Let’s look into the 6 symptoms of cheap oil changes you must avoid and how they could affect the life of your engine if you don’t.
I’ve been doing my own oil changes for almost 35 years now. I had a short stint, when I was living in an apartment, where I couldn’t do them myself. After one screw-up from the quick oil change joint I took it to, I haven’t been back.
I also spent a couple of years working at a local dealership as an apprentice technician. In that time, I did between 1-3 oil changes a day. I was trained in how to do them and one of the first things I learned was the things that I shouldn’t do. Things that would cause the oil to leak out and make a mess. Things that would possibly cause damage to the engine or the engine to seize. I’ll share my experience and give you the ins and outs of the business of quick oil changes.
Loss Leader
Let’s start with the low price gimmick. A loss leader is a product or service sold at a loss to attract customers. The cheap oil change is a loss leader for most companies. The 6 symptoms of cheap oil changes can be driven by the fact that these oil changes are a loss leader. Time for some basic math.
5 qt of oil = $17-$23
quality oil filter = $4
Total cost = $21 to $27 + tax
Average time to do an oil change = 30 min
Estimated hourly wage for oil change tech = $13
Labor total = $6.50
Total cost to the business = $27.50-$33.50
Even if they got the oil for $14 (bulk) and the filter for $2 (wholesale) they’re still going to have to pay the technician.
I’ve seen some places charge as little as $14.99 for an oil change.
The Up-Sell
Their goal is to get you in and then up-sell you on something else to make up the difference. There is a great deal of pressure on the technician to find “something” that your car “might” need. I put that in quotes because the pressure is high to sell something over and above the oil change.
The kicker here is that the management expects the tech to do the oil change and thoroughly check out the car … still within the 30 minute window. There are some easy checks the techs will do that point to high dollar up-sells, but to stay within the 30 minute window some techs start to cut corners. They don’t remove the splash pan, they miss that the oil filter came off and left the gasket on the engine, they forget to install an oil filter or oil. Even worse, I’ve heard that they don’t drain all the oil, then throw a new filter on and top it off.
Now I have to say that not all of these happen all the time and not all shops do these things. I would recommend that you change your oil at least once. That way you know the proper way to do it.
If you have the chance to watch the oil change being done, take advantage of that. You can learn whether or not a shop is trustworthy that way. If they’re trustworthy in the little things, then maybe you can feel comfortable in trusting them with bigger things.
These 6 symptoms of cheap oil changes reveal short cuts that could leave your car vulnerable to premature wear, breakdown and could even ruin your engine.
The 6 Symptoms of Cheap Oil Changes
1 Dripping Oil On Your Driveway
When you find that you have dripping oil under your car after your fresh oil change you know that something is wrong. Best scenario, it’s a dirty oil change. One where they didn’t remove the skid plates or splash pans that were right below the oil filter. When they pull the oil filter the excess drips on the frame or skid plates. Eventually gravity gets the best of the oil and pulls it to the ground. Now you have a stain on your driveway or garage floor. I’ll cover how to fix that in another blog post.
Worst case scenario is that you have a new oil leak from one of the below situations.
The first one to check is this next one.
2 Loose Drain Plug
Loose oil drain plug, not enough though to drip on the driveway yet.
If the tech forgets to properly torque the oil drain plug at best it will drip on your driveway. At worst it will fall out and you’ll lose all the oil, and with no oil the engine is a goner. Once the tech has torqued the drain plug they should clean it off so that it’s dry. If you’re seeing any oil on the drain plug or around it you will want to check the torque or have them recheck and clean it.
You should never have to deal with a messy oil change and drips on your driveway or in your garage. A properly done oil change won’t leave stains under your vehicle.
3 No Oil/Low Oil/High oil
If the tech forgets to install oil in your engine or doesn’t install the correct amount of oil it can be disastrous. Obviously your engine will not run very long with no oil in it. How long? The answer is in minutes, not hours. Oil reduces friction and therefore reduces heat as well. Once the high speed moving parts have increased friction and heat, they end up welding themselves together and breaking parts. If they weld themselves together and the engine no longer turns we call this a ordering Aurogra online seized engine.
It only takes a moment to pop the hood and check the oil level yourself prior to driving out of the parking lot. Make sure you’re on a flat surface and it’s best to leave the vehicle sit with the engine off for 5-10 minutes. Sometimes it takes 5-10 minutes to pay your bill and walk out to your car from the time that they parked the vehicle. If it’s a little low, wait a few minutes and check it again. Read my Preventative Engine Maintenance 101 for an in-depth explanation on how to check your engine oil.
You can check for this next issue at the same time.
Low dirty oil
4 Oil Not Changed
This should never happen, but I know it has, so I have to mention it. The shop or tech could be very unscrupulous and only drain out a little oil to make it look like he drained it all. Then he installs only a quart or so to top it off so the level is correct. If you suspect this, the easy way to check is to pull the dipstick so you can see the color of the oil. You’re looking for oil that is golden brown like honey. If the oil is still dark then most likely it wasn’t fully changed.
With a fresh oil change the oil should be hard to see and right on the Full mark.
Old oil that is dirty will cause excess wear in your engine. If you suspect that take your concern to the manager. If the manager won’t fix it then I would take my business elsewhere.
5 Oil Lake Under Vehicle
It doesn’t happen very often, but occasionally the gasket will stick on the engine block and not come off with the oil filter. It usually happens when someone over tightens the oil filter and when the oil change is overdue.
If the gasket is still on the engine and the tech installs a new filter with a gasket on it the two gaskets can sometimes line up. The problem is that when the tech tightens down the oil filter the gaskets may deform. When the vehicle is started, the oil pressure will find any way to get out. Most likely this ends up pumping most, if not all, of the oil out of the engine. You’re starting to see a pattern here. Hopefully the tech catches this before they deliver the car to you. Most of the time the double gasket won’t hold pressure more than 10-15 seconds.
6 Loose Filter/No Filter
The black cylinder with writing on it is an oil filter.
If the tech doesn’t properly torque the oil filter the best you could hope for is a leak. Depending on the vehicle, the oil filter could vibrate loose. You will lose all your oil and your oil light will come on, or your oil gauge will read no pressure before the filter falls off. And as we all know by now no oil equals a ruined engine.
Might be a wise idea to verify that the oil filter is at least installed prior to leaving the shop. If it’s easy to reach it would be easy to check the torque. It should be snug.
Conclusion:
As I said earlier, I recommend you change the oil on each one of your cars at least once. That way you have the experience and if you know how to do it, then you know when it’s done wrong. You might find that knowing how to do this is a little confidence booster. At the very least, you will be less likely to get ripped off by someone who might think that you know nothing. Knowing how to do this will also help you build rapport with your mechanic.
The List
Let’s circle back on one last thing, the list. I’ll be honest, most cars have something that could be done. Does it need to be done right away? Maybe. Does it all need to be done right now? Most likely not, unless you’ve been neglecting your vehicle for a long time. In this post I talk about how to maintain your car without breaking the bank and touch on the list and what you need to know about maintenance. I’ll share more about how to decipher the list in an upcoming post. My short answer for now is that until you can determine these things yourself you will have to trust your mechanic.
If there is a safety item, like brakes on the list then you should ask the mechanic if it’s safe to drive without doing the repair? Ask if it can wait until your next oil change (3000-5000 miles). If they say it is safe, then feel free to get a second opinion. If they say it’s not safe to drive with the issue then you may have to go ahead and get it done.
They’re Not All Bad
This whole article talks about some of the negative things that can happen. This is not to say that these 6 symptoms of cheap oil changes happen all the time to everyone who takes their vehicle in for a cheap oil change. Not every tech or business is out to get you. Some of the techs are distracted, overworked, or pressured by deadlines and demands which increases the probability of these issues. Accidents happen as well.
Now that you know the 6 symptoms of cheap oil changes you must avoid, you should now feel more confident in understanding the possible pitfalls and risks of a cheap oil change and how to avoid an expensive issue. Knowing what can happen and why will help you defend your rights if an issue should arise. I put together the Quick Oil Change Checklist that you can download to make sure that you avoid a blown engine from that cheap oil change.