Hopefully, you all know the importance of a regular oil change in your vehicles. It is one of the easiest, cheapest and most effective preventative maintenance items you can perform on your vehicle. Not only will it help maintain your vehicle for the long haul, it will ensure that your engine is continuously protected from the daily wear and tear that driving puts on it. But are all oil changes equal? Is it just as effective to go to a quickie lube joint instead of a certified auto repair shop to have your oil change done?

The answer to that is an unequivocal NO! Most of the pop-up quickie oil change places out there don’t hire certified mechanics, which means that you have an inexperienced tech working on your vehicle. The web is full of stories of people who have gone the cheap oil change route and have lived to regret it.

We read a story about one customer who took his one-month old vehicle in for its first oil change only to have his engine seize up a block down the road after leaving. The problem – the technician drained his oil but forgot to put new oil back in. That is more than an oopsie – he had to have his brand new engine replaced! There are stories of people whose oil filters fell out because they weren’t installed properly, new filters getting cross-threaded, new filters put on without noticing that the gasket from the old filter was stuck to the engine and even drain plugs that were not tightened properly or were cross-threaded.

Glen did a video a while back where a customer came in to us for an oil change and we discovered that during the previous oil change, done at a car wash, they had used the wrong oil. Fortunately, our customer didn’t have a problem, however if a vehicle owner uses the wrong oil in their vehicle and there is any sort of lubrication failure in their vehicle, it will completely void the warranty.

In the long run, going to a quality auto repair shop, where you can trust that certified mechanics are doing your oil change, is going to be the best value. Sure you might spend a couple more dollars – literally a couple more – but that couple dollars will ensure that you can trust the work being done. When we perform an oil change here in our shop, we not only change your oil, but we will change your oil filter, top off all of your vehicle’s fluids, lubricate the chassis, doors and hinges along with performing a 24-point inspection. Now that is an oil change worth paying for!