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[rphilbeck]

http://mfile.akamai.com/12924/wmv/vod.ibsys.com/2006/0503/91 52183.200k.asx

[bblackwood]

Wow.

Just wow.

Jiffy Lube's (lack of) response is enough fro me to avoid them like the plague...

[Les Ismore]

The majority of repair shops are crooked. If you don't know anything about cars you will be taken for a ride (so to speak).
They look at you as a mark. If they picpocketed $200 off of you they would be in jail, but this way they have a licence to steal.
A friend of mine (a honest mechanic) was working at a dealer and they instructed him that while fixing one thing on a customers car, he should break something else so that the customer would have to have more repairs done. My friend just nodded and then didn't do it.
My brother in laws car had the "service engine" light come on so he went to the garage he normaly dealt with and they said his head gaskets were blown. $2500. The only problem is that his head gasket were fine and all he really needed was new sparks and wires.
I've got hundreds of stories like this. I know a bit about cars so I have been able to fend off the thieves somewhat but even I have been caught a couple of times in extenuating circumstances.
Hey and if you're a woman, your really screwed at most garages. They should give little girls mechanical toys to figure out just like boys. There is no reason why girls shouldn't be as mechanical as men except social. Even just so they don't get taken advantage of when they are adults.
Anyways as always,   Buyer Beware!

[Tidewater]

They broke the windshield in my Porsche, lied, denied, and then cussed me.

I'd sooner shit in ther mouths, than offer them sweat from my testicles.

oof... yikes..


M

[John Ivan]

What a drag. This just pisses ya right off eh?

Thankfully, we have a couple great shops up here. The people are really great and the Mech's are well known for being straight up honest guys. They've been in town for many many years. It's worth pointing out that they cost a few more bucks but they're worth it!! They do really good work, show you the part's, and if you are interested in what they are doing, they let ya look at the work as they go. If they screw something up, they fix it fast and then remember you. If you come back after they make a mistake, they shave a little off. They also admit if they miss something. If you need some work done and they are the folks pointing it out to you, they tell you to take it to another shop if you want to confirm the work needs to be done.

Also, we have some great back yard guys with lifts around here. My Brother is a great Mech and has saved my ass many times. I guess we are very lucky around here. It's a small town.

Interestingly ,, one of the best shops around is a dealership. The Marsh Brothers. Really great great guys..

This Jiffy Lube thing is sad. I hope they come down on them hard.

Sorry for rambling on..

Ivan.............................

[djui5]

Don't think that your dealership is any better! The wife and I have a Hyundai. We used to take it in for service regularly at the Hyundai dealership around the corner. One day we took it in, knowing the passenger headlight didn't work. They did the service/oil change/etc, and presented us with a checklist of things they had done, like always. The headlights were checked off. So I asked the wifey to turn on the headlights, out of curiosity. Sure enough, it was still out.

So I went back inside and asked the lady if they serviced everything that was checked off. She said yes, and I told her the headlights were checked off, yet out passenger light was still out. The look on her face was priceless.

Why would I take a car to be serviced somewhere if you don't trust the work supposedly being performed?

[Andy Peters]

djui5 wrote on Wed, 07 March 2007 17:41

Don't think that your dealership is any better! The wife and I have a Hyundai. We used to take it in for service regularly at the Hyundai dealership around the corner. One day we took it in, knowing the passenger headlight didn't work. They did the service/oil change/etc, and presented us with a checklist of things they had done, like always. The headlights were checked off. So I asked the wifey to turn on the headlights, out of curiosity. Sure enough, it was still out. So I went back inside and asked the lady if they serviced everything that was checked off. She said yes, and I told her the headlights were checked off, yet out passenger light was still out. The look on her face was priceless. Why would I take a car to be serviced somewhere if you don't trust the work supposedly being performed?

I bought a new Honda from a Tucson dealer, and figured it would be wise to take it to the dealer for its first service (basically, oil change). I called to make the appointment, and specified: simply change the oil w/Mobil 1, put in a new filter and a new drain plug crush washer.  I did NOT want their "special service," whatever it was.  When I dropped the car off, I reiterated my service request and got a price quote.  A couple of hours later, a service rep called, just to make sure what I wanted, and I explained again: Mobil 1, new filter, new crush washer, no special anything.

So when I picked the car up after work, I noticed that the bill was $15 more than quoted.  When I glanced at the bill, I noticed that they'd added an oil stabilizer (on a new car?), and then I realized that they'd done their full-on "service," which I'd specifically told them NOT to do!

After complaining, first they said, "Oh, that's what you asked for," and then I showed them my copy of the quote, and then they said, "oh, there was a computer glitch ..." and they redid the bill.  When I got out to the car, I saw their service checklist, which included everything listed on their fancy service for which they tried to bill me.  So clearly they just did what they wanted to do and hoped that I wouldn't notice.

This dealership pissed me off when I bought the car ... one of the sales managers refused to fax a copy of the invoice to my credit union (so I could close the loan) until I threatened to nix the deal and get my deposit back.  And the kicker was that they brought in the wrong color car (the car has exactly one option: the color!); as a result, the top-dog sales manager ended up taking $1300 of the price of the car.

So fuck 'em.  I take all three cars to a local guy who's honest and no bullshit.  I brought the '96 Cherokee in because it had a minor oil leak (139K miles), and he said, "It's the rear main seal.  You can either spend $300 in labor to fix a four-dollar part, or put in oil stabilizer, which will help swell that seal and hopefully that'll deal with the problem until you need to do the clutch."

Anyways: when it comes to cars, it's worthwhile talking to friends to see who they take their cars to.   And you're probably best off if the guy who's name is on the shop is also actually in the shop doing the work.

-a

[mjgreeneaudio]

I own a 1995 BMW 530I.  I have taken it in to have the oil changed at Jiffy Lube.  They always tell me that they checked the transmission fluid and checked the battery.  Two problems.  The batter is underneath the rear seat and it is nothing short of a major undertaking to get to the battery.   Not to mention the car seats and toys that are always in my back seat because of my two kids.  Problem two.   The transmission is a sealed transmission that only the dealer can get into.  When I had a transmission problem 4 years ago I took it into a local independent BMW shop that does all my repair work and have been in the business for 25 years and even they couldn't check the transmission.  It is a dealer only service!!!  

So can anyone else explain how these pinheads magically checked all this stuff?  

I also have a widow washer fluid sensor the comes on and stays on until you refill the washer fluid.  It was low and the warning sensor was on when I took it in.  They said they topped off the washer fluid when I paid the bill.  Well then how come the fluid sensor was still on and the fluid tank was empty?   Because they are full of shit!!!

We need more stories like this to at least keep people honest!!!

Michael Greene

[Version]

wow...

My dad owns a repair shop and the only thing he tells his employees to do is become friends with the customers. It is an honest, fair business.

His problem, this day in age, is that he is not able to perform on the increasingly proprietary machinery in most new cars. This troubles him, because he has built a customer base over the last 38 years and they really don't like being told to go back to the dealership. The only operations (besides changing tires) he can perform are the same ones Jiffy Lube does for less, because they swindle people, underpay their employees and can afford to lose customers.

People, understandably after hearing about this, do NOT trust big corporations when they are in a situation where they HAVE to have something serviced and they have NO idea how to do it themselves. It's too bad they keep going back to them...

Another group that has about the same reputation: Geek Squad (Best Buy)

[J.J. Blair]

As least they lube you before they screw you.  Nothing like being ass raped while dry.  Ouch.

[Tidewater]

(waits 22 seconds for post flood control)

Does Jiffy Lube have a sister?



M

[rphilbeck]

J.J. Blair wrote on Thu, 08 March 2007 12:04

Nothing like being ass raped while dry.

I would request the moderators implement a don't ask don't tell policy.


PLEASE!

[dcollins]

J.J. Blair wrote on Thu, 08 March 2007 09:04

As least they lube you before they screw you.  Nothing like being ass raped while dry.  Ouch.

Is this the voice of experience?

If I hadn't been watching, they would have started my car with no oil.  So not even that much is true!

You have to have a pair of brass bollocks to show me my air filter that's maybe 2 months old and suggest replacement......

DC

[YZ]

Les Ismore wrote on Wed, 07 March 2007 17:52

The majority of repair shops are crooked. If you don't know anything about cars you will be taken for a ride (so to speak). (snip) I've got hundreds of stories like this. (snip) Hey and if you're a woman, your really screwed at most garages.

True, and it is not particular to the USA, I've seen it happen in a variety of countries.

The most common swindle is to overcharge for parts, so the bill would look like $500 in parts and $150 in labor while the actual cost of the parts is really only $300.

The worst example of this happened to my sister, one shop tried to charge her $900 for a part that costs $150 in a dealership; I doubt that they would have tried this if the client was male.

When I confronted them, they said: "hey, an Abarth engine and a hot chick, what did you expect..."

[compasspnt]

Once drove away from a Jiffy Lube after an oil change (headed towards the interstate for a 1000 mile drive).

Got two blocks and noticed the oil pressure had dropped.

Did a 180 and went back.

They had forgotten to screw in the plug on the bottom of the oil pan.

[Les Ismore]

Dhoooh......

[CHANCE]

compasspnt wrote on Sat, 10 March 2007 10:59

Once drove away from a Jiffy Lube after an oil change (headed towards the interstate for a 1000 mile drive). Got two blocks and noticed the oil pressure had dropped. Did a 180 and went back. They had forgotten to screw in the plug on the bottom of the oil pan.

Guages,, a must have!

[ssltech]

Tidewater wrote on Wed, 07 March 2007 16:21

They broke the windshield in my Porsche, lied, denied, and then cussed me.

Don't tell me...

You have a 924/944 and they lifted the engine cover too high up, -right?

I've called the local Volvo district manager after the service manager at the local Volvo store told me to my face that the rear wheels didn't ever need to be balanced... On ANY car.

If you're a woman it's worse.

CV axles that were never replaced, oil drain plugs left out, I've seen quite a few. -Hell, if I were in that job I might make a few mistakes myself, but fraud is fraud, and I'd never stoop to that. -Imagine if I billed people for microphone repairs and told them that I had to replace capsule, or whatever...

It's just flat-out immoral, and there's no defence.

Keith

[Jessica A. Engle]

ssltech wrote on Tue, 20 March 2007 17:13[/quote

oil drain plugs left out... Keith

That happened to my sister.

She's got an 01 PT Cruiser (worthless hunk of garbage)... and it's had all kinds of electrical problems.  Headlights keep shorting out (while driving), the alarm goes off at random times, and the idiot lights are always going off (transmission, brake, airbag...).  

Yet the Chrystler mechanics insist "nothing" is wrong with it.

-J

[Tidewater]

Hmmm... nothing

[rankus]

When I was kid I worked in an auto shop...  My job was mainly doing oil changes, and changing tires etc...

One day I had done a brake job on a car and had put the wheels back on , but not the lug nuts, .... and then went for lunch... leaving the car on the hoist...

I came back from lunch to a purple faced boss telling me that the customer made it a block or two before two of the wheels fell off...

I asked who had let the car down and sent the customer away?  He did...

I'm glad no one was hurt.

The morale to the story?   I check things out myself every time I get my car back from a service shop...

[CHANCE]

My daughter went to Jiffy lube. She has a Honda Del Sol. Jiffy lube tightened the drain plug too tight. Because they did this, the next oil change, they couldn't remove the drain plug because the threaded insert in the oli pan was turning with the drain plug. I discovered that this is a problem with the Honda engines. The insert is secured by crimping to the pan. They wanted to put a new pan on (same crimp fitting), but I took the old pan and brazed the insert to the pan. I did a similiar mod to the automatic trans pan because they don't have drain plugs at all. It's a simple task to just drill a hole and braze nut in the hole and use a bolt with an O-ring. This makes changing trans oil a breese.

[Andy Peters]

CHANCE wrote on Fri, 23 March 2007 05:55

My daughter went to Jiffy lube. She has a Honda Del Sol. Jiffy lube tightened the drain plug too tight. Because they did this, the next oil change, they couldn't remove the drain plug because the threaded insert in the oli pan was turning with the drain plug. I discovered that this is a problem with the Honda engines. The insert is secured by crimping to the pan. They wanted to put a new pan on (same crimp fitting), but I took the old pan and brazed the insert to the pan. I did a similiar mod to the automatic trans pan because they don't have drain plugs at all. It's a simple task to just drill a hole and braze nut in the hole and use a bolt with an O-ring. This makes changing trans oil a breese.

Another Honda point: When you change the oil or diff or trans fluid on a Honda, you have to replace the crush washer.  If you don't, you can get leaks and/or a seized drain plug.

Dunno if JL and the like know this.  I bought a lifetime supply of washers from H and A Accessories for like fifty cents a pop and I give them and the filter to my mechanic.  (Saves him a trip across town for the filter, as AutoZone et al don't carry filters for the S2000.)

-a

[Phillip Graham]

RPhilbeck wrote on Wed, 07 March 2007 15:15

http://mfile.akamai.com/12924/wmv/vod.ibsys.com/2006/0503/91 52183.200k.asx

Typical....

ANYBODY who can figure out the groups/inserts/auxes, etc. on a mixing console can do their own car repairs.  Some cars are more of a PITA (e.g. most german cars) than others, but you can do it!

Buy a good floor jack, two jackstands, wheel chocks, a prybar, a torque wrench, an electric impact wrench from Harbor freight, and a socket set.  For the cost of one single quality microphone you will be well on your way.

Buy a Haynes manual for your car, and read the two chapters at the beginning about car basics that everyone wants to skip.  Then go find the enthusiasts forum for your car (or its sister), and read their faqs and how tos.  Virtually every car on earth has an enthusiasts forum.  Before the Nissan pickup I own now, I had a Buick Regal, and even that has a performance forum!

Enthusiast forums typically know more about the cars than the dealerships do; that's a dirty little secret your dealer does not want you to figure out.  Chasing all the minor problems that large fractions of people on the forums notice is one of the best things you can do for your car.

Even the really big repairs you can do yourself, if you are nervous about doing everything properly, go to your local salvage yard, find your car, or a related one (e.g. same motor) and practice the repair on a junker.  My buddy the Volvo expert learned all his repair chops this way.

BTW, if you live in the south east USA, Pull-a-Part (www.pullapart.com) is the Cadillac of salvage yards.  They might eventually go nation-wide, and are really impressive.  We have two near metro Atlanta.

Ok, that's more than 2 cents.  Anyone in the USA have the engine computer from a 1996 or 1997 Nissan D21 or WD21?  

[djui5]

More on Hyundai's "great service".
The wife said a couple weeks ago the Air Conditioning went out on our Elantra. I've been meaning to have it checked out, but it hasn't been a big deal because summer hasn't hit yet. If any of you have ever been to Central AZ in the summer, you know how unGodly hot it gets. Also, I've been noticing a couple of drops here and there of Anti-Freeze. No biggie I thought.

Then the other day the cars temperature goes through the roof. So I decide it's time to take it in for servicing. We decided on a different Hyundai dealer because of the crap from the last one, so we have to drive 30 mins away to a new dealership. I assumed all of these problems would be under their nifty 10 year, 100,000 mile warranty we have right? Wrong.

We have the car checked out, and the lady calls back saying the air conditioning needs new freon (duh), and she's recommending the summer air servicing which includes a refill on freon, added dye and leak checking, and something else. So also says the fluid leak is from a coolant bypass hose that has a hole in it. I asked how much to fix the hose, and she said they recommend fixing the hose, fixing the thermostat as the extra heat on the engine has put stress on that poor little thermostat, and doing a full radiator flush. I asked how much and she said $400. Almost fell out of my chair. I said, "how much for just the hose", she says "$75 plus the part, which is $15". F'n shit. So I said, "this is all covered by our warranty right?". She says "no, the warranty, after 5 years/60,000 miles only covers the drive train". I respond "Well isn't the coolant system part of the engine?". She says "No, it's a bypass hose".

Is she f'n serious? How is the coolant system NOT part of the engine? Mother of shit I'm getting pissed.

Then I said to go ahead with the Air Conditioning thing, and to call me if they find anything wrong. I figured that if there isn't any freon, there has to be a leak somewhere as freon doesn't just dissipate for no reason. It's only $80, which isn't bad really. So they do the repairs and she calls me back. She says "well there isn't a leak anywhere, the mechanic said that the air conditioning system has a blowoff valve, similar to turbo chargers, so when the system gets stressed it releases pressure, which can also release freon". So that's good news. We go to pick up the car on a Saturday, and arrive just before closing, only to find out that parts doesn't have that f'n hose. Well I don't wanna drive the car with the temp problem, so we have to leave the car in their parking lot all weekend as the hose will be in Monday morning. Monday we go pick up the car and the hose. I hoped to replace the hose in their parking lot, but later decided not to because it looked like it could take longer than expected. In the garage at home I spent 3 hrs trying to get this damn hose on, which attaches TO THE ENGINE BLOCK. One end is easy to put on, but the other isn't, so I fight with it.

Anyway, it seems that this Hyundai warranty is purely bull$hit. Bet if I threw a rod they'd say it wasn't covered.
Never again will we buy a new Hyundai, never again...

[CHANCE]

Areal cool trick for getting stubborn hoses on is to put them in boiling water. It softens the rubber. If there is no metal in the hose, a short stay in a microwave oven works wonders too

[rnicklaus]

dcollins wrote on Thu, 08 March 2007 21:29

You have to have a pair of brass bollocks to show me my air filter that's maybe 2 months old and suggest replacement...... DC

I saw the guy wipe his dirty, oily thumb on my air filter (that I had changed maybe 2 months prior) and then walk over to me and tell me it was dirty and needed to be changed.

I just stared at him and shook my head.