UGH, Auto Repair -- Not SS Here

[framing fowl]

I forget where I read it but they recommended asking for the filter before it was installed and putting the date on it with permanent marker. Next time it is changed, ask to see the old filter before they dispose of it so you can check that they actually changed it. Then put the new date on the new one. If the date is on the actual part, you have proof of what is happening. Skr8pn, would that work? We happen to have a great mechanic so I've never done this but it sounds like a logical idea.

 

[SKR8PN]

FF that is a VERY good idea. I write the date/mileage on all my filters AND under the hood so I can keep track of them when I check the oil. The Kubota tractor and the RTV both require oil changes at 50 hour intervals. They have hour meters instead of an odometer to go by. I write the hour it was was last changed and whether I replaced or just cleaned the air filter at the last service.

 

[sylvie]

When my car was 3 years old and just past the warranty it wouldn't start in the mall parking lot. I got an AAA tow to the dealership, where they decided there was no oil which threw a rod and ruined my engine.
$3000 estimate for a new engine; I pretended to be a dumb blond(I am blond, so that was easy) and asked how I could have done that. They said that I probably forgot to add oil.

I thanked them, called corporate headquarters with my oil change record in hand- which I had changed faithfully and on time through the dealership.
My last oil change was a week earlier.
Long story short; I got a free new engine.

Even dealerships can be crooked, not just the neighborhood mechanic. Keep records!!! Call corporate.