generator12
Senior Chief Petty Officer
- Joined
- Jul 9, 2010
- Messages
- 666
It's been a number of years since this happened, but I think you all might be interested as the topic is still current.
I had a pristine Chrysler New-Yorker - a '77 four-door hardtop, running a huge V-8...don't remember the displacement. I loved the car, even though I didn't have to watch the gas gauge dropping as I drove; if I listened closely, I could almost hear it...!
Anyway, I was in the middle of a divorce process (living in an apartment), it was the middle of winter in Wisconsin, my work situation was in the middle of a re-organization, and I needed an oil change. All the "middles" meant that I wasn't in a good position to change it myself, so I went to a local Pennzoil quick-change station in a Milwaukee suburb. They did the change using the bulk oil from an overhead storage tank.
Following the change, I found my oil-pressure light flickering when the engine was at idle - something I'd never seen that car do. This and a few other signs caused me to question the integrity of the oil change I'd just undergone, so I bit the bullet and told the (soon-to-be) ex that I needed the garage for an hour.
I replaced the oil with a major brand 10W40 and kept the oil I'd removed. As I was, at the time, the maintenance manager for a large brewery, I sent a sample of that oil to our lube supplier for analysis. The results were striking.
He found the viscosity to be equivalent to about 4W, with large amounts of copper and other impurities. He couldn't believe that this was supposed to be 10W40 - his conclusion was that my vehicle had been filled with oil that had already been run significant miles. In short, my oil change had been done with used oil.
Also, not surprisingly, the oil pressure warning was no longer flickering.
I reported this to the operator(s) of the station that had done the change, and they were incredulous. They told me that they used the oil in their own vehicles and had total confidence in it. This changed when I showed them the written report from my supplier.
The next step was to discuss it with the regional people, who wanted a sample of what I had removed. I provided it and, after a couple of days, was offered a free oil change voucher.
I tried to get the state of Wisconsin interested in what was obviously a fraudulent operation (phone calls, etc.), but all I received in return was an envelope of forms to fill out and return to Madison.
As I indicated above, my time and attention was full because of the other matters, and I simply didn't have time or energy to devote to a new pursuit. So I dropped the matter.
I have never had one of these outfits service my vehicles since - I do the oil changes myself.
Has anyone else had similar experiences with one of these shysters? (I mean beyond the phony "inspection" they always perform, coming back with a list of light bulbs they say are out but are actually still working, and so forth.)
I had a pristine Chrysler New-Yorker - a '77 four-door hardtop, running a huge V-8...don't remember the displacement. I loved the car, even though I didn't have to watch the gas gauge dropping as I drove; if I listened closely, I could almost hear it...!
Anyway, I was in the middle of a divorce process (living in an apartment), it was the middle of winter in Wisconsin, my work situation was in the middle of a re-organization, and I needed an oil change. All the "middles" meant that I wasn't in a good position to change it myself, so I went to a local Pennzoil quick-change station in a Milwaukee suburb. They did the change using the bulk oil from an overhead storage tank.
Following the change, I found my oil-pressure light flickering when the engine was at idle - something I'd never seen that car do. This and a few other signs caused me to question the integrity of the oil change I'd just undergone, so I bit the bullet and told the (soon-to-be) ex that I needed the garage for an hour.
I replaced the oil with a major brand 10W40 and kept the oil I'd removed. As I was, at the time, the maintenance manager for a large brewery, I sent a sample of that oil to our lube supplier for analysis. The results were striking.
He found the viscosity to be equivalent to about 4W, with large amounts of copper and other impurities. He couldn't believe that this was supposed to be 10W40 - his conclusion was that my vehicle had been filled with oil that had already been run significant miles. In short, my oil change had been done with used oil.
Also, not surprisingly, the oil pressure warning was no longer flickering.
I reported this to the operator(s) of the station that had done the change, and they were incredulous. They told me that they used the oil in their own vehicles and had total confidence in it. This changed when I showed them the written report from my supplier.
The next step was to discuss it with the regional people, who wanted a sample of what I had removed. I provided it and, after a couple of days, was offered a free oil change voucher.
I tried to get the state of Wisconsin interested in what was obviously a fraudulent operation (phone calls, etc.), but all I received in return was an envelope of forms to fill out and return to Madison.
As I indicated above, my time and attention was full because of the other matters, and I simply didn't have time or energy to devote to a new pursuit. So I dropped the matter.
I have never had one of these outfits service my vehicles since - I do the oil changes myself.
Has anyone else had similar experiences with one of these shysters? (I mean beyond the phony "inspection" they always perform, coming back with a list of light bulbs they say are out but are actually still working, and so forth.)
......
