Firestone tried to SCAM me today!

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86Limited

Greasemonkey
Sep 14, 2009
244
1
0
The Gunshine State, Fl
I do the oil changes when It comes to my ride but I had a free oil change coupon and the wife's car had an over do oil change needed. So I bring the Jeep Cherokee in and they put it on lift pretty quick, so it sat for awhile and finally I walked across the street to another store. I come back 30 min later and still on the lift, 5 min later they lower it down and I get my keys and the receipt back. Now this Is were it gets good, I have real trust issue when it comes to this stuff and I always have a feeling something ain't right. Before I left the house I popped the hood and looked at the filter and the brand and the normal dirt res-ado on it. So in that said they give the keys back I drive down the plaza and pop the hood, sure enough same filter and they didn't even replace the oil. I can tell because the jeep has a drain pan and usually there is some oil leftover on It when you drain it. Now I'm fuming and ready to raise hell, I go back to the office and right away the mgr new I was upset. The mgr says is there an problem I reply your dam right and then others in the waiting room quickly turn to me. I tell the guy to come outside so I can show him the dirty filter and no oil res-ado on the drain pan. He was pretty speechless and tried to tell me wrong, so after asking him If he was F-ing serious I think he realized he was going to loose this battle. He confronted the guy who supposedly did the oil change and he didn't know what to say and was white as a ghost. They brought the jeep back in and basically I had to stand in the garage watching them drain the oil and put a new filter on, I'm still sick to my stomach thinking about this and no one in the garage couldn't look directly at me. Already left a message with corporate and I will be calling them first thing Monday morning.

Sorry for the novel, I just had to let out some frustration :evil: .
 

kuruption109

Comic Book Super Hero
Jun 28, 2008
2,886
17
38
highland, CA
:shock: WOW im speechless... wit that bein said every time ive EVER took my car to shop to have what ever done to it I stand right there and watch them bcuz i kno these shops try to get over on ppl and in ur case they tried to pull a slick one on u but im so glad that u checked the car out before u left and after they SUPPOSEDLY did a oil change! .....SMDH @ these NO GOOD SHOPS!! imma self service type of guy now bcuz of the high prices and the BS shops bring.. u can go for a oil change and u kno thats all u need they tell u that ur engine needs replaced(LIES LIES LIES).. :puke: @ shops!!
 

papabearxl

Royal Smart Person
Sep 2, 2008
1,446
17
38
Parrottsville, TN
That's total Bull$Hi** what they did. When I take mine in (because of lifetime powertrain warranty says only ASE Certified can touch the truck), I always watch them, even though I know the guys personally.....you can never be too sure these days.I took the Subaru in to the same place one day because I didn't have time to do it at home (been going there for years), and watched them as they only took 1/2 the bolts out for the skid plate under my motor, as the filter and drain are right above it....they drained the pan, and changed the filter, and let alot of damn oil down on the inside of the skid plate...I let them finish, and told them to take the pan all the way off and spray wash it since they spilled all the oil on it. I still have burnt/hot oil smell after driving it.....even after they washed what they could off of it...... it isn't Firestone, but a local oil change shop.
 

86Limited

Greasemonkey
Sep 14, 2009
244
1
0
The Gunshine State, Fl
kuruption109 said:
:shock: WOW im speechless... wit that bein said every time ive EVER took my car to shop to have what ever done to it I stand right there and watch them bcuz i kno these shops try to get over on ppl and in ur case they tried to pull a slick one on u but im so glad that u checked the car out before u left and after they SUPPOSEDLY did a oil change! .....SMDH @ these NO GOOD SHOPS!! imma self service type of guy now bcuz of the high prices and the BS shops bring.. u can go for a oil change and u kno thats all u need they tell u that ur engine needs replaced(LIES LIES LIES).. :puke: @ shops!!

I know this scam isn't anything new and my wife even said she wouldn't of looked at the finished results, but you are 100% right in having to stand there watching over them. I'm sure if I did stand there watching they would of completed the job, I just don't understand what benefit an employee other than being lazy gets out of it. And yes they also added that other things needed attention also, plugs, transmission fluid, rear end fluid, etc!
 

Buford T. JuSStice

Master Mechanic
Aug 16, 2010
341
192
43
Somebody got fired over that... and the loser deserved it!

I always do my own oil changes when I can help it. If I can't, I go to a place with a biiiig window where I can see them working on my car, and I watch them the whole time. I don't trust other people with my car. Ever.

Consumer reports did a huge article a while back on lube shops ripping people off on Transmission flushes... they'd take the car in, set up a camera watching the garage from across the street, and then take off for a while. Come back and review the tape. Guess what, a majority of the places (I think it was 3 out of 5 or something ridiculous) didn't even touch the car, or the transmission flush machine. They put it in the bay, and let it sit until the people came back. Man I wish I could find that video... it was a news station doing it, and I think it was Aamco who they did the investigation on.

*EDIT* I'll add my own horror story.
The worst place I've ever seen though? Hands down, no contest: Pep Boys. The WORST service every time I've ever gone in there. Only reason I kept going to them for so long is because I never realized just how bad they were until it hit me like a brick to the back of the head. I brought my '95 Caprice there one time, it has the 5.7L LT1 in it... they wanted to charge me 800 dollars to flush the coolant, flush the heater core, and change the thermostat... by this time I'd started going to Porter & Chester for Automotive Technology... so it didn't sound right to me. I told them forget it, I'll take the car home. I paid 80 bucks right there just for them to have looked at it... a few days later my water pump blows up and I take it to them angry as hell... it wasn't leaking before they checked the coolant system and I sure as hell wasn't going to believe it was just a coincident. They said it wasn't related to what they did (BULLSHIT) and they would fix it for 900 dollars. I told them in no uncertain terms that they could go to hell, and that I wanted my keys. They told me I couldn't drive with the car in the condition it was in because it would overheat, so I told them I'll take my chances. Got the car home with no problem (I don't live far, and I bought 4 gallons of coolant and took it easy). Went to NAPA as soon as I got home with my Buick Wagon, and bought a new water pump for 140 dollars. Installed it in under 3 hours without ever having done it before. Now how the hell are they going to tell me that it's 900 dollars for a 140 dollar part and probably 2 hours of labor for an experienced technician? Changed my thermostat and flushed the heater core while I was at it too, only took me an hour extra. Saved myself 1,700 dollars and learned a valuable lesson. PEP BOYS SUCKS!

(They wanted to charge me 750 dollars for a tune up on my Caprice once too... I told them no, and did it myself for 150 bucks... plugs, wires, EGR valve, oil change... took me 3 hours because the plugs and wires are so goddamn awkward)
 

tc1959

Comic Book Super Hero
Dec 23, 2009
3,963
1,975
113
Surprise AZ.
I am ASE master Certified, and have been for over 20 years. Every time I hear about sh*t like this it really pisses me off.
I know that I do good work and always did. These Idiot's make my industry look bad. Which makes us all look bad.
Hang in there word of mouth is the best way to find a good honest shop. So ask around I know that there good honest guys out there.
 

Buford T. JuSStice

Master Mechanic
Aug 16, 2010
341
192
43
tc1959 said:
I am ASE master Certified, and have been for over 20 years. Every time I hear about sh*t like this it really pisses me off.
I know that I do good work and always did. These Idiot's make my industry look bad. Which makes us all look bad.
Hang in there word of mouth is the best way to find a good honest shop. So ask around I know that there good honest guys out there.
Thank you for being one of the good ones. I'm going to school right now for Automotive Technology at Porter & Chester, and I see plenty of hacks and hear about plenty of them too. I'm not the best, but I try my best to make sure I'm not being an a-hole. I do things the way my teacher tells me to, and when I get my ASE, I do not plan on being a back yarder working in a grease pit lube shop for a living. (At least I don't plan on making a career like that, I understand that everybody has to start somewhere)
 

454muscle

Royal Smart Person
Jan 31, 2010
1,242
15
0
Ontario, Canada eh!
Un-****ing-believable. Not surprising in the least bit. NEVER leave your car un-attended. Imagine the number of women who get ripped off in this industry, makes me sick to my stomach.
 

megaladon6

Comic Book Super Hero
May 29, 2006
4,006
15
0
Danbury, CT
why are you guys surprised? it a "lube" shop, you think these people are mechanics? much less tech's? i'd go to the dealership before one of those places!
 

megaladon6

Comic Book Super Hero
May 29, 2006
4,006
15
0
Danbury, CT
(because of lifetime powertrain warranty says only ASE Certified can touch the truck
whose warranty? i've never heard that before.
 
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