Changed oil in my new van!!

[Jon K.]

I bought the wife a little Suzuki XL7 a few months ago. Great little grocery wagon. When I bought it, the sales guy says: "We will change the oil for the life of the vehicle."

Great! We called last week and asked for the oil change. "Oh", the salesman says; "that promotion is not in effect anymore." So I make a face sorta like :yikes: and send off some nasty E-mails. When I told the wife, she freaks out on me, and tells me to keep my nose out of it, what if we need warranty work or something????? Much to my surprise, I was able to control my sudden desire to strangle the wife, and went out to saw some more fallen trees out of my yard. Still, a few thoughts ran through my mind as I had the chainsaw in my hands . . . . .

Having worked out all my aggression, I ask the wife if she would like for me to just change the oil myself. "Yes, Sweetheart, that is what I would like for you to do."

So I drive the van up on some ramps, and crawl under it to find a belly pan sort of thing that completely blocks any access to the oil filter. :ugg: Four 12mm bolts, two 10mm bolts, and four phillips screws later, the belly pan is off.

Alright! I drain the oil no problem, but none of my three oil filter wrenches fit the filter. I have to go to the auto parts store to get the filter anyway, so I get a replacement filter, a wrench to fit it, and some oil.

Back under the van, and the new filter wrench still doesn't fit. It needs to be a bit bigger.

Back to the parts store.
" Are you sure this is the right filter? It is not quite as large."
"Yes, it is the right filter, it is just a bit different size."
"Are you sure you're sure?"
"Of course! Do you think we can't look up a filter?"

Ok, I pick out a filter wrench that looks like it will work on the original filter, and head back home. Sure enough, the filter comes off, the threads are the same, and I install the new filter, pour in six quarts (!) of oil, and crank it up to get it off the ramps.

The oil light doesn't go off.

I hop out of the car, and look under it just in time to see the last of my 6 quarts of oil pump out onto the garage floor. :bang:

At this time I must point out that I am old, fat, and crippled because I have been run over by my own motorcycle waaay too many times. I really do not enjoy climbing under a car.

No choice but to sop up as much oil as I can, move to a cleaner spot, and pull the filter back off. Upon very close inspection, the face of the filter is not at the right level with the offset of the threads, and the filter tightened up on the threads, not the gasket.

Back to the parts store.
"This filter doesn't work."
"It is the right filter!"
"No it's not."
"Yes it is"
"Is not!"
"Is too!"
"How 'bout I shove it up your a$$ and see if it fits that application?!?"

If you have read this far, try to harken back to the salesguy that promised me free oil changes for life . . . . . . . is he roasting in hell just yet? . . . . . . . I certainly hope so, or very, very soon.

As the parts store guy was now in no mood to speak of filters, I move on to fresh territory, the Autozone store down the street. The Autozone guy looks up the filter, and proudly produces exactly the same filter that has caused me so much misery. Something in my demeanor must have prevented him from interfering in my next move, which was to start opening boxes until I find a filter that matches the one that came off the car. Smart guy.

Ah! All is right! The new filter fits, seals properly, and holds the six fresh quarts of oil that I pour into the engine. The belly pan goes back on, no problem with the four 12mm bolts, two 10mm bolts, and four phillips screws, though it is dark now, and I have to complete the job with a drop light.

Dragging my sorry butt into the house, I am greeted by the wife with "Gee, how long does it take to change the freakin' oil anyway? I needed to take these spider lilly bulbs over to my sister. Now it is too late!"

When I get to work the next day, I have an E-mail response on my screen, the dealer is apologizing for the "misunderstanding" and I may bring the van in at my convienience.

I never really understood when people spoke of "going postal". But I am starting to get it now.

 

[Patman]

LOL! Good stuff!

I am still totally amazed at the lack of any ability in the vast majority of parts persons to make sure you have the correct part when you take in in and drop it on the counter and say "I need one of these." So they look up the number and bring out something that doesn't even resemble the part you took in even though you gave them specific vehicle information. I really liked the days when you went to the local parts store (and it even smelled like a parts store not some vanilla mist scent). The guy behind the counter knew you and what vehicle you needed parts for and could walk to the specific shelf in the back pull the parts and you KNEW they would fit.

 

[CaptainObvious]

Although you did not enjoy the experience, I enjoyed the story.

Regarding going crazy at the salesman and the dealership, and not having them honor future warranty work, there must be another Suzuki dearer somewhere. All dealers are obligated to honor warranty work.

The old adage still holds true...

If it ain't in writing, it ain't happening.

 

[JST122]

That is some funny stuff, only because I have been there before too and I feel your pain. Seems that's always the way it works out. :bang:

 

[XRpredator]

at least with that first 6 quarts of oil flowing thru the rig's engine you got everything flushed out of the system.

:rotfl:

 

[FruDaddy]

Whenever the parts moron gives me the wrong part, I like to take their crap AND the original part back to the store. That way when captain stupid says, "that's the right part number", I get to point out the differences. I once got the wrong oil pump pickup in the right box. Carried the pair back in, told the counter jockey that the new part was to short. She stood them both up on the mounting flange side by side and noted that they were the same height, so I flipped them over and pointed out the fact that the original was an inch shorter. She got me another one.

I actually enjoy the occasional game of stump the parts store moron. Try finding parts for a 67 Cutlass 442 with a 70 455 and HEI ignition.
"What year is the car?"
"1967"
"That motor isn't listed?"
"The motor is a 70"
"What did the motor come out of?"
"It doesn't matter, HEI didn't come out until 75.
"Can you bring in the old vaccuum advance so I can compare it to the ones in the back?"

 

[jaction125]

I love it. Sorry for the bad experience Jon.


Now, for all you guys who like to ruffle the feathers of the parts guy. The parts guy WILL remember you. The next time you come in 5 mins before close, he will sell you everything you need for the task at hand. Except the three cent gasket you need to finish the job. :p

That said, I've been on both sides. If I can't look up the part myself, or have any inkling that the wrong part may be recieved, I bring in the old part.

 

[Jon K.]

For the record, if I coulda got the *&#%$@ filter off, I would have brought it along the first trip. :fft:

By the time I got to the third trip, I had the filter in hand.

Even then, the difference was very subtle. I probably would have looked over it had I not known what to look for.

 

[Patman]

Now, for all you guys who like to ruffle the feathers of the parts guy. The parts guy WILL remember you. The next time you come in 5 mins before close, he will sell you everything you need for the task at hand. Except the three cent gasket you need to finish the job. :p

So they can remember me but they can't remember giving me the wrong part? :laugh:

 

[truespode]

I bought a Fuel Pump from Autozone once. Had it installed and it stopped working after only a few hundred miles.

Took it back to Autozone to get a refund because I was told it was under warranty.

They argued with me that it was not the right Fuel Pump. I had the receipt and the box it came in.

They took the entire thing apart while I sat there. They were looking for a part number that matched their computer.

Finally after getting it completely apart there was one metal piece that had the part number they were looking for.

I hate parts people, except those at Upstate Cycle.

Ivan

 

[jaction125]

So they can remember me but they can't remember giving me the wrong part? :laugh:

Don't you remember people's faces when they are swinging shovels at you? :laugh:

For the record, I agree. The same people that work at car parts places might as well work for McD's. They don't pay em a lot so they don't get a lot out of them. I work in heavy trucks, we don't have the option of being wrong, it'll cost somebody a lot of money in downtime. We also have more accurate resources (imho).

 

[captblue1]

yeah i love the parts guy. i have a 67 camaro with a reman engine out of an 83 caprice. that is real fun. I also had fun when i wanted to get a spark plug for nephews 03 yz85 and they told me that yamaha didn't make a yz85 because it wasn't in there computer. i had the part number of the plug i wanted and all.

 

[motometal]

Yea, i've had that happen too, where they are fixiating on what machine it's for, and the plug number is right there. What would they say if you said, "oh, I don't even have a motorcycle, I just collect spark plugs". They would probably be stumped.


sometimes if you have one of those cheapo strap type filter wrenches and it's too big, you can put a rag or an old sock around the filter first, then the wrench and it will work.

I'm noticing that many times the can portion of the filter varies quite a bit in length between applications and brands, even though the thread size and sealing surface are identical. This is confusing, seems like it should be standardized if ift's for the same exact vehicle.

 

[2stroke]

This is loosely realted, as far as parts counter people. Was gonna start a new flame, but I thought my topic might be a little weak....

My oldest son is 17, and he saved up from his part time job and bought a car. We just had it inspected. It needs a few things, so we spent the morning at a pick it yourself junkyard getting some items, and stopped at an advance auto parts store to get a tie rod.

The parts person looks it up, and tells me $43.95. I am shocked, and I told her Id have to think about that one. I left the place, thinking I would call an old standby, Salvo auto parts. A very helpful guy tells me that he has 2 available, one is a lifetime warranty part for $35.00 and the other is a 1 year part for $11.95. Great I tell him. Thats more like it. Ive replaced maybe a dozen tie rod ends in my life and NEVER paid more than $18.00

We didnt get to Salvos until much later but here is how it went:
Me: "Need a left outer tied rod for a 96 saturn SL1"
Parts person: "Yeah, I got a moog for $35.00"
Me: "I called earlier and they said there was an economy version for 11.95"
Parts Person " No, all I got is the Moog"
Me:" Okay, thanks" and I start to walk out. five steps later...
Parts Person " Oh, I have this economy version for $11.95"
Me: "Yeah, thats the one I want".
Parts Person to his assistant who has been watching
" He wants the CHEAP one. "
and he was shaking his head.

Jeez. The funny thing is, I used to work for Salvo like 20 years ago. I know that on most replacement parts, we carried up to 3 different grades. It was common back then to offer up all the options. There was a tendancy to push the better parts, emphasizing the warranty but still it seemed like this guy was flat out lying for a moment to get me to buy the expensive part.

I admit, I am a cheapskate. But the thing is, this was my Son's money so I guess thats why irked me so much.

 

[Cr 1_2_5]

Ok my turn my uncle owns three performance shops around here. One is high end imports such as bmw,porsche,mercedes,and lexus,while the others are just your normal speed shops. I work at the front desk and do oil changes. well one guy came in he comes in all the time he drives a 2003 porsche gt2 and all he wanted was an oil change. well since its a 120,00 dollar car i wouldn't even dare get under but i drove it into a bay and lifted it up and waited till my uncle came over to begin the oil change. when he got there i had already had the tools out to get the job done faster. My unlce grabs the tools and begin pulling the oil drain plug out. Well the plug was put but not a drip of oil. he assumed i had alredy done it which i hadn't. I explained to him i had not touched the car. We then went into the waiting room and told the guy the problem well. when we asked the last time he had the oil changed he looked at us as if we were dumb. He then says i harldy drive the car and ive only changed the oil once. now he bought the car new and this happened about 2 weeks ago. :bang: :bang: so we then preceded to doing further test and realized he had done some major damage. He ended up doing over 22,000 dollars in damage and labor. now he felt dumb and i felt insulted when he said he only changed his oil once in a 120 thousand car. some people jsut dont think. thats my oil story.

 

[Chokey]

Dealers and dealer warranty service both suck. My wife has an '03 Honda Oddesey, which also happens to have a 4 year-70,000 mile extended warranty on top of the factory warranty. This van has the premium front/rear audio system, with the DVD player to entertain the kids on trips (believe me, it's worth it's weight in gold when traveling!). The system has a security feature that requires you to enter a security code to re-activate the audio system if the unit is removed or the battery is disconnected. Well, two weeks ago, we get ready to go shopping on a saturday morning, and wouldn't you know it, the battery is dead, time for a new battery. Of course, the battery won't be covered under the warranty, so I go to Auto Zone and purchase a battery, and insall it. So far so good. Until I try to enter the code for the audio system to get it to work again. The unit refuses the code, absolutely won't accept it. Tried it the maiximum-allowed ten times, no dice. Must be the wrong code, even though it's the one supplied with the van when purchased, OK, no big deal, surely the dealer can use the serial number to look up the correct code, right? So I pick up the phone and call the dealer.

"I'm sorry, Service has to look that up for you, and they closed at noon", the operator tells me. Apparently no one else is capable of looking up a number in the computer, whatever...

So, Monday morning, I take the van to the dealer. After a 2 hour wait, they take the van in. 15 minutes later, they tell me "This is the wrong code for the radio." No duh, ya think? So, they look up the serial number. The records say it's the right code. Now, they tell me, the radio will have to be replaced. OK, no problem, I have a warranty, right? Wrong! This won't be covered under the warranty, and the damn unit costs nearly a thousand dollars!!!! Are you nuts???? Why doesn't my warranty cover this??? And a thousand dollars??? I didn't pay that much for my 700 watt Kenwood at home!

So, I go round-and-round with the service manager, then the dealer manager, and then the owner, about the worthless warranty, and how it's not my fault Honda supplied the wrong code, so why should I have to pay for this? Doesn't Honda stand behind their products? Doesn't the dealer stand behind the brand he sells? Things begin to get very heated between me and the managers, needless to say.

It finaly takes three hours and several phone calls to higher powers in Honda to resolve the issue, ending with the dealership being ordered to replace my unit free of charge. Of course, they are quite unhappy about this, and the owner hints that perhaps I should find another dealer to take my business to in the future.

Sure, no problem there, I certainly won't be stepping foot in their building again.

 

[jaction125]

the owner hints that perhaps I should find another dealer to take my business to in the future.

Sure, no problem there, I certainly won't be stepping foot in their building again.

Make Honda aware of this, it will DEFINATELY be clearly outlined in their dealer agreement that this is NOT to be done. I wouldn't go there again either, but you could still scoop some sand in the guys shorts.

 

[Solid State]

Great story Jon K. For some reason, whenever I buy a new car I always pick up 6 or 10 new oil filters when I pick up the car. Sometimes the replacement ones either don't fit or just feel cheap. Later when the car is older, its FRAM all the way!!

Also, getting to know the dealer parts guy is always a good idea. If you are nice and he is not a jerk, you can sometimes get substantial discounts. He at least can get you the right part, but you still need to bring in the old part and triple check. FWIW, my succes rate at getting the right part anywhere the first time is less than 50%.