Why can't you do my $200K + car?!

[sld72382]

Another one of my dad's quick oil change SC stories...

Backstory: My dad's chain does just about every car - except exotics ex: Ferrari, Maserati, Lamborghini and also Porsche. This is because parts for those cars are wildly expensive - a $100 part on a Chevy is probably $1000 on a Ferrari. Because of this, the district manager doesn't want to take the risk of a tech breaking something and costing the company a ton of money.* Plus, those car companies are anal about only letting certified techs work on the cars.

So, guy pulls in with a Maserati. He said he wanted an oil change. My dad politely tells him we can't service his car. Cue suck....

SC: Why not? I just want an oil change!

Dad: Due to policy, we cannot service Maseratis. I'm sorry. Your best bet is to take it to the dealer which is Maserati's preferred method anyway, probably for warranty reasons.

SC: Come on, man! Just drain the oil and put fresh oil in!

Dad: We would also have to change the filter as well. Even if I knew personally how to do it, we don't even have the filter your car uses in our catalog. And our oil guide doesn't list your car's oil type to begin with.

SC: Why not? This is ridiculous! What kind of operation are you?

Dad: We run a great operation here, it's just car makers like Maserati prefer you take your car to their dealer for routine service.

SC: Well I want to lodge a complaint with your corporate office! This is lousy service!

Dad: Well they were the ones that made the policy, but here's their number anyway....

Dad hands him the number, he speeds off. Dad said that nothing became of it.

*I asked my dad a little more detail about this, and he said simply put the district manager just doesn't have enough trust in the techs to work on super expensive exotic cars. Plus, if the techs break something on a car the cost of the part comes out of the manager's monthly bonus. Sucky but it's done because if managers were off the hook for claims there would be no incentive for them to make sure the techs under their watch are doing their job right.

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

Personally, I think anybody who takes their mega-exotic male enhancement vehicle to the nearest Jiffy Lube for an oil change deserves whatever bad may befall their car.

The guys working at those places are trained only on how to work on cars most commonly found on the road--your Fords, Chevys, Toyotas, VWs, and so on. If they'd attempt an oil change on something like a Rolls Royce and something got FUBARed, they'd be in a world of hurt .

Not only that but you mention those exotic car makers want only their own licensed techs working on their vehicles. I wonder if having an oil change done at the local ten-minute place would void some warranty or something.

If I ever had a car like that, and I never ever will but I can dream, you better believe it's only going to be worked on by people who work exclusively on that brand of car and know it inside and out.

[mattm04]

Personally, I think anybody who takes their mega-exotic male enhancement vehicle to the nearest Jiffy Lube for an oil change deserves whatever bad may befall their car.

The guys working at those places are trained only on how to work on cars most commonly found on the road--your Fords, Chevys, Toyotas, VWs, and so on. If they'd attempt an oil change on something like a Rolls Royce and something got FUBARed, they'd be in a world of hurt .

Not only that but you mention those exotic car makers want only their own licensed techs working on their vehicles. I wonder if having an oil change done at the local ten-minute place would void some warranty or something.

If I ever had a car like that, and I never ever will but I can dream, you better believe it's only going to be worked on by people who work exclusively on that brand of car and know it inside and out.

And many of the common cars on the road most likely share parts/similar design (i.e Chevy/GM/Caddy/Buick and their previous makes and Ford/Lincoln)

[wolfie]

Even some of the makes you wouldn't think are exotic can't get their oil changed at the Jiffy Lube. Up to the 2003 model year, VW TDI engines could use an oil with the API CF specification. From 2004 onward, they don't use oil - they use magic potion available only through the dealer.

Note: IMNSHO, "oil" is something with an API S* rating (for spark ignition engines - my car takes an SG or better oil) or C* rating (for diesels - my truck takes a CI-4 or better oil). If the manufacturer dreams up their own specification, and won't accept a standard API rated product, that's not oil - it's a magic potion.

[fireheart]

Thank god my Loki (yes, I named my car, shutup) is a nice and normal Kia Rio. So it'll take whatever.

[Cookie]

Thank god my Loki (yes, I named my car, shutup) is a nice and normal Kia Rio. So it'll take whatever.

I name cars, too! My Louella just bit the dust. She was my first car and served me well for a long time. I've had her since 2004 and she's a 1994. I'm so glad I could take her about anywhere for service!

[pssorens]

Jaguar for instance also makes it so every time you change the oil you have to replace the oil pan bolt with a $30 drain plug. I know because my boss at the pharmacy used to have me stop at the jag dealership and pick up the plug so his local mechanic could change the oil.

[lordlundar]

Yeah, the listing price for an oil change on an Enzo Ferrari for example is $10,000. Yes, that's 10 grand for an oil change. I can see why most mechanics won't touch it with a 10 foot pole.

[protege]

Damn, I never knew Mr. Ferrari would get his fluids changed Sorry, I couldn't let that one slide by

Of course, watching someone with a Viper at the 20-minute oil change place the other day was amusing--the mechanics couldn't figure out how to open the hood

Seriously though, many exotic auto manufacturers have it in the warranty somewhere, that going to an unauthorized garage will actually void the warranty. I can see why though, many smaller garages (and even some chains) aren't set up to handle such cars. They simply don't have the parts or expertise. Seriously would you want to risk screwing up a $200,000 machine? I sure as hell wouldn't.

With that said, I do let the guys at the local Pep Boys (Eric, if you're reading this, you kick ass!) work on my MG. Granted, that car's not considered exotic, but I'd rather take it there than the "specialist" (who I had trouble with, and threatened with legal action last year ) across town. The only problem I run into down there...is that I have to supply some parts. The correct oil filters (I still have the original-style 'canister' type which contains a replaceable paper element) aren't in their catalog, neither are the original-style 'pancake' air filters. But, if I can supply the correct parts, they're happy to do the work. (Yeah, I know...I can do it myself, but they can do it better. Plus, they dispose of the oil for me.)

[RayvenQ]

(who I had trouble with, and threatened with legal action last year )

Could we hear the story of that?

[sld72382]

Personally, I think anybody who takes their mega-exotic male enhancement vehicle to the nearest Jiffy Lube for an oil change deserves whatever bad may befall their car.

Although my dad runs a tight ship, I agree with you on this. Nothing against him, but if I had any exotic I would never take it to a chain oil change place.

[Sonoma]

Yeah, the listing price for an oil change on an Enzo Ferrari for example is $10,000. Yes, that's 10 grand for an oil change. I can see why most mechanics won't touch it with a 10 foot pole.

What on earth is required that an oil change costs as much as I paid for my entire truck?

[Astrokitty]

Thank god my Loki (yes, I named my car, shutup) is a nice and normal Kia Rio. So it'll take whatever.

I name my vehicles too. It started with bikes when I was little, but my whole family names their cars.

I suppose it would be like taking my F-16 to the tiny airport down the road and asking them to do maintenance. (No, I don't own one....yet.)

[Chromatix]

The Ferrari Enzo is an extremely rare car. No doubt they have to keep particular parts in every dealer for it. Also, I wouldn't be surprised if their "oil change" also included checking quite a lot of rather unusual things, since the engine is probably capable of working rather near it's stress limits. And then there's the insurance against accidentally damaging anything, and the cost of retaining a fully trained (and regularly retrained) Ferrari technician to do it.

I did once hear that Rolls-Royce engines had a reputation for reliability mostly because they were stripped and rebuilt at every service. I don't know if they still do that.

What I do know is that standard procedure for a Deltic locomotive coming in with a failed engine (bearing in mind that it had two, so it could usually "limp" home with "only" 1600hp), was to lift the whole engine out of the body and put a new one in. This meant that the loco would be working a train at full chat an hour or two later. Meanwhile, the engine would be stripped to components, the components would be sorted according to condition, and on the other side of the workshop new engines were being built from the piles of good components - some new, some used. The Deltics were individually expensive to run, but they had the highest availability of anything on the rails.

[Megg]

My honey drives a BMW, and opening the hood on that is like stepping into a foreign land. I wouldn't even begin to know where to put the oil, and the battery is in 3 places! I totally understand that policy. Any dumbass who takes a Ferrari to Jiffy Lube or whatever, does not deserve that car.