drink and I noticed that the truck was leaking oil. To make a very long and frustrating story quick, the local FORD dealership left the old seal on the oil filter and the truck lost 3 quarts in those 75 miles. I just removed the extra seal once the engine cooled, added 3 quarts, and it ran fine.

Moral to the story....It doesn't matter how much you spend for an oil change, or if you go to a dealership, it matters how good their mechanics are. Hence watching the mechanics.

PS Good comments everyone.

DarkFury

Amen to that...

You can get SCREWED wherever you go... however it is up to you to negotiate the "price" of getting screwed.

Bires

I've always thought the dealers would be the worst...here's why:

If you go to a mom-n-pop outfit and they do a good job, you tell friends and family and they get more business, so it's in their best interest to do a good job.

If you go to a dealer, you prolly went there because you think the dealers are the only/best place to do service work, and you'll keep coming back; also the techs don't see any extra cash if they do a good job, since they are working for someone else, that gets the profits-so the end result is that the techs at a dealership have little motivation to do a good job.