Yeah, but I got a coupon!
I’m happy to pay the dealer, make sure the right stuff is used and the records are complete. And free snacks in the waiting room.
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And, a brand-new loaner car to use for a few errands while they service my car.
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Then you should find a different dealership.
I still use the dealership from which I bought my car more than 10 years ago. But, their price for an oil change is equal to–or lower–than what local indy competitors charge.
Same with me, take it in, they drive me home, pick me up when it’s ready.
I would assume that they did not change the oil.
After reading all the posting under this topic, “Mechanic FAILED Simple Honesty Test,” I am so very thankful I have the automobile dealers I do in the area I live. Below are excerpts of the guarantees offered by two of the local dealers where I have bought cars.
I’m not stupid nor insensitive, I know not everyone can afford to buy a new car or even a certified used car, so this posting is not intended for those folks.
I know this may upset some folks, but I have to ask, why would anyone who buys a new or certified automobile from a dealer who does not offer guarantees like these listed below?
Both of these dealers offer the following guarantees for the life of a New Automobile and for 2-years or 200,000 miles on their Certified Automobiles.
Life-Time Warranty on the Engine… Parts and Service Guaranteed for Life…
Oil and Filters for Life… State Inspections for Life… Towing for Life…
The posting below is from my local Honda Dealer and I’ve had no problems seeking service on my 2020 Honda Fit.
Local Honda Dealer…
The posting below this is from my local Toyota Dealer and I have had no problem seeking service on my 2019 Honda Corolla SE Hatchback. When I brought my 2019 in for a Recall on the Fuel Pump, and I also brought it in for the State Inspection, an Oil Change, and to have them Rotate the Tires, he offered me a loaner… I declined and sat around drinking his Free Gourmet Coffee and munched on his Free Danish while the work was performed…
But you might say “The Proof is in the Pudding…” I am ready to back this up with my wife’s 1985 Toyota Corolla Le, that we bought new 36-years ago from this dealer… They have and continue to honor the Free Oil Changes and Free State Inspections all these years… The car has over 220,000 miles on it and when it needed service, it was performed quickly, professionally, and with a Life-Time Guarantee. Luckily it has not needed much work. The first alternator we paid for and the next one was on-the-house… We’ve had some problems with the A/C over the years and they offered to convert the R-12 system to R-134 for Free, we accepted… When the starter died, and we had the car towed to them, they offered to pay the towing tab, we declined and submitted the bill to our car insurance (But that’s a different story…). They also replaced the Struts twice, the first time, we paid for, but the replacement replacements were free (life-time Parts and Service…).
Local Toyota Dealer…
In the past, when we have been dependent on finding and keeping a Good Mechanic, we let them know it, we brought coffee and donuts to the shop and not just when we were in for service. Sometimes we did it just to say HI, and we spoke to them, we learned their names, we asked about their families and on subsequent visits, we asked about things they might have mentioned on an earlier visit (because we wrote it down…).
Who would you prefer to have working on your car?
The two on the Left… Or the one on the Right?
The shops that advertise on Groupon in my area offer oil changes as low as $15 but not for synthetic oil.
There is a Midas shop offering a synthetic blend oil change for $27, for a real synthetic oil change the price is $57, 3 dollars less than the dealer.
Shops offer these at cost oil changes to bring in vehicles and find additional needed work. A vehicle with only 5000 miles is a loosing deal for the shop, it is no surprise that the lube tech decided the tire rotation was not need at such low miles, he may not have been compensated for the rotation.
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Is this a brand new vehicle under warranty?
This is the definition of why I take my car, truck, boat and RV to the dealer during the warranty period. Once the warranty is done, the local independent shop, the one whose been in business for 50 years, gets my business. He, and his sons, do cars, boats and RVs. It’s a very busy place because they know what they are doing. And no they don’t accept coupons or advertise. I spent too much money buying these things to let some poorly trained goof touch them.
I can’t for the life of me figure out why oil change prices have remained so crazy low. When I was a teenager in the mid-80’s and had my first job at the corner Chevron station, an oil change ran just under $30. And that was 1986 dollars. Today that same basic oil change should cost twice that much but there are still quick lube places and bottom-feeder repair shops advertising oil changes for $24.95. Crazy.
The shop where I work charges $89.95 for a synthetic oil change service with maintenance inspection. And we have all the work we can handle,.
+1 to Asemaster’s comments.
But, let’s not forget that we just had a recent thread started by someone who thought that a brand-new Michelin tire should cost no more than $50. Some people have very strange or outdated ideas regarding the price of goods and services in the 21st Century.
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Yeah, but you’re honest. Those $25 oil changes at Jiffy Lube are loss leaders to get people in so they can lie about all the urgent work the car needs right now.
“Hey, you’re just about all set, but I pulled this air filter out of the trash and want you to think it’s yours. Look how nasty it is. You better have us change that for 30 bucks.”
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I wouldn’t go back there.
I bought a used car from a friend who maintained the car religiously at the dealership. He went in every 5K miles for service and paid for whatever they suggested. When I am working on this car (Over 100K miles), I can tell that some of the work they charged for was not done. Most significant was the oil filter that was stuck there hard with a ton of crud in the area. He had just had the oil changed as part of his pre-sale clearance just to be sure there is nothing wrong with the car.
I have bought a new Tucson, has free maintenance with it. But I think I am going to do the oil changes myself. The Synthetic oil and Hyundai brand filter costs me $27 and I don’t have to wait a few hours for the service. They already scratched and dented wife’s car, once for the 1st oil change (the fixed the dent later) and then the free carwash left a few nasty scratches. Not worth going there for anything unless I am forced to.
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… and that would be for a really poor quality “white box” filter from China.
They might also offer to install a name-brand filter for $50.
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If they even change it.
There was a pretty good investigative report awhile back that showed chain stores insisting that the coolant needed to be flushed. Hidden cameras saw that they charged for the work, but never actually did it. That’s the kind of thing that tends to be a lot more common at chain quickie-lube places than at regular shops.
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and they probably give you a coupon to get you back to rip you off again next time.
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Just to be clear, it wasn’t the dealer that did the bad service for the OP.
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You marked the tires and caught them for that, mark the filter too. Messy to change the filter without changing the oil.
Some dealers will work on any vehicle. Some have coupons where they will sell a triple full synth oil change, filter, tire rotation, and lift / brake multipoint inspection package for $150 or so. Just have to use it up within 18 mos or so. Must be able to say “no”, the service manager will come at you with all kinds of ups and extras.
I stopped buying service unless I’m stuck on the road. The prices and quality of service has plunged in recent years.
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Just to reiterate, it apparently was not a franchised car dealer that did this so this “crooked dealer” scenario needs to have a stake in the heart.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with upsells; as long as the need is legitimate and the work is done. This is because of the simple reason that the majority of car owners have no idea what their car needs nor do they really even care; until something goes south on them such as a broken ball joint or total brake failure.
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I like a bargain as much as anyone else but my rule is, “If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is”.
The simple truth is that any business that hopes to remain in business, at a minimum, has to charge enough to cover the cost of materials, labor, overhead and a reasonable profit and if they’re not, they’re.lying to you.
Either now by using inferior parts, unskilled labor and omitting work or in the future by selling you unnecessary and overpriced additional work.
So if a good price on a DYI oil change is $15 for the oil and $5 for the filter, we need to ask ourselves, “How can a shop do it for $19.95 and still pay the mechanic and keep the lights on?” and if you can’t answer that, go to someone you can trust.
That $30 Groupon may look like a great deal but it’s beans compared to the cost of repairing engine damage.
.
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Yes, that’s true. But there are also crooked dealerships out there. Google “Denny Hecker” for a quick overview of a guy who spent a fair amount of time in prison for the crooked things his dealerships were doing (by his command). There are also, probably, honest Jiffy Lubes out there too.
It’s never a bad idea to try and determine the honesty of the work before you completely trust a shop, no matter what sign is on the front lawn.
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