Comments on: PSA: Double Check Wal-Mart Oil Changes

By: Matthew

Matthew — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 05:31:10 +0000

Long story short…

I took my wife’s 2005 saturn to walmart to get an oil change in sept. About a month later my wife says that the “check engine light” is on. i went out to the garage and popped the hood. Well i found the oil cap was off and sitting on top of the engine, wedged there by the hood and the engine. Lost a quirt of oil.

The Walmart manager said that they will give a new oil change but will not pay for the clean up of the engine compartment, as it was covered in oil. I told him that i wanted to make a claim. He told me that it is a long process and that it could take a month, that he would have to have the car parked for that period of time and so on.

I than told him that I have no problem parking the car for a month, i also told him that i would get a rental car and get them to pay for that as well.

In the end i received and engine flush, oil change, and replacement of some engine parts that were broken in the process.

By: icookforlove1s

icookforlove1s — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 19:01:07 +0000

Michele, I think the same thing happend to me. How can solve this problem I have all my walmart oil change receipts.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 04:56:57 +0000

I had a unsatisfying experience with them as well, they changed the oil, done things right on that part except when I checked to see anything wrong around the engine & I seen the tool/wrench they use on vehicles inside the hood of my car sitting in the upper corner. Luckly for me I seen this earlier, then removed it, cause if I didn’t, it could have fell within the middle-area that operates the engine that could have lead to high-cost repairs within the 1,000’s or 10,000’s & life-threating danger I would be in cause of a mistake a mechanic made.

By: Michele

Michele — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 17:55:29 +0000

Be very careful of places like Walmart for oil changes. Once, they forgot to put the drain plug back in. Another time they stripped the threads on the filter when putting it back in causing serious leaking. Needless to say, you get what you pay for. Find a good mechanic, and get your work done there, even if it costs a little more.

By: jim

jim — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 14:21:18 +0000

Service stations are required to take the oil, but they could charge you a fee. My local gas station just points me to their disposal oil drum.

By: mapgirl

mapgirl — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 14:14:27 +0000

Another thing is that places like Jiffy Lube will over torque your screws/nuts. My guy friends all warned me about this because it makes it a beeyotch to get them off at home without a power tool.

FWIW, lessen your risk by going less often. I’ve been moving towards going every 4-5K miles instead of 3.5K and my car has not had any noticeable problems. Of course, my car is now over 7 years old so I could probably just top off monthly and wait every 6-7K!

The one thing I will say about Jiffy Lube vs the dealer is that the dealer will use a better filter. Jiffy Lube has been known to stuff an improper filter into cars which do not work as well, i.e. filter too small so it runs crap through the system.

BTW, for all the people who say they want to do their own oil changes, SAVE YOUR GALLON MILK JUGS TO DISPOSE OF OIL. DISPOSE OF THE USED OIL PROPERLY. Nearly any service station will take it from you for free or a nominal fee. Even your local municipal trash facility will take it. DO NOT EVER DUMP IN ONTO THE GROUND OR THE STORM DRAIN. I can’t say that enough.

By: Cheapo

Cheapo — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 02:37:28 +0000

Honestly no matter where you get your vehicle’s oil changed you should check to see the oil level via the dipstick and make sure the cap which is removed to fill oil in the engine is properly tightened. I have had the local Honda dealer not place the cap back on properly and even one time another Honda dealer didn’t fill the oil reservoir with the proper amount of oil. On another slightly related note, when I once had my vehicle’s tires rotated at a dealer, they forgot to tighten a few of the lug nuts for one of the wheels. I did not notice this until I drove the car, but this surely could have caused major damage or worse even an accident.

By: Conrad

Conrad — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 01:47:53 +0000

I used to change my car oil by myself but I don’t think it is worth the hassle. I take my car to the local mechanic and has him do the oil change for me. He also does a quick inspection of my car while doing the oil change. I think the service is totally worth the extra money I am paying. My advice is to befriend a local mechanic and you will have a much healthier car.

By: Derrick

Derrick — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 22:41:58 +0000

Wal-mart did the same thing to me. I never found the oil cap, and it took me about two weeks to order one that would fit my explorer. I couldn’t find a store that carried a cap that would fit. Pain in the butt.

By: Kevin

Kevin — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 19:25:50 +0000

Jiffy Lube broke a bolt holding one of my belt pulleys, thus causing the belt to loosen and make a horrific squealing noise. I took it to the Jeep dealership and they told me exactly how it happened. I promptly went back to Jiffy Lube to demand reimbursement for the $200 I spent at the dealer, but the best they did was refund my oil change cost. Needless to say I haven’t returned. One of my goals for this year is to change the oil in my car myself. Anyone have a good website or free guide on how to do so? I have a Jeep Cherokee if that helps. Thanks.

By: Rick Morley

Rick Morley — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 18:51:17 +0000

I have read that you should always replace your own oil if at all possible. The reason is that the used oil takes awhile to fully drain out of its tank. When the “Jiffy” places do it in just 10-15 minutes, that does not allow enough time to let all the used oil drain out. They then put the new oil in. But because the used oil is not completely drained out, it mixes in with the new oil. And you’re left with brand new oil that isn’t actually clean.

If you change it yourself, allow 2 hours for all the old oil to drain out. Your oil changes should last a bit longer this way.

By: Becky

Becky — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 17:54:32 +0000

Yup: Jiffy Lube didn’t replace the cap on my friend’s car and the scene in his garage the next day was much like yours.

By: staci

staci — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 17:38:10 +0000

The same exact thing happened to my mom at Walmart. We haven’t brought our cars to Walmart since.

By: Alexandra Hancock

Alexandra Hancock — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 17:31:27 +0000

We change our own oil too and use synthetic, but every few changes we take it in to an auto shop just so they can make sure we haven’t done any serious damage and to top off our other fluids. It saves us money and gives us peace of mind.

By: Patrick

Patrick — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 16:48:59 +0000

A similar event happened to a friend of mine at a discount oil change location a few years back. The only difference is that they put the cap back on, but forgot to put in new oil. He didn’t find out until the next day when his car began running inefficiently. Needless to say, he was more than a little upset. There was no permanent damage (the company paid to have his vehicle inspected and offered to cover the cost of any damages). They also gave him coupons for free oil changes for the life of the vehicle, but he never went back there again. I can’t say I blame him.