WARNING: OIL CHANGERS - FAST AND FRIENDLY SERVICE

[krimsalt]

Some of you may see these "Oil Changers" drive through oil change places pop up alongside their respected Petro Canada stations.

Considering I have always driven manuals, I always change my oil myself due to paranoia of other people driving my car and being garbage at manual (even the serviceman who brought in my car at the dealership, with 20years of manual experience, still ran the clutch high and long)

The only time I would ever consider another place doing it, is out of laziness, and if the price is very low, but then again only if it's a drive-thru one to avoid others driving my car.

Anyway, before I bought my Mazda3, I brought my jalopy 1990 Mazda Protege323 to the Oil Changers in Whitby on Dundas and Thickson, and here is my result:

While I was stopped over the pit, the serviceman kept moving my shifter linkages in and out of gear. It would pop all of a sudden into 4th, then come out and wobble side to side in neutral. It really annoyed me that they were playing with my shifter.

Anyway, I paid my $49.99 + tax and was on my way.

Lo and behold, they stripped my oil pan threads for the screw. Their fix; duct-tape around the screw itself and force it in like a wine-cork.

Warning you all: stay away from Oil Changers, and any "Fast drive through pit", if they can't take the time to do it properly, you can't drain all the old oil in less than 9 minutes.

It's a good thing that car was up for scrap anyway. Imagine it was my Mazda3 :flaming

[breakfasteatre]

rofl@ duct tape. Can we get some reputable, honest mechanics other than jimster?

[bbbwood]

I, too, have had terrible experiences with that specific location in Whitby. Went there for an oil change, and they indicated that my air filter was dirty (as most of these quickie lube places do). I knew it was probably true as it had been a while since I had it replaced last. The guy verbally quoted me a price which seemed to be fairly reasonable.

When I paid, I looked at the receipt and the filter was listed as being double what was verbally quoted. When I challenged them on it, the manager, who spoke poor English, became irate and accused me of lying. Or at least that's what I understood from his broken English. I demanded, politely, the filter be provided as the verbally quote price. He then went off the deep end and stormed away. Turns out he told his guys to put the old filter back. I got a refund, and haven't been back since. I used to buy all my gas at that Petro-Canada, but not anymore. This happened about four years ago. :flaming

Anyway, when I am forced to use any of these quickie lube places, I always double and triple check the invoice before I play. Imagine how many people do not and get ripped off without knowing it.

Good riddance!

[krimsalt]

wow.
also i forgot to mention, my serpentine belt was squeeling at the time near idle revs. they offered to spray lubricant on it, and i told them NO sternly, saying my timing belt was exposed, as when i changed it the top timing cover broke.
they said they are only spraying the serpentine belt, not the timing belt, i told them no, it splashes. but they still sprayed it anyway and i was annoyed.

so afterwards, i found their lubricant did splash and soak everything under the hood no that side of the engine (including my timing belt). apart from that now the belt squeeled and squeaked continuously unless i was doing revs over 2000-2500rpm.

[FoXy]

Is there not some head office that you can complain to? I one time had an issue with the dumb ass ppl at the mr. lube in the shwa and wrote their head office an angry email.

[Booostin]

Is there not some head office that you can complain to? I one time had an issue with the dumb ass ppl at the mr. lube in the shwa and wrote their head office an angry email.
Did they respond?

[TheMAN]

why don't you make those retards pay for a new oil pan?
you don't need them to replace it for you, just pay the bill to be done at another place, such as the dealer

[krimsalt]

why don't you make those retards pay for a new oil pan?
you don't need them to replace it for you, just pay the bill to be done at another place, such as the dealer

replace a oil pan on a 20 year old car at the dealer? plus, because of the age of the car they would argue and whine. I really didnt care. thats why i didnt brign the mazda3

[thegoodstink]

Problem with the quiky joints, is there technicians ( :chuckle ), aren't paid enough to care. And they show it. The monkey's at the 9 minute joint in Milton, stripped 4 of the 6 bolts for the skid plate on my Xterra. When I confronted them, they said it wasn't them. Complained to head office, and was offered free oil changes for a year. I declined.

If you can't get to it yourself, the dealership is the best. My MZ3 goes to Mazda for changes. The mechanics there get paid well. They care a little.

[krimsalt]

Problem with the quiky joints, is there technicians ( :chuckle ), aren't paid enough to care.

Calling them technicians severely lowers the standard for what is considered a technician lol :chuckle

[TheMAN]

replace a oil pan on a 20 year old car at the dealer? plus, because of the age of the car they would argue and whine. I really didnt care. thats why i didnt brign the mazda3

why not? they're the ones who are paying, NOT YOU!!!

[Booostin]

Sometimes its just not worth the hassle

[FoXy]

Did they respond?

They did, were all apologetic... gave me a hald price oil change for the next time... big spenders!

[Booostin]

They did, were all apologetic... gave me a hald price oil change for the next time... big spenders!

Someone screwed up my oil change and I just never went back to them again... they lose my business all together... dont want any free shit or discounts.

[FoXy]

They didnt screw up my oil change, btu they told me that the power steering fluid was low AND leaking so they topped it up and said i shoule have it checked out. They even proceeded to pull me out of the car to show me where it was "leaking" down below. I knew something was odd about that cus I had just had that pump replaced a couple months before as a recall. So I called the dealer and demanded it to bring it in thta minute as this was a friday of a long weekend and I needed the car for the weekend. I spend the better part of the afternoon f*cking around at the dealer and then just said it must have been and air bubble and there was no leaking. Turns out the fluid I saw below was just some dumb ass kid who spilled it while pouring. F*cking nit witts.

[greaves82]

Thanks for the heads up, I've always been comtemplating whether or not to use these types of places. I think im going to stay away from them.

[Marcus Michaels]

Just wanted to provided some insight into the Mr. Lube, Oil Changers and the automotive industry as a whole. Full disclosure: I have worked at both Mr. Lube (one year) and Oil Changers (3 years) both part time while in school and full time in the summer. I left the industry in 2007 but never hesitated to recommend or use any of these places. While I share the concern that you would like someone knowledgable to work on your vehicle, the same issues that appear in the quick lube industry are the same across the automotive industry and for that matter any business. The service provided is only as good as the staff performing it which ultimately is a reflection on the management of the business and their desire to be in business for the long term.
Don't fool yourself and believe that mechanics or dealers don't make mistakes....everyone makes mistakes. What matters ultimately, is how the mistake is handled and rectified.
I continue to have my oil change at Oil Changers with no issues to report. I have been doing the same with my wife's Honda. My dad used to take his Mercedes and my mom's Audi to the dealer but after coming to my work a few times, he realized how convenient it was and how much time he wasted at the dealer.
I have always found the dealers "scare" tactics about recommended services ridiculous and hate using them for anything other than warranty recalls.
One other note about only Mazda parts can be used...this is nonsense. As long as the part meets the warranty requirements you can use it and Mazda CANNOT void your warranty. This is the same for all manufacturers. Honda and Toyota have done an enviable job of convincing their customers to "bring it home". You can do the oil change in your driveway...just keep your receipts and record the date and mileage of the service.


Bottom line, use whomever you feel most comfortable with.