Oil change cost

[rh71]

Sounds like you are bringing your car to private shops (or one of quick change places) and not the dealership AND the private shop that you are bringing it to thinks you a are moron who calls anything under the hood a "thingy".

Do they also recommend the fuel injector service and 24 point inspection?

Just about every shop has shop management software (such as Alldata) and the maintenance tables are right there on the screen when the tech looks up your car.
That soft glow in their eyes when they tell you to change your oil every 3 months\3000 miles is actual the screen telling them that your car should be changed at 6month\6000 miles (or whatever is appropriate for your car)

Sounds like you are being profiled as soon as you walk in the door.

It was simple phone calls to multiple places. They don't know me from Adam. I don't go to a regular mechanic, especially for my wife's car (warranty/maintenance at dealer included). So now that that's over, I ask shops a simple question - how much is an oil change and how long is it good for. For all they know, I could be testing them. None of them asked me to read the manual which is expected, and very telling about their honesty when they straight up say 3 months regardless. That's why it's also confusing that they all still do that especially when the Internet has said to RTFM with regard to interval for years now.

BTW, I did have the regular oil changed this morning, $40 which seems to be the going rate (the point of this thread) for all local places. Zero upsell. Dropped it off, walked a few blocks home, and picked up again 3 hrs later. I think I found a new mechanic for her car. I'll ignore the sticker that says good for 3 months.

 

[zinfamous]

Go with what your manual says, and request the oil that your manual says, and only that SAE.

It's always mileage OR time. whichever comes first. No matter what, you shouldn't let it go more than 1 year without a change, assuming you drive somewhat regularly, even if low mileage. If your car sits for weeks at a time, several times a year, you might want to change it at least 2 times per year.

10k is becoming more standard with the lighter oils (0w-20), which I will never reach in a year, so I just set mine to an annual change

 

[pauldun170]

It was simple phone calls to multiple places. They don't know me from Adam. I don't go to a regular mechanic, especially for my wife's car (warranty/maintenance at dealer included). So now that that's over, I ask shops a simple question - how much is an oil change and how long is it good for. For all they know, I could be testing them. None of them asked me to read the manual which is expected, and very telling about their honesty when they straight up say 3 months regardless. That's why it's also confusing that they all still do that especially when the Internet has said to RTFM with regard to interval for years now.

BTW, I did have the regular oil changed this morning, $40 which seems to be the going rate (the point of this thread) for all local places. Zero upsell. Dropped it off, walked a few blocks home, and picked up again 3 hrs later. I think I found a new mechanic for her car. I'll ignore the sticker that says good for 3 months.

Unfortunately there are a lot of shady shops out there. Finding a good shop with both honest owners and a competent crew is tough.
What kind of car?

 

[rh71]

Unfortunately there are a lot of shady shops out there. Finding a good shop with both honest owners and a competent crew is tough.
What kind of car?

'13 Sonata and they threw in a ton of free oil change vouchers at purchase.

 

[manly]

Go with what your manual says, and request the oil that your manual says, and only that SAE.

It's always mileage OR time. whichever comes first. No matter what, you shouldn't let it go more than 1 year without a change, assuming you drive somewhat regularly, even if low mileage. If your car sits for weeks at a time, several times a year, you might want to change it at least 2 times per year.

10k is becoming more standard with the lighter oils (0w-20), which I will never reach in a year, so I just set mine to an annual change

How should we adjust our OCI for Covid-19? Some of us are driving very few miles these days, and it seems like a huge waste to dump out synthetic oil at 3k miles or even less?

 

[BonzaiDuck]

I was of the same mind for many years: I don't like the mess, don't like getting down on the garage floor. Why not just pay the mechanic to change the oil every year -- about 2,500 miles for me?

A little more than a year ago, looking for an outfit to replace my retired mechanic, I had the unlucky encounter with the "Little Shop of Horrors and its Mechanic from Hell." I reacted by "seizing the bull by the horns" to assume more vehicle maintenance on my own.

We had a thread I'd started maybe last year about "drain valves". I'd noticed the puddle of oil under my car in the garage, and didn't want to bother getting down on the cold concrete to find out what was causing it. One mechanic suggested that I needed a new rear main-seal and he was hoping I would shell out more than $1,000 to pay for it.

Do you know where the leak was really coming from ? The oil drain plug! Too many paid mechanics torqueing the plug too tightly in their hurry to finish up. So I discovered Fumoto and other makes of "drain valves" -- $25 to $40 and your one-time installation. And for $15 at Autozone, you can buy a nifty waste oil container, which only has a 3-inch diameter hole and cap in the top to receive the oil. The drain valves all have a flexible plastic tube which attaches for insertion into the container hole. You never spill a drop.

Installing the drain valve with the proper gasket material and thread-sealer eliminated my oil-leak. A 5-quart container of synthetic oil costs maybe $25; a new filter -- maybe $10. I don't change the filter but every 6,000 miles, because they're made to last 10,000. I could change the filter more frequently, but I choose to change the oil more frequently instead.

Time and trouble? I always put on my best tuxedo to change my oil (just kidding). I grab a 32-gallon garbage bag, drop in on the garage floor, recline myself on the bag and screw on the drain-plug hose after inserting it in an empty recycle container. I get up and then return a half-hour later to unscrew the drain-hose and cap the waste-container. Then, I get up and walk away so I can attend the soiree at Kennedy Center in my Sunday best.

The next day's grocery errand offers an opportunity to take the waste-container to Autozone, and it takes three minutes for one of their employees to empty and return it. Then I stick it in the garbage bag and come home.

I've decided to change my oil every 1,500 miles. Every 3 out of 4 changes, it only costs me $25 -- sometimes less for buying generic synthetic. Every fourth time, changing the filter is just a bit messier and adds another 10 minutes to my trouble and $10 for the expense.

How long does it take, waiting at the repair-shop or "Qwik-Lube" to have an oil change? You may schedule your visit -- a special trip -- while I might buy another 5-quarts of synthetic when I drop off my waste oil. And I only added a second stop in my grocery-run itinerary.

Do your thumb and forefinger work properly? Can you lie down on a clean garbage bag for two or three minutes? Can you afford a $15 waste-oil container?