Oil Change Horror Stories - Lehto's Law Ep. 41 

Back in the early 70s my dad used to get the oil changed in his work truck at a local gas station with a 2 bay shop. After one oil change he drove straight home and parked in the back yard as usual. The next morning he checked the dipstick as was his daily pre-operation practice. Bone dry. Turned out the drain plug had only been hand-tightened. He called the gas station and the owner brought 5-6 quarts of oil, crawled under the truck in the mud to tighten the drain plug and refilled the engine oil. Then he asked us to follow him to the shop. When we got there, he called the mechanics over and proceeded to explain that if my dad didn't have the habit of checking the oil daily, he would be sitting on the side of the road with a blown engine and the shop would be out the repair cost for the engine, new short block at a minimum. There was no doubt in anyone's mind the shop owner was near unhinged displeased. My dad was one of that shop's many LOYAL customers and the owner did NOT want his reputation besmudged.

I used to work for a quickie oil change chain. Luckily the local owner of our 5 stores was very honest, and they had a very good training and quality control system in place. Bad thing was there was another owner of the same chain of stores in town that wsan't nearly as particular. All of the things you mentioned in your video, we had a check for. Like placing the oil cap on the hood latch as soon as it came in so the hood won't close if there is no oil in it. Pull the dipstick halfway out to show the final check hadn't been made. While putting the sticker on the window, start the engine, watch that the oil light went out or gauge came up within 5 sec. and call it out to the rest of the shop. Lower guy checked for leaks, and rinsed after starting and pulled the gasket off the old filter and trashed it (verifying it wasn't double gasketed). I still do all of these things to this date when I change my own oil.

The one time I had my oil done by a shop, they ended up hammering some kind of plastic drain plug in. I was pissed so I went back and they said that's standard practice now. I asked them how I do my own oil in the future without a drain plug? They told me to bring it back to them & they put a new plastic plug in every time. I demanded my plug back. The manager took me down into the pit, showed me a bucket full of drain plugs and told me to dig mine out. They had apparently done that to hundreds of people. I grabbed several different sizes figuring I might get lucky and get one that will fit. I think they switched to the one time use plastic in an attempt to prevent people from going other places. That plastic plug did do fine until it was time to do oil again but it looked like you needed some kind of special tool to get it out. I did get it out without a special tool but it was a huge hassle and luckily one of the plugs I had dug out of their bucket did fit my car. That was 12 or 15 years ago & I have never taken my car to an oil change place again.

Worst i ever had was an old corsica i took im to get the oil changed and the radiator flushed. The new guy didnt know what lever dispensed what and ended up putting windshield wiper fluid in the oil, oil in the radiator and coolant into the windshield wiper reservoir. Ended up totaling my little $1200 car obviously and when i went back, the owner told me it wasnt his problem and to go F my self. of course because i was a minor and couldnt afford to pay up front most local lawyers refused to take my case and by the time i found one who would take it on contingency a couple weeks had passed and the shop claimed how could i prove it was his shop that screwed up? his lawyer managed to not only get the case dismissed but got the judge to force me to pay the shops legal fees. Left a sour taste in my mouth over both mechanics and lawyers for a long long time.

Local Walmart torqued a drain plug on with an impact wrench and stripped the threads on some guys car while I was waiting on mine. Canceled the service drive home and have done it myself since.

The last time I *didn't* change oil myself was some 2 1/2 decades ago. They didn't use a proper gasket on the drain plug and so it leaked. I took it back and they drained the brand-new oil, put the drain plug back on (properly this time), and then asked me what oil I ordered. I showed them the receipt showing their highest quality (i.e. most expensive) synthetic oil (they weren't common back then). The cringe on the manager's face was worth it.

My worse oil change incident - took my vehicle to a garage to have the oil changed. They pointed out that the rear main seal was leaking in my engine by evidence of oil all over the floor under the car. I pointed out that first of all, this car is kept in a garage and there is not one drop of oil on the floor under the car there. And secondly, the oil on the mechanic's floor was clean fresh new oil, just poured out of a bottle, not old dirty oil leaking out of an engine. And the worse repair incident I know happened, but fortunately not to me - someone took their BMW to the dealer for some routine maintenance. The next day they went to pick up their car and found someone had removed their 5-speed transmission and put a 4-speed in its place.

We had a case where the oil filter failed. The casing separated from the head of the filter and blew off of the engine, while going down the highway. Of course the engine was destroyed. Fortunately, the separated half was not lost and the filter was sent to the manufacturer who paid for the replacement/rebuild of the engine. We rebuilt the engine, and my neighbor drove that car for another 160,000 miles before trading it in on a new vehicle. I generally change my own oil and buy premium oil and filters. Even at 71 it is a job I can still do.

My advice is change your own oil and never use a Fram oil filter.

I brought my car in for an oil change and the technician I spoke to tried pretty hard to get me to change the transmission fluid and get some other services as well. A day later I had to have my car towed to the dealer who determined that I was out of transmission fluid. This was the only time my car ever had a problem with it's transmission fluid.

An acquaintance of mine lost her sister in an accident due to the tech not tightening the lug nuts after putting new tires on her car. One of the tires came off while she was on the interstate causing her to crash. You need to check everything after having service on your vehicle.

I had a guy I worked with one time who found a $10 oil change place (this was circa 2005) and decided to take the work truck there to get an oil change instead of the place we normally took it to, which was about $30. He was so happy to tell his boss about how he saved the company $20 each oil change by doing this. We had 3 work trucks. Well, it turns out the $10 oil change place used an air ratchet to put the drain plug back on, over tightened the plug, and cracked the oil pan on the truck. We found out about it the next morning, when there was a puddle of oil underneath the truck. All they would say was it wasn't their fault.

I bought a Corsica, used from Dave Smith in Sturgis, MI years ago. I got oil changes at a discount for the purchase. They bent my hood by not taking the rod down before closing the hood. This happened about 6 times!!! Don't know if it was the same guy. The thing that got me was the fact that they never once told me that it happened. I had to go out to my car, get in it the first time and wonder why there was a big hump in the hood. Went back inside and got someone to look at it. After the first time I just started looking at the hood before I got in. They fixed it 4 times and replaced the hood twice! They went out of business a few years ago. I can't even remember what dealership it was. They had Jeep for awhile.

Back around 2008 I took my wife's Ford Escort for some maintenance at a dealership in O'Fallon, Illinois. A couple of weeks later we took it to WalMart for an oil change. The technician there informed us of a problem preventing him from changing the oil; whoever worked on our car last crazy-glued the oil drain plug/bolt onto the pan. Upon returning to the dealership they assured us that they "WOULD NEVER" do something like that ... but that if we paid the $225 fee to remove the bolt then they would throw in a free oil change.

You need to oil the filter gasket when you install the new one, or it will stick and come off when it comes time to remove it. Just a drop of oil smeared on the new gasket, then only hand tighten it and that will eliminate 99% of double gasketing.

Trust but verify ! After an oil change , I " mark " the new filter , so next oil change , I can check to see if I just got a good " wipe " instead of NEW FILTER !

Change your own oil if at all possible.

I'd add a quick + shop story; in the 1990s, Monroeville PA, Goodyear Tires shop, my room mate had his 4 brand new Goodyear tires replaced by the same tech who first installed them. My friend had a Mercury Sable & needed new tires. He chose not to add the extra road plan-coverage 😯 ... Later the next day, he hit a patch of highway debris & road hazards that tore up the Goodyear tires. 👎🏻😧 The shop tech was very considerate & under stood his problems. My friend got new tires & added the extra road hazard plan, 👍🏻😉...

I had a problem with a dealership that "changed" my oil, but forgot to remove the old oil first. When I left the dealership, I was on surface streets for several miles, but when I got to the freeway, my car would not accelerate correctly, and the oil pressure was very high. I checked the dipstick, and the oil went all the way to the top. I crawled under the car and removed the drain plug, draining the oil into a 5 quart bucket. It ran over spilling a couple of quarts on the ground. The oil was black. I had to put the oil I removed back in the engine to drive my car, but when I got back to the dealership, they denied that they had done anything wrong.

In 1970 I bought a brand new 1970 Plymouth Duster. It had a 318 V8 and was my very first new car. Day of delivery I drove out of the dealership and went to pick up a buddy so we could cruise around and show off my new car. Later that afternoon/evening while driving the oil (idiot) light came on. We shut off the car immediately and noticed oil on the ground under the car. So we pushed it back to my buddy's place and he gave me a ride home. The next morning I went over to see what was wrong with my shiny new Duster. We saw leakage at the oil filter so we twisted it off. The gasket was put on crooked at the factory. The proof? Half of the gasket had oil and half was hanging outside of the sealing area and painted blue - just like the rest of the engine. Foolishly I went to the parts store and bought another filter and some oil and we got the car back on the road. I saved the filter and went directly back to the dealership where I bought the car. The Service Manager told me he couldn't do anything because I didn't have the car towed back to his shop. This was not the answer I was hoping for so I escalated my plight. The dealer/operator (the guy with his name on the building) heard the commotion and offered to help. I explained the facts. He asked how much did I pay for the parts and then pulled out his wallet and gave me cash right then and there. BTW he was the same guy that donated land for our High School that I attended - his name was on that building as well.

I've double gasketed a oil filter when I was working for the city it blew oil everywhere they called me double o gasket lol

My neighbor parked in my driveway to get some boxes I got for her from Amazon. She had a brake job done on her Mini-Cooper. She said a couple of days later the ABS brake light on her dash came on. The next day, I noticed there was a spot on my driveway where the right rear wheel was, and it was leaking brake fluid.

My old man always goes to Mr Lube to get oil changes and one time they didnt screw the oil filter on tight enough and it was leaking quiet a bit. He only found out about it a few days later. Thankfully nothing happened to the engine. This is why I always change the oil myself, it only takes 30 minutes and its also a good time to have a close look at everything else under the car.

I got a Groupon coupon for 3 oil changes for $50. So went to that shop to get my oil changed. They said would also do a free safety check of my car. After a while they call me into garage and hand me a bill of $800! Mechanic told me I can't leave until he fixes all the $800 of repairs! There was nothing wrong with my car except the car needed new brake pads. I have done minor and major repairs on my cars thru the years. Thanks to Hayes repair books! I told him would have my mechanic fix my brakes and left! I don't Groupon any coupon anymore!

stuff like this is exactly why I do my own work. not a chance will I let anyone else do it.

I went to school for automotive and diesel technology, was an ASE Master Certified technician and heavy truck technician many years ago. I worked at a Ford dealership around 1994 and changing oil was part of my duties. I changed the oil in a truck and drove it around the shop to park it up towards the front. It was rattling while I drove it. I thought it was the common heat shield rattles that Ford had. I realized what happened and I had forgot to put oil back in it. I was young and stupid. I covered my ass by running back into the shop and bringing out enough oil to fill it back up. I never said anything. I didn't want to get in trouble obviously and I was young, but I still feel bad that I did that. That never happened again. Despite this one incident I was a good mechanic and held myself to a high standard.

Interesting! I had no idea that all these thing could happen after a simple oil change!

I change my own oil. I stopped for a long time, but I ended up with this sneaking suspicion that something wasn't being handled correctly. I could screw up, but I doubt I will. Saves a bunch of cash and also gives you a chance to notice other things about your car that may or may not be in working order.

As a teen, I was my own worst mechanic. Oil change first I forgot to put drain plug in... then I double gasket oil filter creating a squirting leak... all in the same oil change! Glad I bought a case of oil that was on sale. Lol

I have a large white piece of paper 4 foot by 4 foot (end of a printer's roll) taped to the floor of my garage and a golf ball on a string that tells me exactly where to park. It sure is telling when I have a leak. Steve you sure have a good channel - thank you.

I had a transmission overhaul that was leaking fluid and left a trail of oil all the way from the repair shop the two miles to my house and I followed it right back to them. I got tired of the un-scrupulous oil change folks and now I do all of my oil changes whether I like it or not.

I had a quick lube company change my oil once and then the next day I come out and all the oil was on the ground. Come to find out the company stripped the oil plug. After that I had issues with that plug holding without leaking. Eventually I put a new oil pan in at my cost due to the company who stripped the plug denied any wrongdoing.

Checking for dripping after an oil change is a good idea. Only problem, if the car has some sort of under-engine plate, which might catch smaller amounts of oil, then it will take quite some time until you see oil dripping... But driving a short distance, then immediately checking for drips, is a good idea!

I used to do all my oil changes, but had an instance that I just didn’t have time to do it, so brought it to a quick lube type place to have it done, when I checked after, they had stripped out the drain plug, and to deal with the dripping they put half a tube of silicone over the plug.

My mother had an incident where the drain plug wasn't tightened and she lost oil pressure on the highway in her couple month old car. The service center ended up paying for the dealership to replace the engine. On a Porsche 944 Turbo.

I avoid service work on Mon morning, Sat morning, Sun morning or on holidays. 99% of the shift crew or staff will be hung over, tired or upset over working... 👎🏻

I had to take the Honda to the dealership to have the warranty required first oil change performed by them. Before leaving I checked the oil level and saw it was overfilled by a quart. Told the service manager the problem and he said 'what do you want me to do about it'. Told him to remove the excess oil. The mechanics had all gone home so he had to do the work himself and was not happy. Went to a different Dealership for the next oil change and got overfilled again. The service manager checked the oil and said 'maybe it's the dipstick'. After that I did the oil changes myself. Moved to another state and bought a new Honda. The story was the same. First warranty required oil change overfilled. Actually got an apology from the mechanic who did the work. I started changing the oil myself and kept the receipts for oil and filters. My neighbor bought a new car, not a Honda, and the first oil change by the dealership was an overfill. Always check the oil level before leaving the dealership or service center to make sure they did the work properly. That extra quart can cause problems according to your owner's manual. Good luck y'all.

Had the oil changed by a dealership just before a trip from Dallas to Orlando. The morning after I came back my car broke down. I didn’t make the connection. Had a short block installed by the same dealership. Took a trip shortly after that to Denver and back. Had problems with the engine stumbling but made it back home. Turns out the gasket failed and oil got into the coolant water. Another repair. Months later a friend was doing me a favor and noticed the oil filter wasn’t screwed on tightly. I began to suspect that the original failure was due to the same technician not having done his job properly. I also wondered if maybe it was deliberate so I’d have to keep bringing the car in for repair.

Rarely are oil change guys mechanics. My aunt took her Civic in for a oil change they didn't tighten the oil plug .it fell out before she made it home before the engine was ruined. But the best story is my mother and her Camry. Every 3,000 religiously. A couple years ago when her car reached 100,000 miles I replaced EVERYTHING in the cooling system. Water pump hoses and radiator. Just to make sure nothing would break and overheat the car . Because blown head gaskets are the killer of modern cars followed by automatic transmission failure. Anyway to replace some of the hoses required removing the airbox. The air filter was a Toyota or air filter I in 50+ years of auto repair have never seen such a filthy air filter. Never and that includes in the 1980 Mt St hellens eruption Ash plugged air filters. It was so dirty after I changed the filter the ecm had to relearn how to run with all the fresh air it was getting. It idled at Les than 250 rpm This concerned me so I went through her receipts in the glovebox. According to the receipts she paid to have the filter CHANGED several times like every other oil change worth. Now for the trolls that say if you are a mechanic why didn't you do her oil changes? For the last 30+ years the closest I lived to my mother was a 4 hour+ round trip and for many years it was a 2 day round trip. For more serious repairs I always made the trip on my weekend. I would fix it at her home or leave my car and take hers home for the work. But quite honestly after she traded in her Cadillac for the Camry it never needed repairs. Toyotas are great. But I also learned with her Cadillac dealers are not good places to take a car for oil changes. They tend to find things that need fixing??? In the 2 years of taking her Cadillac to the dealership for scheduled oil changes it averaged $800 in repairs per oil change. So I made the 2 day round trip so I could go with her for her next oil change. While we waited a gentleman was waiting for his start it was less than 2 years old. They told him it needed $8000+ in repairs not covered by his warranty. That made a impression on my mother who said maybe r a new car . I have found that dealer screw loyal customers regularly. I work on diesel truck mostly. But I have been asked numerous times to look at dealer estimates for repairs. I have found they often tell people things need replacing that aren't actually broken. Sometimes thousands of dollars worth of un needed repairs. One friend had a estimate of $2800+ of NEEDED​ REPAIRS. I thoroughly went through their car and replaced only the front hub assemblies and brakes (brakes just because they were apart and sometimes it's just a savings overtime thing) but dealers lie and lie often about how BROKEN a car is..

Also, OPEN the hood and check for any tools that these goobers sometimes leave behind! I have about 3-4 screwdrivers in my toolbox that were left behind, under the hood and on top of the engine (one tool/visit)! I was very lucky that none of these tools got caught up on a timing belt or alternator belt.

Of course I went to a Honda dealer with our Odyssey....my wife drives it and every time she parked it, a minor oil spot would appear. Got my rhino ramps out and got under the van...drain plug was loose. And called the dealer...and I did take pictures of it before tightened the plug with a torque wrench...it was loose. They apologized and did a courtesy check of their work and thanked me for being a vigilant owner.

In high school, I was in a vocational auto tech school, and I saw a guy do the double gasket oil filter thing. In that case, it immediately started puking oil out all over the floor. Luckily it was obvious something was wrong and he was able to correct it right away.

I just had an oil change gone wrong this year. My car is okay. I was in the garage watching but I was distracted by one of the owners in conversation and didn't realize that the mechanic used the wrong plyers and put a slit on the oil filter. I took my car back and they jacked the front up and told me it was the oil pan seal/casket. Something didn't sound right so took it to a mechanic that I known my whole life and he put it up on the lift and found the issue. He was not happy when I told him that I did take it back to the garage that did the oil change, and they didn't properly recheck it. I hope my story makes sense. I live in Pennsylvania but I enjoy watching you. I am women who not car smart as you. Thanks.

When I was a truck driver the shop that serviced the company's trucks did this. Fortunately I immediately recognized that there was something wrong just by the sound of the engine and shut it down. As I get out of the truck and am opening the hood, shop manager comes out and starts telling me to move the truck now as they need the space it was sitting in. Much to his consternation, I ignored him and pulled the dipstick, dry as a bone. Motioned him over and showed him, his became a bit sheepish at that point. Had to call my boss and have the other driver that dropped me off come back and get me. Came back the next day, checked all the fluids before I even started it up.

just over a decade ago i bought an oil filter from walmart for my taco, looked up the right specs and selected a filter. Went home did an oil change. About a week later my engine was wrecked(I had multiple cars and didn't drive too often) Found out that the box the oil filter I purchase said the correct filter, but the actual filter was for an accord. That oil filter fit, spun on and everything. But without looking you wouldn't notice that it's not actually seated.

I've changed oil hundreds, if not thousands, of times. Never once have I had a failure or filter leak due to cross-thread, double gasket, wrong filter, stripped drain plug, etc. Luck has nothing to do with it. Its from paying attention to the simple basics. This is NOT rocket science. If you're not capable of the simple procedures and aware of the basics (like how a cross-thread feels) then you should look for another career (although I can't imagine one requiring less skill) Blaming high volume, your dog was sick, bad weather, or any other reason is simply an excuse. Its unfortunate, but comforting, that we have to use a legal system to make it right. You can't fix stupid and we all end up paying more because of it. Great videos Steve!!

Yep, stripped drain plug happened on our '72 LTD. Thanks for the video, Steve!

I change my own and spill oil every time. EVERY TIME.

Had to pick my brother up one time because his company vehicle started smoking like hell and sputtering. He had just taken it to an oil change shop for its scheduled change. He had it towed to the Ford dealership in order for them to figure out the problem. I've never even heard of this before, but the dealership ended up draining 13 quarts of oil out of the vehicle. Yep, crazy!!!!

My cousin worked at a dealership that offered $10 oil changes, and I asked how they could afford that. He said a lot of times they wouldnt even change the oil or filters, and if they did they would reuse oil. They'd literally just reset your oil life and tell you it was done. He said it usually only happened to older people or young women because the dealership assumed they wouldnt know the difference, and for someone who seemed like they knew what to look for they'd change it properly. I've always just done my own services because I have trust issues, and him telling me that made it worse, obviously.

Try and build a relationship with a good shop. Did a TA truck stop recently and l sat in the truck. They got me to see oil on dip stick and toque wrench on drain plug.

I know a man in Lake Orion who had an oil change at a muffler shop. They added 4 quarts to the existing 4 quarts. Destroyed engine. When too much engine oil fills the crankcase in your car, the oil becomes aerated and is whipped into foam. ... Foamy oil cannot lubricate your car well, and in many cases it will cause oil flow to halt completely, overheating your oil and causing loss of oil pressure. Muffler shop denied it and customer didn't peruse it.

Well, this comment is a bit late, but, listening to you talking about lug nuts being installed too tight brought up a funny memory for me. In roughly 1964, Mother and I were heading into town from our ranch. We were in Daddy's 1962 Chevy pickup, which he had just had the tires rotated on. Now, Mother used to drive like a bat out of hades and she passed a fire engine like it was sitting on jacks. A little ways up the road we had a flat. So, here's Mother in her black pencil slim skirt and 5" spike heels getting the lug wrench, jack and spare from under the bed. By the time the fire engine caught up with us, she's jumping up and down on the lug wrench, in the aforementioned spike heels, trying her best to loosen the lug nuts. Seems the people that rotated the tires had used an overbearing air wrench to tighten lug nuts. Well, bless their hearts, the firemen stopped and helped us out. Looking back, not sure that it was their gallant nature, Mother's shapley assets, or a mixture of both, but we were soon on our way with a good story to tell. 😁

Lol my family owned one of these quicky oil changes stores and I have plenty of stories and can confirm everything Steve said

I had an issue at an out of town Jiffy Lube, in Kokomo, Ind. I went in for an oil change and they suggested I have them change the transmission fluid. They did and within 25 miles the transmission started to slip. I took the car back, thinking the fluid may have been a bit low and needed to be topped off and it was up to the full mark. Jiffy Lube claimed it was not their issue, but gave me $200 towards a $900 repair bill, at a local G.M. dealer. Moral of the story. No one does any of my fluid changes but me and I have had no further issues.

Once had a quick change place strip the threads on my oil plug.

i had a 1978 buick regal with about 12000 miles on it. a new oil change place opened up in Laurel, MD where i was living. the personnel seemed courteous and about 20 minutes later i got my car back. a few days later i was cruising on I-95 when the engine started knocking, check engine light came on by the time i got to the shoulder, the engine was smoking and locked up. it turned out that the oil change place forgot to tighten the filter and it worked loose while i was driving. the fun part? the oil change place denied all responsibility tried to blame me for the problem. only when i got an attorney and threatened them did they finally agree to fix my car - with a junkyard motor. i ended up junking the car. and yes i just gave up - tired of dealing with that asshole.

14:07 & 14:27 Steve, I know this isn't a new video, thought I'd tell you this as it's funny how some "professionals" think they always need to use an impact wrench. When new tire guys use impact wrenches to remove hubcaps they break plastic lug-nuts for the hubcaps. They steal from other wheels so they can get it back on. I started with a full set a few visits later I'm missing 1/2 of 'em. The guy said it was like that when you got here, someone else messed up... SMH, it's always been the same tire shop!

Ok first there is no real relation to removing an oil filter "improperly" and the Oring staying behind. This is actually pretty common and has more to do with the filter not retaining the Oring properly. A lot of Orings are just crimped lightly in place. Some may be glued. Good mechanics will use the old filter oil from the oring to lube the new oring. If the Oring is missing on the old filter than they can't lube the new one and realize the old one must still be on the engine. Now being too tight might have something to do with it though I have never seen it even on filters I had to use an air hammer on after the rest of it collapsed and ripped away. What a pain that is. Filters do not need to be that tight.

My Lincoln Town Car came with a number of “free” oil changes at the dealer. After that I changed the oil myself. The first time I removed the oil drain plug I found that it had two washers on it-unusual. The reason was that the threads on the plug were damaged and would not “purchase” on the oil pan threads. The extra washer exposed the portion with the undamaged threads onto the pan. I suspect one of the Lincoln technicians either used an air wrench to tighten it or perhaps overtightened it manually because it had been dripping from there. Like others have said-just change the oil yourself. It’s really easy.

I purchased a lease return Nissan Maxima from a dealer that specializes in reselling different makes and they do a great job...but during a subzero cold start, the Maxima started to leak oil. And I had the car for about 2 months and 1,000 miles...with no issues.....took the car to a Nissan dealer who determined it was an aftermarket oil filter that failed. So I go back to Nissan for oil changes and at least they use OEM parts.

Took my Nissan PU to Jiffy Lube for an oil change and filter replacement. As usual at the end they try to sell you and air filter and I declined the offer. I paid my bill and went out to the truck. I opened the hood and checked the dipstick. Dry as a bone! Looked under the car for the filter and there was my old filter with my initials and the previous oil change date scratched into the metal. I walked back into Jiffy lube and raised a ruckus with manager. They immediately performed the correct oil change and upgraded the oil to full synthetic oil and replaced the filter. Then they apologized and gave me a certificate for a free oil change along with a cheesey baseball cap with their logo. Regan had it right "Trust but verify."

Love your videos. Just one quick correction... the a/c evaporator is what drips, not the condenser.

I had an oil plug fall out after an oil change when I was on I-696 and there was oil all over the highway. It was super scary, but luckily I was right at an exit with a gas station and got it fixed.

Dear Steve. Good morning! Thank you for this important information because my car is due for one.It is a 1999 Volkswagen Beetle and believe it or not it requires a special oil .I don't know if that makes any sense however I always tell the GENTLEMAN at the garage this.Thank you for this extremely informative post! SMILE..and have a great day.I believe everyone who knows nothing this should share this video. Thank you for sharing!❤

Regarding the wheel lug nuts. Have the technician hand tighten the lug nuts and make sure they use a torque wrench to complete the final tightening of each lug nut. It's your car and your rules.

A friend of mine used Walmart oil change service. Everything was fine except they didn't put the oil fill cap back on and after a few days, the engine compartment was smoking because oil splattered out the top and onto the engine. She topped off the oil, took it back to the service center and read them the Riot Act. Only damage was the engine compartment needed to be professionally cleaned, which Walmart paid for no problem.

Ouch! I never thought you could screw up an oil change....

I'm fortunate to have been very successful in life and, yet, I always change my car's oil and filter myself. Do my own brake work, too. It's not a matter of expense, it's so that I know the products used and the quality of the work. When I have tire rotations or replacements, the shop I use always torques all lug nuts to the correct spec and in the correct pattern using a torque wrench. After 50 mi. or so, I recheck and reset to the correct torque spec. myself. Word of advice: NEVER go to ANY quick-change or similar oil change shop. NO exceptions. NEVER go to ANY tire shop that also does "repairs". You'll be lucky if they are just incompetent. Less lucky if the sabotage your car, invent problems that don't exist, etc.

My sister got the oil changed at Montgomery Wards (decades ago) in her new car at 1500 miles. Her husband noticed a drip of oil under the car the next morning. She called Wards, and they confirmed that her oil plug was still sitting off to the side, and the technician confirmed he had not put any oil in. They sent a man out to install the plug and put the oil in, then had her drive to the dealership to get her engine checked out. The dealership stated the engine was fine, and apparently it was, because she never had any trouble with the engine.

I was a member of an oil-change club (paid a yearly membership fee which included free oil changes and various services) at a shop. My PCV valve kept getting gummed up and blowing the seals (an expensive fix). It happened twice and they fixed it. The mechanic told me it was because "I didn't drive my car far enough for the oil to heat up...blah-blah-blah... as I only drive 3 miles to work." I realized that they must have been using dirt cheap oil that kept gumming up my PCV valve. Funny that they discontinued that oil-change club.

This is why I always change my own oil, as well as do most other work on my car.

Excellent Presentation! I am a recent fan. I save cardboard to place underneath my Jeeps (I have four Jeeps) post oil changes to detect any new leaks.. I put the new filter on "hand tight" (manual recommended) but always find that the filter has tightened by the next change and a filter wrench must be used to remove it. I have been doing my own oil changes for 46 years. I also keep a spare crankcase bolt handy, ya never know when you gonna need one. Common mistake, and ripoff, if you let someone check your oil right after you shut it off (sound familiar) and they tell you it's a quart low. Check again in 15-20 minutes and the oil will usually be in the "safe zone" or full. My only problem is finding places to accept waste oil in Kalifornia. I have nightmare stories about illegal dumping!

I gave one particular "10 Minute" oil change place, our business for quite some time. After several years, I had a transfer case crack on my Chevy 4WD pickup. Took it to a transmission place for repairs, and they handed me the front driveshaft. It is a slip shaft, with a grease zerk for lubrication. Covering the zerk was years of dirt,, mud, buildups and corrosion from many years of use. Apparently, they NEVER greased the drive shaft, over the years. I had to have it rebuilt.... it had seized up.

Happened to me just the other day on my newer car. went in for an oil change and they didn't refill my car with oil after they drained it. I drove it around the building into the parking lot before the oil lamp light came on.

LOL I watch all the work being done as well. they don't like it. Especially if I have to say something and it becomes readily apparent that I know more about the car and the repair than they do.

As far as documenting everything with pictures, it would be wise to take a picture of the odometer as well. Oil change places always document the mileage when they do an oil change. then you will have some proof that the problem occurred just after they changed your oil.

Why wouldn't the jeep owner take it into a genuine dealership for the first service ...interesting

Jiffy Lube did that to my brother's manual transmission many years ago; ruined the transmission. I encouraged him to sue, but he didn't. He never worked on his own stuff, and I thought he had a good case.

My oil change story involved my 1st car, & me doing my 1st oil change on it. It didn't reach the level of a horror story, but could have. The only cost was the waste of probably 2 qts. of oil & the embarrassment of an overzealous 16 year old. I drained the old oil, pulled the drain pan out of the way, then forgot to replace the plug. After pouring a few qts. in, I happened to look down to see a stream of oil flowing around my sneakers. The only damage was to my pride. But that dumb mistake taught me a lesson in the importance of double or triple checking your steps in every procedure in car repairs & maintenance.

I have a friendly car mechanic whom I occasionally help with his computer problems. He told me that pretty much all places mix old oil into the new. Especially when the price is low, like $19.99, according to him, if the shop uses real new oil, it won't make economic sense because oil plus filter will cost about as much. So according to him, either change the oil by yourself, or bring your own oil to the shop to change. Wondering to what degree he is right.

The way I check that they did no screw up the oil change is doing it myself.

I do all the work on my own car that does not require a lift. Guys at shops will not take the time to do an above and beyond job, I take my time and do extra things to make the repair last longer or be easier next time. I rebuilt the belt tensioner myself for $15 and returned the new one I got for $115. It takes me longer, especially the first time doing a repair, but I learn something and save money in the long run

My valvoline place shows me the dipstick. I also see them adding the oil also they have a little dance they do and they call out when they do anything so they double check each outer. I'm assuming they do this because of issues in the past. :)

Another one was, I was having my tires changed, I just turned around for a second and from the waiting room I saw someone starting to lift my truck by the rocker panels... I got in there quick.

Walmart did an oil change for me, back in ‘05, and stripped the bolt. Luckily they took care of it since it was sealed with their little blue wax stuff. A few weeks later my wife took her car in for an oil change and they didn’t put the oil cap back on. It was a mess. I’m sure they got better but I never went back.

Had a place put engine oil in my brake fluid while "topping off" another fluid as a nice plus. Breaks would have failed completely had I not coincidentally taken it in for unrelated check-up at another place. Rubber gaskets and all sorts of things broken down.

Ive used quick oil changes in the past, but not in several years. They always 1: Showed me the dipstick like you mentioned, and 2: Watched with me to make sure the low oil pressure light goes out.

I am aware of a situation where someone was specifically told by the policy holder "You need to sue me", because the policy holder knew the person ought to be taken care of, and the insurance would only pay for litigation. So they did🤷🏻‍♂️

Hey Steve. I just have an fyi for you. A mechanic who has passed the state tests in all of the auto repair categories is considered a State licensed Master Automobile Mechanic. A guy who has only passed some of the categories is a State licensed Automobile Mechanic in whatever areas he has passed. That doesn't mean that a guy who isn't a master, isn't as good as the master or has less experience. He may be a thousand times better and much more experienced at the categorys he is certified in, because it's the only thing he chooses to do. For example. He just rebuilds engines or does tune ups but doesn't work on brakes or air conditioning. That's the difference between a Master Mechanic and a Mechanic. The oil change guy can be just an apprentice if the station owner is at minimum a certified mechanic in engine repair and the apprentice is working under the mechanics license and supervision. That's why I don't like oil change places. I don't mind someone learning, but not on my car. Thanks Steve. Take care. Jpol. It's like student doctors. Nope!

I have heard of drain plugs not reinstalled!

I met another driver at a gas station while we were each traveling to Florida from (The Detroit area), and as he was adding oil to the engine, we got to talking and I found out he had been to Walmart to change his oil before his big trip and since then needed to add several quarts at each gas station stop. He actually had an entire seat in the car loaded with oil containers. I often wonder if he ever made it to his destination (and back!). I’m certain he never went back to Walmart again.

"back to zero" ...great turn of phrase

This is why even though it would be just as cheap or cheaper than doing it myself I change my own oil. I don't really want to, but I don't trust them any more. I took a car to Woodmans one time to get the oil changed. They stripped out my oil plug and refused to fix it even though they were the ones who stripped it taking it out the claimed it was overtightened. I never went back to them. All they would have had to do to fix it was put an oversized oil plug in for a couple of bucks instead the put a temporary plug in and refilled my car with oil All of that was wasted because I had to do it all over again what a mess.

My dad was a mechanic for 40 years so as a girl I was a grease monkey for all my life! I cannot tell you how many times I have been treated like I'm stupid or they talk to me like a child and lie about what they're doing it drives me nuts!

Had a friend who worked at Jiffy Lube. He said their biggest problem was the book telling them to use the wrong filter. Particularly in cars that were available with multiple different engines in the same model year. He said they wound up paying for a a lot of Chrysler rebuilds back when some Chrysler products had Chrysler engines and some had Mitsubishi engines.

I've had an Audi dealer lose the undertray of my engine on its first service. When I spotted this and informed the dealership, the service manager told me to carry my custom elsewhere if I don't like their service. In the UK it's hard to sue dealership because they hide under different laws.

Steve, your comment " the guys down in the pit, might not be certified Master Mechanics " is quite true . As a Master Mechanic , changing tires or oil is something that I consider way below my skill level . Most of the time it is done by the young apprentice or shop flunky , and they just plain don't give a shit. This reminds me of an oil change gone wrong, Ted just lowered a Lincoln town car that he drained the oil and greased . He checked a few things under the hood and reached in and started it up , this car ran for about 30 seconds and locked up just as he grunted something and reached in to shut it off. He said he forgot to put in the new oil . The motor was locked up solid , got to love them junk 4.6's. The shop owner immediately contacted the owner and , and put her in a nice rental car . He did everything possible to make this right , as should be. We found a better motor with much lower miles , tuned it up so that it ran better than the old one , he even detailed the car . Gave her royal treatment for everything, that she imagined was wrong with the car over the next several months. All of this and she still filed a negative review about the shop with the BBB. Needless to say after that she was fired as a customer.

The double gasket thingie happened to me. I changed the oil and filter and didn't notice the old gasket stuck to the engine. When I fired the engine up I noticed an unusual noise like water spraying. I looked under the car and saw the oil spraying everywhere. After that I have always check under the car after an oil change to make sure everything is leak free.... It can happen if you aren't paying attention....

I worked in a Wal-Mart auto care center for 12+ years and I have seen all of these.We once hired a kid and I have him down in the pit and I say to him "here are all the oil filters, they are in numerical order". He turns to me and says "Whats that mean"? Right, we transferred him as fast as we could. We some times hire what I like to refer to as "lug nuts". One thing he did not bring up is your oil cap. Always after you get your car back open your hood and give it a good once over, make sure your oil cap is in place and tight. If you can see your oil filter make sure its a new one, you are paying for a new one and you better have gotten one. Always keep a eye on your oil level, some times you may be losing oil but do not see a lot of drips as it is only leaking if the engine is under pressure. Even the smallest drip can be a big headache. If you work in a lube shop your self, USE A BLEEPING TORQUE WRENCH YOU BLEEPING BLEEP BLEEP! You know who you are. A torque wrench is even more important with a tire job, oil job well yea we can blow your engine and thats bad but tires can kill you. If you can keep an eye on the job do it, it can be kind of boring but watch them like a hawk and make sure the last thing they do is put a wrench on your wheel nuts and make sure they are tight.