Oil changes/warranty work

[Soundguy]

Both of mine were dry as a bone and did not smoke any. My college roomate is a die hard GM guy and he currently has a 2011 Silverado and a 2010 Tahoe. both with the 5.3. The truck uses no oil but the Tahoe uses 2 qts between oil changes. He hates that they take this "its acceptable practice".

It just seems to be hit or miss. Funny thing is the GM engines that use oil seem to be dead reliable.

Chris

yep.. that's the downside all that top cyl lube makes em last so you have to put up with them longer.

the wifes youkon that drink a quart every 1km, starts easy, and no engine noises at 165Km It does like 89 octane minimum.. book says 87, but with 87 it can rattle sometimes. at 89 almost NEVER rattles. at 92 never rattles... thus unless pulling a horse trailer it gets 89. I had already switched her to 10w30 vs the book 5w30.. that slowed the oil consumption down to the 1qt/k-m for a lil more than that...

because of the oil consumption on that vehicle, I let my wife take it to the quick change station ( texaco ) that is in the plaze on the turn off road to our property.. I normally do all my own servicingf and oil changes.. but for that one.. they can do it.. plus.. they top off fluids between changes.. so they can eat the 2 qts oil it eats for that 17.99$ 'tuesday / women's oil change special they run ).. which actually turns into 19.99 because it takes an extra qt. of oil vs what their special covers ( most cars ).. etc.

for 20$ and they do the filter and the oil and top off... on that one.. I'm ok with it.. my others though.. just me servicing them. as a side benefit.. that yukon has a hard to get to oil filter.. at elast on a creeper. from a 'pit' it's ain't bad.. but laying under it.. not so easy.. especially the 4wd model as it takes a different fitler and has a support member in the way..

soundguy

 

[Soundguy]

I admit to always doing my own tractor maintenance and i keep all records of filters , oil, etc in a file in my office.

However for the trucks, i have always used a local quick lube place in town. They do great work and you can watch them do the job. I have never had an issue with their work, the price is very reasonable. They grease all Zerk's and check all fluid levels. I have a computer printout of all maint done that will satisfy all warranty claims.

I used to do my own autos/trucks, but as my work got busier, i found less and less time available to do the scheduled maintenance, and the time between changes kept getting longer. Now i get it done on time and on mileage without issues. The dodge has 280,000 miles with no engine issues, The ford 54,000 no issues and the Chevy van 138,000 with NO engine issues. cant ask for more.

is the dodge a gasser or diesel?

our local quick change place won't do diesels. ( i do my own anyway.. ) but still.

soundguy

 

[grsthegreat]

is the dodge a gasser or diesel?

our local quick change place won't do diesels. ( i do my own anyway.. ) but still.

soundguy

dodge and ford are diesel, chevy is gas. Our places do diesel (cept for radiator drain and refil on diesels which they wont do)

 

[Soundguy]

i'm guessing our local place is just geared for lil 4-6qt passanger vehicles.. the thought of a 15qt change probably scares them..

not to mention the air filter many diesels take is 2-3 times the size of a gasser's

probably no money in it for them for what they would have to charge on a diesel service...

soundguy

 

[grsthegreat]

i'm guessing our local place is just geared for lil 4-6qt passanger vehicles.. the thought of a 15qt change probably scares them..

not to mention the air filter many diesels take is 2-3 times the size of a gasser's

probably no money in it for them for what they would have to charge on a diesel service...

soundguy

I really dont know how the place i use can do it. They use top brand fluids and i watch them, so i know there actually changing it all. If i did it myself i wouldnt save much $$ thats for sure. And they have pit to make it easier to check rear and front axles, Plus lube everything

 

[Diamondpilot]

Our local GM dealer does oil changes for what it cost me to buy the stuff. They use Valvoline filter and oil. They will service any brand, not just GM. They have a ladies day special and also do pickups from certain business on certain days. I am like many of you and do not see how they do it. I guess its just simply a volume thing and a loss leader for them. They make a killing on the other services.

Chris

 

[grsthegreat]

Our local GM dealer does oil changes for what it cost me to buy the stuff. They use Valvoline filter and oil. They will service any brand, not just GM. They have a ladies day special and also do pickups from certain business on certain days. I am like many of you and do not see how they do it. I guess its just simply a volume thing and a loss leader for them. They make a killing on the other services.

Chris

Yup, and with the dealers, they always throw in free 20-40 point inspections...hoping to find something wrong that they can fix...hehe

 

[Soundguy]

my local mechanic, the only person i let touch my ford trucks.. that's what he tells me. he said he does oil changes at pretty much cost, plus the inspection, and he says that unless you run a VERY-well maintained vehicle thru, you can almost always find -something- that needs attention.. and he says that's where he makes alot of his money. that, and regular service related stuff from returning customers.

kinda like the impulse buy items at the checkout register of a store...

soundguy

 

[Peacock]

All engines burn oil. All of them.

It all depends on whether the oil is replaced by gas or other byproducts of the combustion process as the whether or not they will read low.

GM engines do tend to use more oil than other manufacturers, but I would put GM truck engines up against Ford or Dodge truck engines for reliablity. They build a very reliable truck engine. Only the Hemi is there with them in my experience.

 

[hawkeye08]

As others have said, just make sure to document your purchases, buy the approved parts, do it right and on schedule.

If you don't want to keep records, then have the dealer do it. Some dealers break/even on oil changes to keep folks coming in for service, others make a healthy profit on oil changes. If you are lucky enough to get reasonable prices and it is convenient for you, then the dealer is not a bad choice, of course they need to be competent.

 

[Soundguy]

engine wise I've had no troubles out of my ford diesels, dodge gasser, ford gassers, or gm gasser.

it's all the other little annoying stuff that gets you. and every make / model has it's sticking point.

ford 6.0psd bad rap from the head problems early in life

ford 7.3 psd, CPS issues.. .. carry a spare and a 10mm wrench or good walking shoes

dodge ram series from late 90's thru mid 04 dash plastic cracked if you looked at it wrong

gm.. too many small issues to even list. lots of small plastic parts fail.. often is a bit pet peeve of mine... not to mention the thirst for oil far exceeding anything I've ever owned that I literally didn't see in my driveway...

etc, etc.. everyone's got some specific issue..

then you have the operator preference issues.

listening to the ford diesels, you can clearly hear a difference , for instance on the 6.0 to the 7.3, and they sound different than a duramax, and from a cummins.. etc.. etc. some like different sounds.. some like the ride height or handling characteristics of the different suspensions and front ned setup used.. etc.. etc. myself.. i prefer a dodge or ford diesel over a gm diesel, ford being my favorite.. and a dodge gasser over a ford or gm gasser.

for 4wd.. I kinda prefer the manual shift on the floor like my older dodge has vs the shift on the dash that my ford and gm have.. of the sift on the dash, I've had issues with the gm not shifting / getting stuck. none with the ford. but again.. i like the manual shift of my old dodge the best..

soundguy

soundguy

 

[deerefan]

As others have said, just make sure to document your purchases, buy the approved parts, do it right and on schedule.

If you don't want to keep records, then have the dealer do it. Some dealers break/even on oil changes to keep folks coming in for service, others make a healthy profit on oil changes. If you are lucky enough to get reasonable prices and it is convenient for you, then the dealer is not a bad choice, of course they need to be competent.

If I had not had a record with them with the loose filter, I would do it myself. Now they are going to do it and if anything goes wrong it is on them. These new motors are not cheap. I bet the dealers still make a small profit on oil changes, as they they might get a discount buying oil in bulk.

 

[deerefan]

engine wise I've had no troubles out of my ford diesels, dodge gasser, ford gassers, or gm gasser.

it's all the other little annoying stuff that gets you. and every make / model has it's sticking point.

ford 6.0psd bad rap from the head problems early in life

ford 7.3 psd, CPS issues.. .. carry a spare and a 10mm wrench or good walking shoes

dodge ram series from late 90's thru mid 04 dash plastic cracked if you looked at it wrong

gm.. too many small issues to even list. lots of small plastic parts fail.. often is a bit pet peeve of mine... not to mention the thirst for oil far exceeding anything I've ever owned that I literally didn't see in my driveway...

etc, etc.. everyone's got some specific issue..

then you have the operator preference issues.

listening to the ford diesels, you can clearly hear a difference , for instance on the 6.0 to the 7.3, and they sound different than a duramax, and from a cummins.. etc.. etc. some like different sounds.. some like the ride height or handling characteristics of the different suspensions and front ned setup used.. etc.. etc. myself.. i prefer a dodge or ford diesel over a gm diesel, ford being my favorite.. and a dodge gasser over a ford or gm gasser.

for 4wd.. I kinda prefer the manual shift on the floor like my older dodge has vs the shift on the dash that my ford and gm have.. of the sift on the dash, I've had issues with the gm not shifting / getting stuck. none with the ford. but again.. i like the manual shift of my old dodge the best..

soundguy

soundguy

I am with you on the manual 4wd shift. I accidentally left my new truck in 4 hi driving home from the feed store with a trailer in tow. It is easier for me to remember throwing a lever than turning a little knob. I am also a big fan of older gas motors, like the 360, chevy 454 and ford 460. Though not nearly as economical as todays motors, they were sure strong. We had a early 90s 1 ton flatbed reg cab with a 454 and stick shift, 4wd. Sold it with over 300k miles with only a clutch change. We exceeded the tow limit several times with that truck. It is still running today.

 

[Soundguy]

my dodge has a 5.9 (360)

yep.. too easy to hit the shift on the fly knob when cleaning the dash..

soundguy

 

[flusher]

Our local GM dealer does oil changes for what it cost me to buy the stuff. They use Valvoline filter and oil. They will service any brand, not just GM. They have a ladies day special and also do pickups from certain business on certain days. I am like many of you and do not see how they do it. I guess its just simply a volume thing and a loss leader for them. They make a killing on the other services.

Chris

My local Ford dealer (largest Ford truck dealer in northern CA) will service my 2004 Isuzu NPR that has the 360 ci (6.0L) LQ4 Chevy V-8 gas engine. He has the equipment to work on medium and heavy duty trucks. Strangely, he owns the GMC dealership in town also, but the service area there is a lot smaller than he has at his Ford shop, so the Chevy guys won't touch my NPR even though it has a Chevy engine.

I checked the oil level after driving about 1K miles with the NPR (it's at 50,400 miles now)--still on FULL. No complaints about the engine, drivetrain, ride, acceleration, top speed (85 mph or so).