Who doesn't dread the time to change your motor oil and filter? I used to love it before my life became too busy for me to enjoy working on my car. So where is the best place to get your oil changed? Some people say a dealership, while others believe the quick service stations are the best choice. How do you decide which is better? Let me decide for you.
Quick service stations are convenient however there are just more negatives than positives for them. Many horror stories are passed around on how a quick service station forgot to put the oil cap back on or didn't fill the oil back up and blew the engine. Yes this kind of neglect still exists in modern society. Mistakes will happen. It will more likely happen at a quick service station than a dealership though.
Quick service stations hire the trained and continue training their employees. I cannot speak for all quick stations in general but a few things to consider when choosing a shop are the management staff, the amount of employees, the age of employees, and is there a master mechanic. Most small time shops have bad answers to these questions.
If the manager continuously curses then find a new shop. When working on cars, things go wrong. "Having the right tool is everything.". Everyone curses but continuous cursing is a sign things are going bad and lack of knowledge is the culprit. Knowing how to fix spontaneous problems is a blessing in the auto mechanic world.
The amount and age of employees is another factor when choosing a shop for your vehicle. Several employees is a good sign jobs can be accomplished in a timely manner. With only two employees working the time it takes for a simple oil change could take hours if there is a wait. Spontaneous problems do happen everyday when working on cars. Even the simplest jobs could turn into a giant nightmare for the trained professional mechanic due to complications. Age and experience help tremendously to overcome those issues. Young mechanics could get the job done just fine. I was working on cars at a young age. However mistakes do happen.
Master mechanics are the elite of the auto mechanics. They always have an answer to any problem. Like when a mistake happens during an average oil change. How hard is it to change oil? It is a simple process. What happens when an inexperienced mechanic gets distracted and drains the transmission without noticing then proceeds to fill the oil with more fresh oil which over fills the space forcing its way past the piston rings and they don't tell you? It's time for a master mechanic then.
You could always monitor the whole situation at a quick service station and save yourself a little money. The average amount after shop and disposal fees is around thirty dollars for an oil change at a quick service station. About one hundred twenty dollars a year for your oil changes from a quick shop. But you run the risk of mistakes happening at a higher rate than with dealerships.
The average perception is that a dealership will charge an overpriced fee and a longer wait for a basic oil change than a quick service station. That perception is a notion of the past. Generally a dealership has multiple mechanics on duty during service hours allowing them to easily accomplish multiple oil changes every hour. Since the perception that dealerships are overpriced is widespread, they seemed to have dropped their prices tremendously.
For a decent price, a dealership is the best option for oil changes on your vehicle. For an average price of forty five dollars you get the satisfaction of knowing everything went smoothly. Mistakes are less likely to happen due to the amount of training and the level of detail in the inspections that the dealerships make. Dealerships normally have a long list of critical inspections points to check the safety of your vehicle. Stats don't lie and they are good at recording stats so you can make an informed decision on if you need new brake pads or not. Why would they check that during an oil change? Because they are awesome and check that plus much more for free.
The benefits of using a dealership out way the price difference in their price versus a quick change shop's prices. They are more likely to find anything wrong with your car that could become an issue quick. Some dealerships provide incentives for loyal customers. Something more than just a coupon in the mail that expires one week from when you get it. The dealership I take my vehicle to promises a free oil change after three previous oil changes plus a free car wash every time.
I am a very busy person and know the proper way to prolong the life of a nice looking paint job is to wash it. I don't drive around in the shiny brilliant red car I wish I could because I don't have time to wash it regularly. I do rinse it off every three weeks but I know that is not adequate and must find time to wash it more often. So a free premium car wash right after an oil change is just perfect for my busy schedule.
So for about the same price per year, which one is better? Clearly going to a dealership would be safer for your vehicle. Free incentives such as a car wash could help prolong parts of your vehicle including the paint job. Qualified mechanics reduce the changes for unseen accidental disasters during routine maintenance. Not all dealerships are the same such as not all quick service stations are the same. Judge them all on their own accord and look openly upon them before evaluating them. I happen to be fortunate to have a local dealership that provides quick service, free premium car washes, buy three get one free incentives, and no lies mechanics. It is all possible at Jim Keras Nissan on Covington Pike in Memphis, TN.
I financed my first brand new car from them and as a stipulation in my warranty I cannot perform the oil changes and routine maintenance myself so I must visit a qualified facility. They seemed like a proper place to start my maintenance with my first oil change. That was the first time I have paid someone to change my oil in several years. However I did leave very satisfied having a clean shiny car, no worries about voiding my warranty, and absolutely no worries that someone forgot to put the oil cap back on. All for about ten dollars more than it would cost me at a quick service station. Took about the same amount of time. I also got to watch a big screen tv while I waited in a very comfortable waiting chair. Trust me, taking your vehicle to a dealership is the best option. You win in the long run.
While some gas stations offer maintenance and repair, I tend to avoid those and look for actual shops and dealerships for maintenance work. One of the reasons is that they’re usually more expensive, the other is that they don’t usually have the experience and specializations as compared to going to an actual master mechanic at a dealership. More often than not, they just divert you to a shop they know when they can’t find what’s wrong with your car, which will just cause you to pay more, if not double.
ReplyDeleteRita McCall
Evans Tire & Services