Sacramento Oil Change Service
It's funny how a seemingly simple operation, such as an oil change, can still get sideways when the wrong person is performing the service. Vehicle owners tend to overlook the value in performing a proper oil change. Because of convenience and pricing, many people choose "quick lube" shops for all of their oil changes. We call this the McDonald's diet. There is nothing wrong with taking your vehicle to a quick lube shop for oil service. But, at least every other oil change should be performed by a certified trained technician. There are several inspections that the manufacturer recommends when you change your oil. These items are not usually addressed when a "fast food" oil change is performed. At quick lubes the techs are paid to perform as many oil changes as possible in a given shift. They are often new techs just getting out of school and starting their career. Because these service shops tend to offer extremely discounted oil changes, the techs are often pushed to meet quotas on "upselling" easy items like flushes and filters in order to pay their rent. There are many new channel studies that you can watch on YouTube that investigate this behavior.
Some of the problems we see in our shop that are the result of poor oil changes are: loose and leaking drain plugs, damaged drain plugs, loose and leaking oil filters, overfilled system, underfilled system, residual oil mess from not properly getting cleaned, or even the wrong type of oil used. Most of these things can be avoided with the technician taking the time to do it right.
Our service technicians will test drive and inspect your vehicle from head to toe before the service and provide you with pictures and explanations included in our unique digital inspection report provided for you. You will get a detailed report on the overall condition of your vehicle so you won't have surprises down the road. We will even take the time to walk you through the inspection on your vehicle so you can see for yourself. When we refill the system, we will only use the manufacturer's recommended weight and type of oil. When we're done, we will clean up any mess made under the car from draining. Then we will set your tire pressures and recheck the operation with an "after service" test drive. At Made in Japan Made in America Car Care in Sacramento, you will have the confidence that your oil change and inspection was performed by an honest professional auto mechanic.
In the unfortunate event that you have an issue with the last oil change from somewhere else, we do have the ability to steam clean, oil pan repairs, drain plug repairs, and even engine replacement. Lets always hope it never comes to that last one. Be careful, that $19.99 oil change today could cost you a $6000 engine later!
One last thing though. Many owners only follow the manufacture's intervals or vehicle "oil change due" or "oil life" message on the instrument panel and that's OK. But almost no one actually checks the engine oil level between services. This is leading to many premature engine failures that we find in our shop. An Engine can will consume engine oil over time leaving a low oil level condition between oil services. That's why we have developed a Vehicle Health Check inspection program where you can come in every 3 months to get the vehicle inspected, service the fluid levels, set the tire pressure and keep you informed on the overall heath of your car, truck, or SUV.