My new Accord was due for an oil change and......

[eljefino]

Originally Posted By: rustypigeon

I have seen mechanics go from reverse to forward without ever hitting the brakes. They all seem to like to remove brake drums with ballpein hammers instead of a rubber mallet. It is just painful for me to watch.


You could totally punk those guys by banging off your drums the night before, and anti-seizing their lips. They wouldn't know what to do.

 

[hpb]

For that price, I'm with you Dan! Good deal.

 

[Lapham3]

Guys-heard of a 'loss leader'? The cheap oil change and free coffee/donuts, ect, ect and the resultant warm fuzzy they give you sets you up to return and their loss gets made up the first time you go in there again for any 'real' service. It's just a part of long time business models.

 

[Silverado12]

That is a crazy good price on the oil service. I still do mine myself because I have seen that Mr. Goodwrench isn't the dude working on your car. It's always a 20 something kid. My changes take about 20 minutes max, about the time it takes me to drive to the dealer and back (excluding any wait time while there). I figure I'm always doing something to get dirty anyways, may as well get under the car. But to each his own.

 

[Hokiefyd]

Most Acura dealerships have this customer service thing figured out. I'm glad you had a good experience there.

 

[Schmoe]

Well, ain't giving up my man card as I still change the oil on my boat, truck and 06 Accord. However, when we bought the '14 CRV, Honda dealer had free oil changes for life as long as we brought the car to them when the OLM goes off. This also included a engine guarantee if they do it. How in tarnation could I resist that???? So, yes, Honda is changing my oil on the CRV.

 

[Whimsey]

While under warranty I let the Ford dealer change the oil/filter and rotate the tires every 5,000 miles as per the OM for my wife's Explorer and my F-150, it was a bargain for $39 considering they used Motorcraft oil and filters. Though I've found that the dealers REALLY tightens the filter and drain plug way too tight. I had to replace both drain plugs because because the threads were being stripped and getting the filters off was a real bear. I'm doing it myself now and can usually remove the filter by hand and remove the drain plug with normal pressure. I'm lucky now because I can arrange the OCI's to be done in decent weather, NOT winter

.

Whimsey

 

[antiqueshell]

Originally Posted By: Whimsey
Though I've found that the dealers REALLY tightens the filter and drain plug way too tight. I had to replace both drain plugs because because the threads were being stripped and getting the filters off was a real bear.


This and a million other problems with $tealerships.

Like some others said IF you are LUCKLY and find the
"needle in a haystack" (rare good $tealership)
congrats to you. However if you go to the typical $tealership you will be almost 100% guaranteed to be ripped off, have faulty work done, and or have them DELIBERATELY break other things so that you will be forced to pay them more for the original job.

I've been to dozens of $tealerships in my adult life (more than 30 years now) and I have yet to have even a decent experience with ANY $tealership with service work, warranty or cash job. Oh, and these places HATE informed customers who actually have worked on their own vehicles....they can't screw you as easily and most of the service writers and techs let you know about their disdain for us.

I'm a very reasonable guy and consider myself a good customer too, pay fair prices, don't expect something for nothing, understand that mistakes and issues happen from time to time, and not angry if there needs to be some returns to the shop, and do not hang over the tech while he is working, and it hasn't been worth a [censored]!

 

[Silverado12]

Originally Posted By: antiqueshell
Originally Posted By: Whimsey
Though I've found that the dealers REALLY tightens the filter and drain plug way too tight. I had to replace both drain plugs because because the threads were being stripped and getting the filters off was a real bear.


This and a million other problems with $tealerships.

Like some others said IF you are LUCKLY and find the
"needle in a haystack" (rare good $tealership)
congrats to you. However if you go to the typical $tealership you will be almost 100% guaranteed to be ripped off, have faulty work done, and or have them DELIBERATELY break other things so that you will be forced to pay them more for the original job.

I've been to dozens of $tealerships in my adult life (more than 30 years now) and I have yet to have even a decent experience with ANY $tealership with service work, warranty or cash job. Oh, and these places HATE informed customers who actually have worked on their own vehicles....they can't screw you as easily and most of the service writers and techs let you know about their disdain for us.

I'm a very reasonable guy and consider myself a good customer too, pay fair prices, don't expect something for nothing, understand that mistakes and issues happen from time to time, and not angry if there needs to be some returns to the shop, and do not hang over the tech while he is working, and it hasn't been worth a [censored]!



You guys must have some bad dealers up there. Here in Central VA, I take my Chevy to Heritage Chevy in Chester and they have always done an excellent job on warranty work. Pearson Dodge in Midlothian does good work too. I did have a comeback there, but I noticed the problem before I left (on my old Dodge truck when it was still under warranty) and they fixed it right away.

 

[oldmaninsc]

Originally Posted By: dan_erickson
If I have any warranty issues with a brand new car I, as well as the dealer, will have documentation of exactly when and where the oil was changed. This is a big one for me because NOT doing this has bit me in the [censored] before with a GM product about 5 years ago.

That has always been my thinking. I took the Impala to a local Chevy dealership who changed the oil and rotated the tires for about 40 bucks. This way I don't have to save and/or come up with all the receipts for oil and filter purchases and "prove" I did them if anything SHOULD ever happen.

While I'll admit I do enjoy crawling under the car (even after 5+ decades of doing so) I have at least 3 other cars to enjoy!

Besides, once the warranty is up on the Impala I'll have plenty of chances to crawl underneath it.

That being said I also check their work - look to see if the oil filter has been changed, and if the oil is at the proper level and with the tires check that the TPMS has been reset after rotating the tires. The old "trust but verify" school of thought!