Price of an oil change

12,073 Views | 140 Replies | Last: 2 yr ago by Ag with kids
schmellba99
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Dimebag Darrell said:

How long would you go on Mobil 1 full synthetic? Royal Purple supposed to be significantly better?
Probably around the same.

I'm not a lubrication guru, but spent a long time working in the petrochem industry and it was amazing at how many times I saw mechanical engineers fight to get RP spec'd, or if there were issues with gearboxes one of the first thing that was done was to switch the factory oil over to RP to see if that would reduce heat or help with internal vibration.

That sold me, and considering that the cost difference per oil change is pretty small oveall....I'll stick with what works for me and has worked for a good while now.

Mobile 1, Amzoil, Valvoline, Lubro Moly....all are higher end oils IMO.
schmellba99
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Fightin_Aggie said:

evan_aggie said:

I remember getting a 5 gallon jug of Castro GTX with a filter for $30 and Mobile 1 might be $40.





5qt jug maybe? Or was this 1995?

Typically advanced has an oil change deal for that price
When I had my diesel still, I bought oil in 5 gallon jugs. Right off of Amazon.

I still use some of them to store old oil until it's time to make the every 3 or so year trek into town to dispose of it at Autozone, Oreilly or Walmart.
schmellba99
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Ag with kids said:

Dimebag Darrell said:

Ag with kids said:

I used to do my own oil. Then I had teenagers and taught them how to do my oil.

Then they moved out and I realized the price differential between the cost of the supplies and the cost of dropping it off at the shop to have it done was minimal. And since my time is worth money, it was worth it to me to drop it off.

Then, the last 2 Jeeps I bought had 4 free oil changes and tire rotations. No brainer there.

Plus, doing a tire rotation on a Jeep with 35s is NOT very fun. Those tires get HEAVY for a fat old dude like me.
Not very many peoples' time is worth a single penny on the weekends.
I value ALL my time and put a value on it.

That way I can prioritize what I want to spend that time doing.

If your time is worth about what an oil tech's time is worth, have at it. I'm an engineer and it's worth a LOT more than that.
I'm not an engineer, just spend my days fixing the things engineers F up on the regular.

By the time I even GET to town, I can have my oil changed, done the way I want it and know it's done correctly at home. With products I specify, not with whatever is available at the jiffy lube because that's what they have. And I have personally looked over the vehicle to make sure nothing is in need of replacement or repair, etc. Definitely far better use of my time than driving to some dealership or oil change place, even though I'm not an exalted engineer.

More engineers should spend some of their super duper more valuable than the rest of the world's time with tools in their hands - they might learn that they aren't quite as awesome as they think they are and the rest of the world would be far better off.
CDUB98
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He's probably an Electrical engineer and doesn't even know how to use tools.
IslanderAg04
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AColunga07 said:

I'm an EV driver but can very much appreciate both comments. I didn't spit on my screen but I definitely chuckled.

And for the rest of y'all complaining about the cost of oil changes, hold my beer. The local seadoo dealership wants $500 to do the annual oil change/maintenance. I have two.


Calm down Kenny.
StockHorseAg
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I loved it whenever the soft serve ice cream machine was broke down at Sbisa when I was a freshman. You could sit there for hours and watch kids try to get ice cream out of the machine even though the front of the machine was disassembled.

75% of them were wearing TAMU Engineering Class of 20XX T-Shirts.

one safe place
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Once the oil change prices went up, decided to do it myself. Got to thinking that I might save even more money by not replacing all six quarts of the oil, so went with three quarts of oil and three quarts of water. It has drastically cut the cost of oil changes, but my truck does run a bit rougher than it used to.
mccjames
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BMW can be done at home I have 2 and do them just fine. You do need the vacuum canister to suck out if you do not want to take apart all of the aerodynamic shrouds under the car.

Vacuum canister is around $150 ish

Also from working with Southwest Research use FULL synthetic only, the blends really do not do much but the full synthetic has a much longer lifespan.
Easy come, Easy go
Definitely Not A Cop
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NSFW
Dimebag Darrell
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Ag with kids said:

Dimebag Darrell said:

Ag with kids said:

I used to do my own oil. Then I had teenagers and taught them how to do my oil.

Then they moved out and I realized the price differential between the cost of the supplies and the cost of dropping it off at the shop to have it done was minimal. And since my time is worth money, it was worth it to me to drop it off.

Then, the last 2 Jeeps I bought had 4 free oil changes and tire rotations. No brainer there.

Plus, doing a tire rotation on a Jeep with 35s is NOT very fun. Those tires get HEAVY for a fat old dude like me.
Not very many peoples' time is worth a single penny on the weekends.
I value ALL my time and put a value on it.

That way I can prioritize what I want to spend that time doing.

If your time is worth about what an oil tech's time is worth, have at it. I'm an engineer and it's worth a LOT more than that.
I hear you, to each his own. I can knock two oil changes out while the little girl naps and I was productive and accomplished something and didn't sit on the couch watching football for an hour and a half like many other dudes are doing with their precious time on Saturdays. Even if I only saved $60-70 total for 2 cars, I have never regretted doing it...something therapeutic about it...I have a boring desk job and don't get to use my hands much. And i simply will not put blind trust in technicians to not mess up any more, after a few mishaps.

That being said, I have WAY fewer kids than you do, and probably way fewer obligations as a result.
Furious
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Ag with kids said:


If your time is worth about what an oil tech's time is worth, have at it. I'm an engineer and it's worth a LOT more than that.


This is the dude sitting at the oil place for 30 minutes instead of changing it himself. Save $, better products, no f ups from those oil tech kids, and the same amount of time spent.

The only reason changing oil can suck is the collecting and disposing is an extra hassle but not that big a deal.
TMfrisco
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I had my F150 changed at the dealership yesterday with tire rotation for under $70.
Last night I stopped at ORielly for 1 qt of 10w-30 - house brand - for a generator -$7.
I felt like one of those was a good deal!
CDUB98
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StockHorseAg said:

I loved it whenever the soft serve ice cream machine was broke down at Sbisa when I was a freshman. You could sit there for hours and watch kids try to get ice cream out of the machine even though the front of the machine was disassembled.

75% of them were wearing TAMU Engineering Class of 20XX T-Shirts.




It was definitely better when people had to reach I to collets for their, "ICE CREAM!"
CDUB98
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TMfrisco said:

I had my F150 changed at the dealership yesterday with tire rotation for under $70.
Last night I stopped at ORielly for 1 qt of 10w-30 - house brand - for a generator -$7.
I felt like one of those was a good deal!


Hope your truck isn't a booooost. Turbos fry conventional oil.
Moon Shadow
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I remember the Arab oil embargo in the early 1970's.
Before it you could get a case of 24 quarts of Penzoil 10w-30 for (?) $0.50-60/qt??
It's been a long time now but gasoline was well under a "buck" per gallon. After it, the embargo, gasoline went up to nearly $1.50/gallon.
Stayed up until Ronaldo-Maximus talked the Saudi's (after a fighter aircraft deal) to "crack" open the oil spigot just a tad. In a week, gas was under a buck a gallon.
Moon Shadow
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Oh yea, gas when I returned from Vietnam was at a low of $0.239/gallon (in Minnesota).
Ag with kids
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schmellba99 said:

Ag with kids said:

Dimebag Darrell said:

Ag with kids said:

I used to do my own oil. Then I had teenagers and taught them how to do my oil.

Then they moved out and I realized the price differential between the cost of the supplies and the cost of dropping it off at the shop to have it done was minimal. And since my time is worth money, it was worth it to me to drop it off.

Then, the last 2 Jeeps I bought had 4 free oil changes and tire rotations. No brainer there.

Plus, doing a tire rotation on a Jeep with 35s is NOT very fun. Those tires get HEAVY for a fat old dude like me.
Not very many peoples' time is worth a single penny on the weekends.
I value ALL my time and put a value on it.

That way I can prioritize what I want to spend that time doing.

If your time is worth about what an oil tech's time is worth, have at it. I'm an engineer and it's worth a LOT more than that.
I'm not an engineer, just spend my days fixing the things engineers F up on the regular.

By the time I even GET to town, I can have my oil changed, done the way I want it and know it's done correctly at home. With products I specify, not with whatever is available at the jiffy lube because that's what they have. And I have personally looked over the vehicle to make sure nothing is in need of replacement or repair, etc. Definitely far better use of my time than driving to some dealership or oil change place, even though I'm not an exalted engineer.

More engineers should spend some of their super duper more valuable than the rest of the world's time with tools in their hands - they might learn that they aren't quite as awesome as they think they are and the rest of the world would be far better off.

Glad you don't have to go buy oil and filters for the oil change. Must be nice having that all at home.

I drive to town, drop it off, go next door and eat some Mexican food and have a couple margaritas while you're having fun under your vehicle.

And I've done plenty of work on vehicles...I just choose NOT to waste my time doing that now. I've got better uses for my time.

BTW, sorry you work at a ****ty place that has ****ty engineers. I've worked at places that have great engineers. Perhaps you should find a better company to work at so you don't have to fix other people's work.
Ag with kids
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Furious said:

Ag with kids said:


If your time is worth about what an oil tech's time is worth, have at it. I'm an engineer and it's worth a LOT more than that.


This is the dude sitting at the oil place for 30 minutes instead of changing it himself. Save $, better products, no f ups from those oil tech kids, and the same amount of time spent.

The only reason changing oil can suck is the collecting and disposing is an extra hassle but not that big a deal.
Read my post above...I make good use of the time THEY are doing work.

BTW, I've never had a **** up from getting my oil done somewhere. Guess I'm just a complete outlier.

Oh yeah...and I don't have to dispose of the oil either. Which apparently means a drive into town for some folks...which they just told me they avoided.

Or they illegally dumped it on their lawns to kill weeds...but then very few of us on the island have grass lawns so that would be out for me anyways.

BTW...if y'all enjoy doing your own oil, then have at it. You have obviously decided that it is worth your time to do so and that you value your time accordingly. I've done it before and I had no problem doing it and I thought it was well worth my time.

I just don't NOW.
bmks270
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Dealership Fully synthetic 5 quart change cost me $110. With tire rotation and multipoint inspection. Car wash also priced in.

Probably about an hour of labor + the consumables like oil, filter, etc. I think it's a fair price.
Sid Farkas
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I just paid $200 for an oil change at the dealership.
No Spin Ag
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Sid Farkas said:

I just paid $200 for an oil change at the dealership.


Please tell us you don't drive a Ford Focus. That or the dealer is the only place in town that has oil.
There are in fact two things, science and opinion; the former begets knowledge, the later ignorance. Hippocrates
AlaskanAg99
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I'm now planning to do my own, it's been a decade. OEM filter, Synth 'oil', tran drain/fill and diff drain/fill.

In my move I lost my floor jack lever, guess I need to replace that. I do know where my jack stands are.
Furious
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Ag with kids said:

...I make good use of the time THEY are doing work.


Stop the cap
AggieDub25
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ThreatLevel: Midnight said:

They are also making new automobiles increasingly difficult to self service by eliminating free space under the hood for access so you need to remove xyz to acces a.


That's why we have YouTube
No Spin Ag
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AggieDub25 said:

ThreatLevel: Midnight said:

They are also making new automobiles increasingly difficult to self service by eliminating free space under the hood for access so you need to remove xyz to acces a.


That's why we have YouTube


And plenty of immigrants working at local mechanic shops for cash who do tons of business after hours for cheap. Or so I've heard.

Just call your local auto parts store and they'll have plenty of guy's numbers who work on new vehicles for a fraction of the price. Again, or so I've heard.
There are in fact two things, science and opinion; the former begets knowledge, the later ignorance. Hippocrates
G. hirsutum Ag
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Option 1: DIY
15 minute drive to store
15 minutes in the store
15 minutes in whataburger line
15 minutes home
1 hour to change oil and clean up
30 minute round trip back to store to recycle oil
$45 in material
135 minutes of actual time plus costs of materials

Option 2:
$130 oil change done in 10 minutes while I'm in the phone with clients

You can save $85 doing it yourself or save 125 minutes paying someone else.

I don't know about you but my time is worth WAY more than $41/hour
"Trust me, I'm a scientist"

"A liberal with a pen is a true weapon of mass destruction"
TMfrisco
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CDUB98 said:

TMfrisco said:

I had my F150 changed at the dealership yesterday with tire rotation for under $70.
Last night I stopped at ORielly for 1 qt of 10w-30 - house brand - for a generator -$7.
I felt like one of those was a good deal!


Hope your truck isn't a booooost. Turbos fry conventional oil.
Same semi-synthetic I've had for 120k miles from dealership with no problem.
10-w30 was to fill a generator.
Furious
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G. hirsutum Ag said:

Option 1: DIY
15 minute drive to store
15 minutes in the store
15 minutes in whataburger line
15 minutes home
1 hour to change oil and clean up
30 minute round trip back to store to recycle oil
$45 in material
135 minutes of actual time plus costs of materials

Option 2:
$130 oil change done in 10 minutes while I'm in the phone with clients

You can save $85 doing it yourself or save 125 minutes paying someone else.

I don't know about you but my time is worth WAY more than $41/hour


Tell me you've either never changed your oil or you are really awful at it without saying it. I like how you even had to pad it with Whataburger to make your time look more valuable. Some dude earlier was dropping $60 more on lunch to prove he's such a baller.
CDUB98
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Love these posts of, "my time is worth eleventy-billion dollars," as if none of the rest of us make decent money.

Sometimes, it's simply about enjoying doing your own work and making sure it's done right.
Ag with kids
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CDUB98 said:

Love these posts of, "my time is worth eleventy-billion dollars," as if none of the rest of us make decent money.

Sometimes, it's simply about enjoying doing your own work and making sure it's done right.
If that is what you enjoy spending your time doing, then it is definitely worth the money your time is worth.

I've changed enough oil in my life. I'd rather spend that time/money on other things now.

Plus, I still have 2 free oil changes left on my Jeep. Doing it myself would cost me time AND money that I didn't have to spend...
MRB10
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Brakes plus near me will let me bring in my own oil and filter and charges $23 for labor. I go to autozone, buy the sale for synthetic, and am usually out of pocket $75 after it's all said and done. 5-6qts.
TX AG 88
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Every dedicated oil change place around me (5 minute, Jiffy, Valvoline, etc.) charges $100+ for my 2019 Silverado (8 qt capacity, I believe).

The dealership near me does it for $75 though, and routinely send out coupons.
'03ag
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CDUB98 said:

Love these posts of, "my time is worth eleventy-billion dollars," as if none of the rest of us make decent money.
It's a nonsense talking point

I don't "enjoy" it, but I can change my oil in way less time than people spend driving to a shop to have it done.

Paying to have it done wastes money AND time

Saving $50-80 bucks for 15-20 minutes of work is a pretty good hourly rate.

But then I pay someone to mow my lawn. Because I just don't WANT to do it. Which is the only justification anyone should have to give.
G. hirsutum Ag
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Furious said:

G. hirsutum Ag said:

Option 1: DIY
15 minute drive to store
15 minutes in the store
15 minutes in whataburger line
15 minutes home
1 hour to change oil and clean up
30 minute round trip back to store to recycle oil
$45 in material
135 minutes of actual time plus costs of materials

Option 2:
$130 oil change done in 10 minutes while I'm in the phone with clients

You can save $85 doing it yourself or save 125 minutes paying someone else.

I don't know about you but my time is worth WAY more than $41/hour


Tell me you've either never changed your oil or you are really awful at it without saying it. I like how you even had to pad it with Whataburger to make your time look more valuable. Some dude earlier was dropping $60 more on lunch to prove he's such a baller.


1 I got severe arthritis so I move a little slower
2 you're gonna get distracted and drink a beer or two and it's going to take an hour
3 even if you get it done in 25 minutes my time is still worth way more than $68/hour
"Trust me, I'm a scientist"

"A liberal with a pen is a true weapon of mass destruction"
birdman
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G. hirsutum Ag said:

Option 1: DIY
15 minute drive to store
15 minutes in the store
15 minutes in whataburger line
15 minutes home
1 hour to change oil and clean up
30 minute round trip back to store to recycle oil
$45 in material
135 minutes of actual time plus costs of materials

Option 2:
$130 oil change done in 10 minutes while I'm in the phone with clients

You can save $85 doing it yourself or save 125 minutes paying someone else.

I don't know about you but my time is worth WAY more than $41/hour
That is a ridiculous premise. You forgot to mention the 15 minutes each way to mechanic. And the rest of it silly too.
 
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