Loss of oil pressure

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Mystery Squid\";p=\"100226)</div>

That seems like a serious problem in the ethics of their business, and for that alone I wouldn't give them my business. From what I've read, the employees of Jiffy Lube aren't certified mechanics. They are people like high school teenagers who aren't knowledgeable themselves about such procedures. I've also read accounts where they forgot to put in oil, or neglected to screw the drain plug on tightly, etc. on oil changes which is their bread and butter and that frightens me as well. Admittedly, hearsay, but I think there is truth in those accounts.

I can understand not wanting to deal with oil, it is messy and I've spilled the nasty stuff more than once. For me, once you factor in the amount of time to go to an oil change place, the time spent waiting, and the cost, it is faster, much cheaper (especially if you use synthetic oil since oil change places seem to have ridiculously high markups for synthetic), and much more peace in my mind to just do it yourself. However, to each his/her own.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(ryogajyc\";p=\"100257)</div>

That seems like a serious problem in the ethics of their business, and for that alone I wouldn't give them my business. From what I've read, the employees of Jiffy Lube aren't certified mechanics. They are people like high school teenagers who aren't knowledgeable themselves about such procedures. I've also read accounts where they forgot to put in oil, or neglected to screw the drain plug on tightly, etc. on oil changes which is their bread and butter and that frightens me as well. Admittedly, hearsay, but I think there is truth in those accounts.

I can understand not wanting to deal with oil, it is messy and I've spilled the nasty stuff more than once. For me, once you factor in the amount of time to go to an oil change place, the time spent waiting, and the cost, it is faster, much cheaper (especially if you use synthetic oil since oil change places seem to have ridiculously high markups for synthetic), and much more peace in my mind to just do it yourself. However, to each his/her own.
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Well, if you're not going to give some entity business because of that, then you might as well omit most car dealerships and maybe 99% of independent repair shops. Not to take this discussion off into another direction, but it's pretty much common knowledge that a high percentage of women who don't know too much about cars get "soaked" on anything related to vehicles. Heck, I've "blown up" on shops for pulling that sort of thing on my mom. Speaking of which, for those that do go to places like Jiffy Lube, test it out sometime, have a female you know go and report back her experience, most likely, they'll end up telling her she "SHOULD" get all sorts of crap done, and really pour on the pressure if she declines.

Not that men don't get "soaked" either, I know plenty of guys that get CONNED, yes, conned, into getting something or other done due to the ubiquitious concept of "preventative maintenance". It just reality that it happens to women more.

Again, I cite my personal experience, 15 years, 12 vehicles, hundreds of oil changes at different locations, and not one, not a single issue. I will say this though, if I see the particular branch I go to pull that crap, I won't go there again.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(ryogajyc\";p=\"100257)</div>

Personally, I get the oil changed in my '90 Toyota pickup at a local oil-change station (not a Jiffy Lube, but similar). Why don't I do it myself? Three reasons: first, I live in an apartment and don't have a garage; I don't feel comfortable changing the oil in a parking lot or on the street. Second, the mechanical jack for my truck is a pain to use, and I wouldn't feel safe working underneath the truck. In fact I'm not even sure I know how to properly place the jack under the truck so that it wouldn't bend something. :roll: Third, the oil is messy and I'd have to go to a service station to dispose of it anyway.

Not everyone is mechanically inclined. I'm plenty capable when it comes to mechanical or electronic stuff, but it just doesn't seem worthwhile to me. If I had access to an automotive lift then I very well might change the oil myself.

-- David

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Mystery Squid\";p=\"100268)</div>

I'm pretty sure I've been conned myself before I had time and took the effort to learn a bit about cars and how they work. And yes, I do avoid places that I know I can't trust and it sounds like you do too, Mystery Squid. I'd rather give my money and pay even a bit more for service from a person I know I can trust (b/c there might be some problem which I don't understand in the future and I'll need to rely on the mechanic's judgement). I want the honest automotive shops to stay in business and thrive and I want the dishonest places to go bankrupt. I don't actively test places with female plants, because I have only so many hours in the day, but I do judge a place if I hear a complaint from a third-party b/c usually businesses of good repute have few complaints. I'm glad Jiffy Lube has worked out for you and if they give you good honest service, then you should keep using them. I'm just saying I've heard anecdotal evidence otherwise, much like you are providing anecdotal evidence that they have served you well. You do bring up a good point that I may be giving business to places which will con less car-savvy (not to say I'm particularly car-savvy) persons, but there's a limit to how much I can investigate a place just due to practical reasons.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(dwhysong\";p=\"100289)</div>

Yeah, I've had the apartment problem before too. I think in the back of my mind, that may be one of the reasons I bought a house before getting my Prius. The Prius might have come first, but the long wait made everything occur in order.

Maybe Rhino Ramps would work for you as a cheap alternative to an auto lift. They are what I use, since I have a bit of fear of jacking up a car with a carjack myself. They are a pain to lug from apartment to car (if you don't have storage near your parking spot or whatnot). Been there done that.

Unfortunately, I haven't found a solution to the messy oil problem... I a Blitz Oil Drain Pan, but the darn thing leaks like mad! I got oil all over the place and it was just a mess... Just another word of warning to PriusChatter's out there..

 

Hey Bluedog, I think you did fine crawling to the dealer, knowing that MG2 would be taking you there.

If you ever do have ICE problems, which I do think will be unlikely, even with this event, you might have issues with the warranty if taken to another dealer. At the very least, be sure Toyota has the incident in THEIR database, which you can check over the web.

I had a lot asked of my dealer in December, including oil change/filter, check alignment, enable passive mode alarm, do any campaigns (I had meant any TSB reprogrammings, but hadn't the correct document #'s with me).
We had an issue about the cost and timeframe of setting passive mode, and they never checked the alignment, just noted that my complaint of pulling was not found.
They conveniently did NOT register this visit with Toyota's website, though all my other visits were (which were only for oil changes and tire rotations).

 

Dan, how do you know if an incident is on Toyota's website? I've never looked into this. Is there an owner-viewable database for the car?

 

http://www.toyotaownersonline.com/

Each distribution region may handle things differently.

 

Where within the site?

I looked and linked for a good 5 minutes and couldn't come up with anything...

 

Thanks for the link Dan. I bookmarked it and will check it out later, .

 

Mystery: I couldn't tell you because you are in a different market than I am. But I can tell you that you have to create a login first.

In the case of the SE region, once you log in AGAIN, you click on Service History. That is, once you add a vehicle using your VIN.

 

I used the site after my first scheduled maintenance (last week) and entered the info myself. Are you sure that the dealer is supposed to update the data? It would be a great way to check out what they claim they did vs what they write on the invoice.

 

There was a similar website for my 2000 GMC Sierra. I had to manually enter service history myself, it wasn't automatic. It appeared to be more of a thing to do for Obsessive Compulsive folks.

 

It depends on the region guys. The work I have done by my dealer does get posted. Except for the 2 visits in December. The 2nd one I understand, they didn't have my tire size to fix my flat, so I don't think a workorder was even written into their computers.
But the first December visit, there was no excuse for.