Edmunds Members - Cars and Conversations

driver100

xwesx said:

driver100 said:

Not if it is frozen like ice

And, you wouldn't know a thing about that! Anymore....

I have to admit....I am not an expert on the topic of water or ice. I do use ice for my Bloody Mary's, or in Canada Bloody Caesars made with Clamato Juice.
If someone gets their jollies from doing their own oil changes then more power to them.
I'd rather play tennis, pickleball, read a book or newspaper....hmmmm, let me see, about 5000 other things I'd rather do.
Judging by the kid that does them at Jiffy Lube, it isn't exactly rocket science.

graphicguy

driver100 said:

The last time I took the C250 in for an oil change the dealer said we don't just do an oil change, you have to do an A Service. The A Service cost over almost $500, includes checking the lights and oiling hinges etc. The other thing I wasn't happy about was they tried to sell me extras...and I had to keep saying no to the pretty young lady, and it took 3 1/2 hours because they have so many cars getting service they do it when they have time.
This time I went to an Indie garage, it took the 1 hour and 30 minutes, they did just an oil change, it cost $180, they gave me a list of things they recommended be done but no pressure, I said maybe next time around
Once the car is past warranty and gets a bit older, the C250 is 10 years old......it is better to go to a good indie garage.
There was no free coffee and cookies, but I could buy those at the coffee shop down the street with the $300 I saved.

My A1 service on my Hondas and Acuras, which included oil/filter change, lube latches, check belts, brakes and tires....all in was $0. After the first one, the A1 was about $50 with a coupon.

The Kia EV6? Tire rotation at 10K miles is $30-$35 at Costco. No other maintenance required.

graphicguy

TVs....walk down memory lane....

Set up a Home Theater system about 25 years ago. Stereo sound, Hitachi RPTV (bought at Circuit City). That graduated to Dolby Surround, which graduated to Dolby/DTS 5.1, which graduated to LG OLED and Dolby Atmos set up.

driver100

graphicguy said:

driver100 said:

The last time I took the C250 in for an oil change the dealer said we don't just do an oil change, you have to do an A Service. The A Service cost over almost $500, includes checking the lights and oiling hinges etc. The other thing I wasn't happy about was they tried to sell me extras...and I had to keep saying no to the pretty young lady, and it took 3 1/2 hours because they have so many cars getting service they do it when they have time.
This time I went to an Indie garage, it took the 1 hour and 30 minutes, they did just an oil change, it cost $180, they gave me a list of things they recommended be done but no pressure, I said maybe next time around
Once the car is past warranty and gets a bit older, the C250 is 10 years old......it is better to go to a good indie garage.
There was no free coffee and cookies, but I could buy those at the coffee shop down the street with the $300 I saved.

My A1 service on my Hondas and Acuras, which included oil/filter change, lube latches, check belts, brakes and tires....all in was $0. After the first one, the A1 was about $50 with a coupon.

The Kia EV6? Tire rotation at 10K miles is $30-$35 at Costco. No other maintenance required.

I'd much rather pay those amounts. However, I am willing to pay to drive my 2014 MB because it is a great driving experience, and you only get one chance (as far as I know) to go through this life.

ab348

graphicguy said:

My A1 service on my Hondas and Acuras, which included oil/filter change, lube latches, check belts, brakes and tires....all in was $0. After the first one, the A1 was about $50 with a coupon.

I don’t mean to be rude, but I’m calling BS on that “afterthe first one” price unless there is some customer loyalty deal you forgot to mention. Not even the most bottom-feeder quickie oil-change place would be profitable at that price point for that type of service.

venture

roadburner said:

I just started this book. So far it's a very interesting read.

I just started this one.

graphicguy

driver100 said:

graphicguy said:

driver100 said:

The last time I took the C250 in for an oil change the dealer said we don't just do an oil change, you have to do an A Service. The A Service cost over almost $500, includes checking the lights and oiling hinges etc. The other thing I wasn't happy about was they tried to sell me extras...and I had to keep saying no to the pretty young lady, and it took 3 1/2 hours because they have so many cars getting service they do it when they have time.
This time I went to an Indie garage, it took the 1 hour and 30 minutes, they did just an oil change, it cost $180, they gave me a list of things they recommended be done but no pressure, I said maybe next time around
Once the car is past warranty and gets a bit older, the C250 is 10 years old......it is better to go to a good indie garage.
There was no free coffee and cookies, but I could buy those at the coffee shop down the street with the $300 I saved.

My A1 service on my Hondas and Acuras, which included oil/filter change, lube latches, check belts, brakes and tires....all in was $0. After the first one, the A1 was about $50 with a coupon.

The Kia EV6? Tire rotation at 10K miles is $30-$35 at Costco. No other maintenance required.

I'd much rather pay those amounts. However, I am willing to pay to drive my 2014 MB because it is a great driving experience, and you only get one chance (as far as I know) to go through this life.

Don't misunderstand...I think Mercedes makes fine cars. I like them. I was just going by what it cost for maintenance on my Hondas and Acuras vs what maintenance cost on other brands I've owned.

Agree with you about your 250. Indy shops are probably more budget friendly after 10 years of ownership. That's true of probably any car brand vs having service done at a dealership.

That said, some of the dealerships offer some "perks" if you service with them. Even my Kia dealer offers a loaner car for warranty work.

My Acura dealer would offer a loaner for any service that took more than an hour while the car was in warranty. The A1 didn't take more than about 45 mins.

sda

Of the recent cars we've owned, dealer maintenance costs least to most expensive: Honda, Acura, VW, Audi.

stickguy

Honda dealers sometimes had good coupons. But my recent experience is that $100 seems to be the new $50 without a coupon.

And IMO there is no reason the C250 should be any different than an accord. I do t think it has a cartridge oil filter but even that should not cost much more. Take it to jiffy lube if you just want an oil change.

explorerx4

I saw an F 117 when it did a flyover at the Dover Nascar race, it looks like back in 2002.
We thought there wasn't going to be one, then I saw a little black dot in the distance.
It was past the track before most people knew what happened.
There didn't seem to be any noise until it had flown by us either from what I remember.

kyfdx

stickguy said:

Honda dealers sometimes had good coupons. But my recent experience is that $100 seems to be the new $50 without a coupon.

And IMO there is no reason the C250 should be any different than an accord. I do t think it has a cartridge oil filter but even that should not cost much more. Take it to jiffy lube if you just want an oil change.

7 quarts of full synthetic is what generally raises the price. (plus Mercedes labor charges)

Strangely enough, a Subaru oil change is pretty pricey, too. Special oil.

driver100

stickguy said:

Honda dealers sometimes had good coupons. But my recent experience is that $100 seems to be the new $50 without a coupon.

And IMO there is no reason the C250 should be any different than an accord. I do t think it has a cartridge oil filter but even that should not cost much more. Take it to jiffy lube if you just want an oil change.

I have heard too many bad things about Jiffy. I won't go into details but I don't trust the 18 year old kid with his baseball cap on backwards. I would go to a regular independent garage with a good reputation.
My one friend took his MB to a new garage in town just for an oil change. Their "MB specialist" looked at the car (I think they made that up), and he found $7000 worth of repairs that should be done. My friend went to his MB indie garage and asked him about the list of repairs....his garage said he didn't have to do anything to his car.
One year later, and he has driven from Florida to Michigan twice, and he has had no problems with his car.

driver100

kyfdx said:

stickguy said:

Honda dealers sometimes had good coupons. But my recent experience is that $100 seems to be the new $50 without a coupon.

And IMO there is no reason the C250 should be any different than an accord. I do t think it has a cartridge oil filter but even that should not cost much more. Take it to jiffy lube if you just want an oil change.

7 quarts of full synthetic is what generally raises the price. (plus Mercedes labor charges)

Strangely enough, a Subaru oil change is pretty pricey, too. Special oil.

With that in mind the difference between a Honda oil change for $100 compared to an MB oil change for $180 is more expensive, but not outrageous considering those factors. I don't think MB ever gives you coupons for an oil change......and any big offers they do have usually amount to very little. It is part of the snob appeal to pay full boat for everything....
It's like the independent premium coffee shops that charge more and people think it is better tasting and worth more.

sda

Audi is frugal with any type of service discount. VW sends coupons by mail, and they are available online too. The key is my timing is often bad, and the discounts expire about a month before I need them. Honda was the most generous, at least, locally.

kyfdx

My BMW dealer has "value service" for cars that are out of warranty and don't have an extended maintenance plan.

You can prepay for three oil changes for $225. It's the best deal in town.

imidazol97

Had the Cruze in for tire rotation/rebalancing/ and a 4th free oil change from my Michelin purchase 2 years ago. As usual for this type of store, they found thiings that were needed. Told me my front brakes were nearly worn out (only 165K miles on them!!!) and that the rear pads were pulling away from the calipers???????

Also told me there were multiple oil leaks on my engine and they recommended degreasing so they could see where the oil was coming from. I had a turbo supply tube that seeped and I replaced it over year ago. Torqued it tight enough, I thought, but 9 months later I had oil dripping and thought that was from the turbo return. Took to dealer who told me the oil was from the supply line I had installed and they tightened it. LOL They also degreased it as part of the 1XX $ inspection fee. I forget the amount, because I was so embarrassed I hadn't looked more closely at the problem.

So my tire store wanted $1100 for new brakes (never said new rotors so I assume they were going to turn the old ones?).

I have Raybestos pads and rotors sitting in the garage waiting for "the guy" to do the replacements.
ME.

#####
The store has free coffee, brewed in a glass pot sometime in the morning and sitting all day.

kyfdx

imidazol97 said:

Had the Cruze in for tire rotation/rebalancing/ and a 4th free oil change from my Michelin purchase 2 years ago. As usual for this type of store, they found thiings that were needed. Told me my front brakes were nearly worn out (only 165K miles on them!!!) and that the rear pads were pulling away from the calipers???????

Also told me there were multiple oil leaks on my engine and they recommended degreasing so they could see where the oil was coming from. I had a turbo supply tube that seeped and I replaced it over year ago. Torqued it tight enough, I thought, but 9 months later I had oil dripping and thought that was from the turbo return. Took to dealer who told me the oil was from the supply line I had installed and they tightened it. LOL They also degreased it as part of the 1XX $ inspection fee. I forget the amount, because I was so embarrassed I hadn't looked more closely at the problem.

So my tire store wanted $1100 for new brakes (never said new rotors so I assume they were going to turn the old ones?).

I had Raybestos pads and rotors sitting in the garage waiting for "the guy" to do the replacements.
ME.

#####
The store has free coffee, brewed in a glass pot sometime in the morning and sitting all day.

I'll guess they factored in new rotors. Does anyone turn rotors, any more?

stickguy

Would have expected it but that little 1.8l C250 engine holds 5.8 quarts. Still somewhat normal. And likely more than covered by Mobil 1 or any other quality modern synthetic.

fintail

kyfdx said:

My BMW dealer has "value service" for cars that are out of warranty and don't have an extended maintenance plan.

You can prepay for three oil changes for $225. It's the best deal in town.

Full synthetic? I would be all over that deal.

snakeweasel

ab348 said:

tjc78 said:

I really like the picture on our 65” Sony. The Android based Smart TV functions are nowhere near as slick as Roku but not as bad as Samsung.

IMO Roku devices (either integrated or a box/stick) are the best interfaces. I even use one in my theater room now. The picture even improved from the Xfinity box.

My TCL is a Roku tv and I recently discovered that my cable provider has a YouTube channel which seems identical to the one offered thru Roku but seems to have a sharper picture. A YT account named Voti recently uploaded HD broadcasts of NASCAR races from 2007 and 2008 (with 2009 coming soon apparently) which he seems to have tweaked somehow as they are just super-crisp. A great way to pass those long winter nights when there is nothing on worth watching.

But does Voti show figure eight trailer races? Now those are races.

graphicguy

@stickguy said:
Honda dealers sometimes had good coupons. But my recent experience is that $100 seems to be the new $50 without a coupon.

And IMO there is no reason the C250 should be any different than an accord. I do t think it has a cartridge oil filter but even that should not cost much more. Take it to jiffy lube if you just want an oil change.

Last I remembered using was in my Accord Hybrid. Coupon price was either $49.99-$59.95 for A1 service. Dealer mailed them to me. But, the first A1 was free for both the Accord and Acuras. Don’t know what it would be without a coupon!

Neither required synthetic oil!

graphicguy

@kyfdx said:
I'll guess they factored in new rotors. Does anyone turn rotors, any more?

Figure rotors are cheap. May as well just replace them!

oldfarmer50

stickguy said:

Honda dealers sometimes had good coupons. But my recent experience is that $100 seems to be the new $50 without a coupon.

And IMO there is no reason the C250 should be any different than an accord. I do t think it has a cartridge oil filter but even that should not cost much more. Take it to jiffy lube if you just want an oil change.

A lot of Jiffy Lubes don’t carry filters specific to German cars. We once took a bunch of BMWs to one and they couldn’t service them. Wasted trip.

Sandman6472

I got a oil change/filter coupon from a new dealer a little farther away from the house, but the local VW store took the coupon and saved me a lot on the service. Since I only do one change/year, was definitely worth it. But of course, they found a couple of issues that had to be done like now! Do plan on doing the coolant flush come 2025 since I'm going to be keeping the Golf but will wait on the front brakes for now. At 5mm, think I'm half-way according to the information I looked up and since I really don't drive very much anymore, think I'll be o k here. Probably should've done the coolant swap on Monday when I had the new battery put in but just wanted to get home really. And figured I still have time to get the work done.

roadburner

My M-B dealer offers a MBCA discount. Their service has been excellent, but I also like to patronize them because they support a charity that my wife and I also support. My BMW dealer has a BMW CCA discount, and I usually pay with the reward points from my BMW MC.

oldfarmer50

Sandman6472 said:

I got a oil change/filter coupon from a new dealer a little farther away from the house, but the local VW store took the coupon and saved me a lot on the service. Since I only do one change/year, was definitely worth it. But of course, they found a couple of issues that had to be done like now! Do plan on doing the coolant flush come 2025 since I'm going to be keeping the Golf but will wait on the front brakes for now. At 5mm, think I'm half-way according to the information I looked up and since I really don't drive very much anymore, think I'll be o k here. Probably should've done the coolant swap on Monday when I had the new battery put in but just wanted to get home really. And figured I still have time to get the work done.

I never got any coupons from any dealer for any service. Maybe that’s because I don’t have any apps or accounts from them. Actually, I did get something in the mail once but when I went in to use it they revealed that it was only valid for a car I had purchased at another dealer and sold years before.

graphicguy

kyfdx said:

My BMW dealer has "value service" for cars that are out of warranty and don't have an extended maintenance plan.

You can prepay for three oil changes for $225. It's the best deal in town.

$75 oil change on a BMW with full Synthetic? That's a helluva deal.....!!!!

Michaell

@roadburner - just learned that as of 2026, the Monaco GP will be held the first full weekend in June.

No more Monaco GP - Indy 500 - Coca Cola 600 trifecta on the day before Memorial Day.

driver100

graphicguy said:

kyfdx said:

My BMW dealer has "value service" for cars that are out of warranty and don't have an extended maintenance plan.

You can prepay for three oil changes for $225. It's the best deal in town.

$75 oil change on a BMW with full Synthetic? That's a helluva deal.....!!!!

That's probably just for the cost of the oil....once you come in for the deal they give it to you in quart cans so you can go home and change it yourself. That's what my oil change would have cost if I did it myself.

ab348

But then if you do it yourself the new oil won’t be registered with the car and it may spit it all up.

roadburner

Michaell said:

@roadburner - just learned that as of 2026, the Monaco GP will be held the first full weekend in June.

No more Monaco GP - Indy 500 - Coca Cola 600 trifecta on the day before Memorial Day.

I saw that; at least I can sleep later on Sunday. I think that the idea is to have an informal "Triple Crown": Monaco-Indy 500-Le Mans.

tjc78

Anyone watching the fight tonight?

laurasdada

The "value" oil change on my '20 M240 is $99.95, I'm considering the $225 deal. But, will I own the 240 for another 3 years? I just invested a pretty penny in it 4 months out of warranty and I love driving it, so I'll likely keep it at least another year.
It's also developed an occasional rattle somewhere on the passenger dashboard side. Anyone else experience this?

driver100

tjc78 said:

Anyone watching the fight tonight?

You mean like JMonroe getting chased around the dining room table.

jmonroe1

driver100 said:

tjc78 said:

Anyone watching the fight tonight?

You mean like JMonroe getting chased around the dining room table.

————————————————
There is a difference between a fight and a race. That’s why I win the race. If you want proof, I’m still around to make posts, right?

jmonroe

benjaminh

For our three cars service prices are actually highest on our Honda. At Honda World in Louisville an oil change is $70, compared to 55 for the Subaru and 60 for the Acura. But all of them seem reasonable.

For TVs I went with Sony for years, and always liked them. We still have our 2010 Sony and it still works great, knock on wood. But for getting a larger 4k TV about four years ago we went for the bargain price offered by Costco on a brand we'd never heard of before called Vizio. So far it's been pretty good, and the picture quality is quite nice. Once in a while it glitches, and then you need to unplug it for a minute to reset it to the firmware. But it was about half of the price of a 4k Sony of the same size. Still, if the Vizio dies at some point then next time I might go for a Sony or other better-known brand.

oldfarmer50

benjaminh said:

For our three cars service prices are actually highest on our Honda. At Honda World in Louisville an oil change is $70, compared to 55 for the Subaru and 60 for the Acura. But all of them seem reasonable.

For TVs I went with Sony for years, and always liked them. We still have our 2010 Sony and it still works great, knock on wood. But for getting a larger 4k TV about four years ago we went for the bargain price offered by Costco on a brand we'd never heard of before called Vizio. So far it's been pretty good, and the picture quality is quite nice. Once in a while it glitches, and then you need to unplug it for a minute to reset it to the firmware. But it was about half of the price of a 4k Sony of the same size. Still, if the Vizio dies at some point then next time I might go for a Sony or other better-known brand.

I think half the cost of oil changes these days is unbolting the various shields.

benjaminh

My guess is that at these prices the oil changes are almost "loss leaders." They cover their costs but that's probably about it. But when you add on a tire rotation, air filter change, etc, soon they are starting to make some money when they can bill you 200 or even 300 for a service visit. I try to check whether those additional things that they almost always recommend are really needed, and sometimes pass them by.

graphicguy

benjaminh said:

My guess is that at these prices the oil changes are almost "loss leaders." They cover their costs but that's probably about it. But when you add on a tire rotation, air filter change, etc, soon they are starting to make some money when they can bill you 200 or even 300 for a service visit. I try to check whether those additional things that they almost always recommend are really needed, and sometimes pass them by.

Probably are loss leaders. But, aside from checks and tire rotations (which takes them all of 10 minutes) the oil changes themselves took maybe 15 minutes. Not sure when Honda/Acura moved to synthetic oil requirements, so that may affect the cost.

Things like cabin filters, wiper blades, etc were never included.

All that said, EVs don't require oil changes, or trans fluid changes, or belts, or plug wires, or plugs, or coil packs, etc. Even brakes are going to last a lot longer and I use them MUCH less by often using one pedal driving. Dealership service debts are going to be losing a lot of revenue as a result. Even Hybrids won't require tune ups, oil changes and brake jobs nearly as often.

graphicguy

benjaminh said:

For our three cars service prices are actually highest on our Honda. At Honda World in Louisville an oil change is $70, compared to 55 for the Subaru and 60 for the Acura. But all of them seem reasonable.

For TVs I went with Sony for years, and always liked them. We still have our 2010 Sony and it still works great, knock on wood. But for getting a larger 4k TV about four years ago we went for the bargain price offered by Costco on a brand we'd never heard of before called Vizio. So far it's been pretty good, and the picture quality is quite nice. Once in a while it glitches, and then you need to unplug it for a minute to reset it to the firmware. But it was about half of the price of a 4k Sony of the same size. Still, if the Vizio dies at some point then next time I might go for a Sony or other better-known brand.

Shopped their Acura dealership several years ago. They didn't have anything I liked, but were nice folks.

driver100

The oil changes are definitely a loss leader, they probably find lots of work that they can also do while the car is in the shop. You guys are knowledgeable, but most people will believe what they are told by the technician. I wonder what the actual bill is on most cars that comes in for a $60 oil change. Some will be a few $100, others could easily be in the $1000s. I have seen the service manager come over to the owner who is sitting in a chair, and the manager explains that he needs new brakes, an alignment, a few filters, etc., etc.

stickguy

I have overheard some of those and it took a lot of self-restraint to not butt in.

jmonroe1

stickguy said:

I have overheard some of those and it took a lot of self-restraint to not butt in.

————————————————
I butted in once, sorta, years ago. It went like this:

I was in the waiting area with another guy (we’re sitting opposite of each other by about 4 feet) and of course we’re talking about cars, what else? I was there for a recall and this guy was there for an oil change. About 10 minutes later a young service guy comes out to talk to this guy and he was recommending everything from filters to hoses to a complete brake job, fluids, you name it. I’m shaking my head NO, NO, NO to everything the service guy was recommending. Finally, the service guy said almost in a whining tone, “you don’t want anything”? The guy said, “no, just the oil change”. The service guy walks away totally dejected. The best part of this came from a woman sitting there who said something like, “for a minute there I thought he was going to cry. My husband warned me about this kind of stuff. I guess I’m going to hear something like that pretty soon”.

jmonroe

driver100

One fellow here applied for a job as service manager at a new garage that was opening up in town, part of a small chain.
He was told he'd have to average adding 15% to every customers bills. He declined the job, it wasn't what he wanted to do.
Of course the JMonroes will decline so he has to nail the next guy for 30%.

imidazol97

This tire store regional chain location that I used to go to a few years back was asking customers to have their power steering fluid flushed. For Hondas, they'd say that the brake fluid needed to be flushed because Honda recommended it be done every 3 years.

They brought out my air filter from the Cruze or Cobalt with dead grass strands sitting on the intake side along with discoloration due to having been in there lots of miles.
When I changed it at home (Amazon replacement AC Delco) there were no grass strands inside the air box indicating somewhere I had driven behind a vehicle blowing up grass where a homeowner had mowed and blown grass onto the roadway. Otherwise the behind-the-bumper air intake wouldn't pick up grass clippings off the road.

I still haven't figured out what the mechanic meant by "the rear pads were hanging out from the calipers."
I'm going to do brakes on the front this week, then I'll take off a back wheel and look again at pads. Early summer there was lots of depth left on the brake material.

A few years back the manager at the other distant location left. He was the reason I went there because he was honest and customer-oriented. I was told he left because corporate pressured the stores to score.

driver100

Once we took our Volvo in for a stalling problem. They couldn't fix the stalling but said it needed new front brake pads.
We tried another Volvo dealer. They couldn't fix the stalling problem but they said the rear brake pads needed to be replaced.

laurasdada

Pulling up on a Subaru Ascent, from the distance it looked like there was a Ferrari sticker on the back. Once behind, instead of Ferrari, it noted Subaru and the prancing Stallion was actually a prancing Moose.
Excellent.

Sandman6472

Yes, but which jmonroe is posting in here? Jmonroe or jmonroe1?

Sandman6472

I was told I need a coolant flush and front brakes at the VW store recently. The coolant I get because it was last changed at 35,965 miles, right before it went out of warranty. Bad water pump or something so had everything changed under warranty, so it's been awhile for the coolant as now at 78,090. The brakes have 5 mm left, which according to Siri is about halfway for VW Golf front pads. Seems the rears are just fine. The pedal doesn't have that much free space under it when brakes are at a stop light, but that could be normal when it was new...just don't remember. So, coolant will be done sooner then later, the brakes might just wait a bit.

explorerx4

It's easier to figure than sandman1, 2,...6472.