Home Forums Gear Hunting Trucks and Four-Wheel Drives oil/filter changes - besides the dealer

I have always taken my vehicles (And most recently my 2021 F150) to the dealership for oil changes. Good bad or indifferent, never had any issues other than having to say no to a new cabin and new air filter every single time.

But I am over due now for a change and the dealer is somehow booked out another month for Oil Change services. Thinking of just going to like a Jiffy Lube, or Einstiens pull in, to get it done. Anyone ever ran into an issues taking it to a non dealer chain shop?

The fast oil change places have put a lot of money in my pocket over the years. Don't you have any good independent repair shops in your area?

I am sure there are (900k people in the Treasure Valley now)...guess I just need to do some research, call around.

No car I own will ever drive into in a fast oil change place. If I can't see what kind of filter they are using or oil along with care taken I want no part of it. I do my own oil changes , I trust myself . My wife's car gets done by the dealer and for some reason they do an excellent job and I follow up after every oil change they do.

Only fast lube place I have been to is Valvoline.

My last place of employment used them on all light vehicles. I was in 4 different stores and all of the employees actually seemed to know what they were doing

Some guys wear suits and don't like to get their hands dirty.

I take my Porsche and Audi to a place called Bavarian Auto Repairs. Excellent work and fairly priced. I change the oil on my Tundra, Mach 1 and Dart. Here in Idaho I take my F150 and Suburban to Walmart every two years. I specify the filter and oil. I just had both done, same old guy that has been there for years. Never an issue.

I quit using the fast change type shops a long time ago, too many screwups: wrong grade oil, too much oil, not having right wrench for oil drain plug, not having correct filter in stock...

Had them try and charge me for 7 quarts of oil one time in a truck with 6 qt capacity. Manager went back and pulled dip stick - overfilled. Drain and repeat. They aren't so quick when you have to make them fix the screwups.

What fast change type shop was this?

Jiffy Lube and others use the 'one size fits all' wrench

I don't doubt that. I usually do my own trucks, but the cars are a pain because of the low ride height. There is a pretty large place here called Rocket Lube that seems to have some well-trained guys. They do my wife and daughter's cars. My wife did me a favor a while back and took in my F150 to save me some time. When I changed that oil the next time, it took 30 minutes just to get the filter off with oil filter pliers. It was like they had snugged it with a breaker bar. No thanks.....

I had Jiffy Lube forget to put the oil cap back on.I see some of them use a pump to pull out the oil thru the dip stick tube.How much sludge is left inthe pan that way?

I prefer to change my own and let it drain for a half hour or so.

My Duramax gets free oil change as part of the extended warranty.The shop manager bitches about that as I get a a 3 gallon oil change and they get a warranty payment for a $79, 6 quart change

I've forgotten the Brand/Franchise names, they were shops when I was in Huntsville AL and Alexandria/Franconia VA in the mid to late 90s.

We pretty much do whatever needs doing around here. Can't imagine paying someone to change the oil in our vehicles or vessels.

The fast lube joints are good at stripping the drain plug

I had that from a car dealer at 5k. I am surprised the oil pan did not drain out. If the filter is facing downward I fill it with oil before screwing it on, I doubt a dealer or fast lube does that. Oh and I also clean up around everything when done.

How many have they stripped of yours?

mark your filter before you take it in and check the mark when you get the vehicle back!!!

my brother caught them leaving the same filter on.

I went to Valvoline for oil changes for maybe five years. Never had any issues.

I will usually do all my vehicles, except every year or two one of them comes due on a wet rainy/slushly week in the winter then I may take it in have it done rather then lay in the slush. ( boats pretty much fill my garage in the winter). I drive a company car and have to go to a commercial place for that one. I mostly use Valvoline when i do need to take the car in. No real complaints, its just that by doing it myself, I can change into Mobil one with a Wix filter for less than they would charge for the standard valvoline stuff. When you count the 30 minutes of driving/the wait, I can do all three of my cars in the driveway faster than they do one.

EdM,
None of mine cause I don't go there.
Some of our company trucks were stripped and my neighbors car was.

My buddy bought a used BMW X7 a few months ago with about 5k miles on it. Took it to BMW dealership for oil change at 10k miles. They called and said the plug was stripped and wanted $5k to replace the oil pan. Turns out the dealer he bought it from had sent it to one of the quick lube places for the oil change and they stripped it. He ended up having an independent shop tap the threads and put in a bigger plug.

I use to do my own, but getting burned getting at the oil filter and the draining drips and clean up were not worth the $24.99 that the local full service place charges to change out the oil, filter and check everything under the hood and tire pressure. I buy the 6 quarts of Castrol synthetic at Walmart and the dealership sends a $15.00 thank you thing every year to buy anything (like oil filters) from them. Just drop the vehicle off and pick it up later.

5k for an oil pan....Damn

Major repair. All wheel drive, differential bolts to the side of the pan and one axle goes through it. Easier to support the engine and drop the subframe to disassemble it from underneath. Plus the cost of the parts, although $5k is on the high side...........

Labor will kill you for sure.

My 2 trucks sit high enough for me to crawl under them and do it myself. I can do the oil change faster than I could drive into town and pay someone else to do it. And I know it's done right.

I can't do that with our Ford Explorer. The independent mechanic I use will do it for $10 if I bring the oil and filter. I always give him $20.

THIS.
While I have had good luck with Valvoline, I will never go to Jiffylube again after they cross threaded my drain plug. After that I do my own oil changes at a friends that has a lift. Now I'm the only dumbass I have to worry about.

I'm getting back to changing my own again after quite a long hiatus due to lower back issues.

50-75% of the down time, my changes were at the dealership (i.e. $$$$$). But, the other 25-50% were at (gasp !!) Walmart. I may be the exception......or just lucky...... But I never had a single issue there.

I actually enjoy changing my own. It gives me a chance to look around underneath. If I didn't have a lift to use I might feel a bit different. I'm too old and fat to crawl around on the ground.

I have a set of those $30 ramps you drive up on, they get even the lowest car to a comfortable height to crawl under. It's far easier, quicker, and cheaper for me to drive my vehicles up on the ramps & change the oil myself, plus I know it's done right instead of letting whatever crackhead they hired this week at the dealership/oil change place do it.

Never has there been such an easy, mundane task that has the potential to do so much damage when done by an idiot.

I got a set of ramps for the wife's Altima when a dealer oil change hit $80 bucks. I always put jack stands under it also. I ain't letting no car fall on me.

Recently watched a dealer put conventional oil in when I paid for synthetic. I made them drain it and do it again. Luckily they have video cameras in their lube bay. They argued until I said let's watch the video together.

I didn't want to put the extra miles I do on synthetic when it wasn't actually synthetic. Now I bring in my own mobile 1 and watch the new place put it in.

Bb

Friend changed his own and had receipt’s. Engine let loose and Ford wouldn’t cover the repair.

After going back and forth, they said buy a new Ford and we will make it as easy as possible. He still took a bigger hit than having them do it under warranty.

I am not surprised at these dealers and their shenanigans. Even if they put in synthetic it would be a cheap synthetic . Yet they expect people to go 10k intervals .

There is no car company that cares as little about their customers as FORD. Engine let loose because it is a POS design not because of maintenance and their engineers could have torn that engine down to see what caused what.

Kinda down in the back, so I bought my oil & filter (the best) & went to jiffy lube & sat so I could watch the work. Went OK on my old Ranger PU. (250,000 miles) I had my wife explorer (now traded) done several times at the Ford dealer. OK, but they use their (semi-synthetic) ?? Now the Explorer is traded away & we have two Subarus with free oil changes & state inspections for life. Now those jokers do try to jiggle me for extra cost services (brake fluid changes & fuel injection cleaning, I just smile & say no !! Well hell, my wife says I DON'T SMILE

Everyone thinks they are getting over on the car dealers. While most of them are living in the big house on the hill. I know three of them, and them losing out on an oil change is the same as most losing out on a cup of homemade coffee.



Was shooting with one today. He mentioned he makes 150K in financing….after he pays the finance manager 100k. And another 100k plus a little on selling warranties. Which doesn’t include car sales and service and warranty work.

You beat them out if an oil change. What a hooooot!!!

We needed to buy a car on short notice a few years ago and had to finance part of it. I did my homework and had a credit union lined up for the loan. The dealer trotted out their favorite loan papers at something like 7%. I just told him to give me the papers and I'd be back the next day with my own financing which happened to be 4% at that time. He fiddled with his papers and came out with this 'special deal' at 3%. He wasn't about to let me out the door until the deal was nailed down. His cut of 3% was still better than no cut at all.
It turned out that his 'deal' was through Capital One 360. We have an account and a CD there anyway. They have some of the best paying CD's around.