rant on Oil changers

[newbury]

I seem to have problems with other people changing my vehicles oil.
On my new (at the time) 2009 VW Jetta TWICE they overfilled it way up the dipstick. The first time I didn't notice it until I went 20 miles, I spent about an hour sucking excess oil out with a little Harbor Freight pump. The second time I checked it as soon as they returned the car to me, again way too high.
On our 2019 Ford Escape I did the first oil change due to Covid.
Now at 20,000 miles my daughter had the car, we were 900 miles away. She called me up, said she would take it in. I told here NO. Told her of my experiences.
So she called my wife who told her go ahead and get the oil changed. NOBODY tells me.
We get back from our trip, I go to check the oil, it looked like it's been blowing out the dipstick. WAY to full.
Not just past the hatch marks, up past where the metal twists on the dipstick.
Time to suck again, hope it hasn't ruined anything.
I think some shops just put oil in by amount, without looking to see if it's full on the dipstick. Those people are dipsticks.

 

[Larry Caldwell]

Count your blessings. My father-in-law took a Buick Park Avenue to Jiffy Lube to change the transmission fluid. they left it so low it burned up the transmission. I checked it when he started having trouble, and it was four quarts low.

 

[newbury]

Thanks for the mention of Jiffy Lube. I briefly thought of taking it to them for another oil change. I'm due to go on an emergency trip to Mississippi Monday. 900 mile drive one way. Don't need any problems.
With the quality of service in "repair shops" I'm becoming a firm believer in sealed bearings etc.

 

[groundcover]

Friend of nine took his Porsche Cayenne to the dealer for service, on his way home all kinds of alarms and warnings went off. He returned to dealer to find it have been severely overfilled !
Not sure about his Porsche but some of these high end rigs don't even have dipsticks anymore, all
Electronic.
Guess he was an over full kind of guy . He once bought a brand new stainless sander with a Honda motor. Dealer sent a kid to make sure it was fill of oil and ready to go. He brought it home and first time he started it it blew itself apart. Oil had be filled right to the top of the fill tube !

 

[5030]

Never been to one and don't plan on going. Change my own oil in all my cars, trucks and tractors.

 

[WinterDeere]

I do all my own fluid changes, on our vehicles, tractors, and mower. Honestly, why are you taking any vehicle to a garage for something as simple as a fluid change? Pull a plug (or a pan, or a diff cover), let it drain out. Change filter if applicable, fill it back up. I go through more effort than that in making my coffee.

Esp. with synthetics, two of our three vehicles are down to every 12 months. Hardly an enormous hurdle for anyone handy enough to be spending their time on a tractor forum, of all things!

 

[5030]

The only exception to that is the automatic transmission but again, I take care of that as well. If you are going to have the tranny fluid changed (I would always advise against flushing a tranny), you still have to drop the pan and change the tranny filter which is a pretty involved job on a GM vehicle with a V8 motor. You have to loosen the exhaust system to gain clearance to drop the pan to change the filter, something I believe that no speedy oil change place is capable of doing in the first place.

You should never flush an automatic tranny because flushing can dislodge junk inside that can cause tranny failure, always better to change it and change the filter too, plus the torque converter needs drained at the same time.

 

[Oaktree]

Not sure about his Porsche but some of these high end rigs don't even have dipsticks anymore, all
Electronic.

Didn't know they'd eliminated oil dipsticks, but there is none for the transmission in my Jeep, and it's an '06. AFAIK there's no electronic sensors as to transmission level.
My mechanic had to fab up something when he did the fluid change last time.

 

[WinterDeere]

The only exception to that is the automatic transmission but again, I take care of that as well. If you are going to have the tranny fluid changed (I would always advise against flushing a tranny), you still have to drop the pan and change the tranny filter which is a pretty involved job on a GM vehicle with a V8 motor. You have to loosen the exhaust system to gain clearance to drop the pan to change the filter, something I believe that no speedy oil change place is capable of doing in the first place.

You should never flush an automatic tranny because flushing can dislodge junk inside that can cause tranny failure, always better to change it and change the filter too, plus the torque converter needs drained at the same time.

I'll admit the only tranny I've ever changed fluid on is Ford C6's, I had several of them on older hot rods in my 20's. I installed a drain plug in the pan on the last one, to make it less messy to drain down the pan before removing it. Until this current fleet of new cars, every other vehicle I've ever owned was manual transmission, which is quite easy to change. I have two ZF 8HP70's coming due for a change, so I guess I'll need to make a decision there.

But that aside... engine oil changes? C'mon, folks! I can do all three of our cars, including setup and cleanup, in less than two hours. It'd take me more than double that (maybe triple?) to drive each one to the closest garage and wait while they do it. The old oil used to get dropped back off where I buy my oil, but the last ten years I've just been dumping into old gas cans and giving it to a friend who burns waste oil in their shop heater.

 

[5030]

Didn't know they'd eliminated oil dipsticks, but there is none for the transmission in my Jeep, and it's an '06. AFAIK there's no electronic sensors as to transmission level.
My mechanic had to fab up something when he did the fluid change last time.

FCA is real good for that. Started with the defunct PT Cruiser and progressed from there. I think it's a terrible idea. How do you know if the fluid is low or burned. You don't. Probably saved them a few pennies at the owners expense.

Even my Ford Focus ST with it's 6 speed gearbox has a plug with a dipstick attached to check the gear oil in it.

 

[5030]

Auto transmission are very similar to the HST trans in smaller Kubota's but unlike a Kubota where they employ a swash plate to vary the speed of the HST, an auto trans uses a valve body to actuate the various clutch packs but they have one thing in common and that is, the fluid additive package depletes over time with heat and cool cycles and needs to be changed as well as the filter(s). If you go to a quick oil change place for a 'flush', all they do is suck out the existing fluid, filter it and put it back in. They don't renew it and they don't replenish the additive package either.

I seriously doubt any of them would drop the pan and change the filter. That is way above their 'pay grade'...lol

Modern automatics use synthetic fluid today and it's expensive to say the least.

 

[ericm979]

I'll admit the only tranny I've ever changed fluid on is Ford C6's, I had several of them on older hot rods in my 20's. I installed a drain plug in the pan on the last one, to make it less messy to drain down the pan before removing it. Until this current fleet of new cars, every other vehicle I've ever owned was manual transmission, which is quite easy to change. I have two ZF 8HP70's coming due for a change, so I guess I'll need to make a decision there.

With the transmissions without dipsticks there's a way to set the level- get the trans up to the specified temp range then remove a level plug. Sometimes the level plug is a smaller plug inside the drain plug, with a tube sticking up into the trans. Sometimes it's a separate plug.

It's not as convenient as a dipstick that you can reach from above but it's not difficult. You need a way to read trans fluid temp. I usually use an OBD2 reader. The hardest part is having the vehicle level but raised up so you can get under it (unless it's high enough to not need that).

 

[mrmikey]

Modern automatics use synthetic fluid today and it's expensive to say the least.

You aren't kidding. The trans in my 2019 Ram is a ZF 8sp, holds just shy of 10 liters at roughly $30 a liter. What really ticks me off is the specs for the ZF oil aren't available and the only one supposed to be compatible is Valvoline Maxlife. Compatible by Valvolines standards as they say 'comparable to' not 'appoved by ZF for use'

 

[azbinder]

A number of years ago I too the wife's jeep Commander into the local "quick lube" joints. Asked that they use Rotella, as I've run that in everything for more years than I can remember. They said no, can't do that. Bood doesn't call for it. I said fine and left. Took it to the local Jeep dealer and told them what I wanted. Said no problem, we'll just have to pick the oil up. They got 2 gallons, used what was needed and then put the jug with the remaining oil in the back seat.

 

[Jchonline]

I do my own oil changes on all equipment and my truck. So far our Jiffy lube in town has been fine with my wife's Subaru.

 

[5030]

My issue with the quickie oil change places is besides the 'death flush' for an automatic trans is you really have no idea what oil they are putting in your engine or what oil filter they use (unless you crawl under the car or truck and look).

They may advertise they use Pennzoil but is it really Pennzoil that is coming out of the fill nozzle? For all you know, could be cheapo Tractor Supply resqueezed oil.

In this state, there is no oversight at all other than they have to be a registered with the state company. seen way too many YT video's where quickie change places are advertising one thing and doing another.

Just took my wife's Suburban to the dealer where she bought it for an AC recharge and an oil change and it got a GM oil filter and premium synthetic oil. I know, I watched when the tech did it. Up on the hoist and pulled the drain plug unlike the quickie change places where they suck the oil out of the dipstick tube. Normally, I'd do it myself but it's just too dang hot to be fiddling under the car or under the hood.

On the way home we went past the local quickie change place. Sign out front said 'Help Wanted', top wage paid. Must have run out of high school kids looking to make some pin money. Kind of wondered what 'top wage' was. To me, top wage is around 35 bucks an hour, don't believe they are even close to that, maybe a dime over minimum wage....

If I was younger, I'd buy one of those franchises. I bet they are money makers.

 

[buckeyefarmer]

it all comes down to the person doing it.
A young friend just lost an engine due to low oil not long after an oil change, we can only speculate what happened.

 

[newbury]

Real nice to read how proud you guys are that you can change your own oil.
On my VW the first oil changes were part of the deal. When it got to the Escape I did the first (as mentioned) and was 900 miles away when the second one was done.
The rant was about places that don't know how to do a drain and fill.

 

[paulsharvey]

I always change the fluids on my own until wife bought a 2019 Charger RT. Can't get it on ramps without smashing bumper/air dam. My work car, I always take to the same place because they handle all the fleet lease BS stuff. Had son take wife's car up there, dang $120...

On the over fill, I assume they get lazy about vac'ing the old oil, and then add 'spec' amount of new oil. If they left 1 quart of old, then add 6 quarts of new, yep, that's gonna overfill. I think most places now just Vac the used oil, and refill; I don't think most of them pull the drain plug.

 

[California]

Wow. I've used the cheap oil change places for 60 years, never had a problem. (Aside from refusing premature air cleaner replacement or engine flush, many times!)

I do my own changes occasionally, but rarely, only if I'm also doing the tractors.

Bought a Fumoto drain valve for the Subaru but then I've used it maybe twice in 20 years.

Junk oil or filters could be a problem. But I've never had an oil-related problem. I do check the level after a change.

Only time I've been ripped off was the 100,000 mile major service that I had done at the Ford dealer. Claimed replaced the power steering fluid but clearly never took the cap off. I suspect they skipped nearly everything specified. But now several years later no problems have appeared.