I am considering taking my '88 Vanden Plas to the Quick Lube place (like Jiffy Lube)in lieu of making an appoinment and paying through the nose at the dealership for an oil change. My concern is that the oil they might use may not be right for my car. Does anyone have experience using these places?

 

I personally don't have any problem using one of those quickie places, though I like to stick w/ a certain brand of synthetic such as Valvoline in my preference. i can't remember if it's 5w30 or 10w30, but it's whatever is recommended in my manual. They have not failed me in service for about 2 years now, so I stick with them...and only them. They tend to remember you after a few visits with these cars. Definitely call in advance though and ask if they stock your filter and if they have the tools to remove it. Older jag models, I was told, use a different tool, and not all quick lube stops have them available.

 

As far as quick lubes go I only use Mobil 1 facilities because they have very good quality oil and filters.. They dont make filters for an S-Type though, so like h20boy said, call ahead...

 

There was a guy floating around herea short time agowho ended up with 5w30 in his Series III Xj6. What ensued was a ridiculous amount of speculation about what was wrong with his oil pressure relief valve, oil senders, types of oil filters, etc. He finallyfollowedmy advice thatthe first thing to check was that he had 20W50 oil in his engine. That is the same vicousity recommended for your car unless you are in a winter climate, 10W 40 for temperatures below 40 degrees F.

The oil sump drain plug on your car is 30MM. Many oil change places have big adjustable channel locks that work just... terribly. The oil sump is aluminum, with no steel thread insert unless it has previously been repaired: every so often a "lubrication specialist" will overtighten the drain plug and pull out the threads. The plug may be just secure enough for him to send you down the road, and your luck will hopefully hold out until the next guy removes the plug and the threads come along with it.

I had one customer get quicky lubed on a Friday, and towed in on a Sunday. The oil filter was loose and what little oil was still in the engine escaped through a hole in the side of the block where a conecting rod was sticking through.

A few weeks ago a customer brought in their '97 XJ6 for a power steering leak. There was a quicky lube receipt in the car, which included an air filter and totalled out at $116.00. That's more than I charge, and I give the car a thorough inspection at no extra charge while I'm performing basic maintenance. A guy who knows your car will recognize problems that the untrained eye will never see. I would have noticed that you have a hydraulic fluid leak from the accumulator charge switch, and given you an estimate of $250to replace it with a perfectly acceptable aftermarket component. That saves you at least $150, keeps your expensive hydraulic fluid in the reservoir, and keeps you from losing power brake assist.

Find a good local independant shop that works on Jaguars, and give them your business. Even if it costs you a little more for an oil change, you will benefit in the long run. Quicky lube will not even know that there are grease fittings on your inboard and outboard rear axle universal joints. Take it there and watchthem service your car, that would be a good test in itself.

By the way E, you were quite right about the loose wiper arm nut. Sometimes I overlook the obvious when servicing a car on a computer screen, and your answer was the first thing to check. Let's hope he hasn't been driving around for two weeks in Pennsylvania snow with a loose wiper arm.

 

I agree with JagTechOhio all the way....find an independent specialist who knows about Jags and will take good care of you and your car.

If you can't find a Jag guy at least find a reputable independent who, if nothing else, will take the time to avoid bollixing things up.

I don't want to make a blanket condemnation of all quick-lube outfits but the "fast fast fast" indoctrination most of those guys get is exactly what leads to shortcuts and mistakes. Some callthe goofspure incompetence...and sometimes it is, I know. But, hey, nowadays the consumer is so focused on fast-fast-fast and cheap-cheap-cheap that they forget about the possible consequences. I don't know about you guys but I don't do my best work when I'm under the gun to finish to 29 minutes.

Sorry....I got on my high horse for a minute there. I was just spouting off a bit and wasn't referring to anyone in particular.

Cheers
DD

 

Excellent points made above guys. Everyone is entitled to their opinions in this case; I believe that there are some areas of maintenance that don't necessarily need to go to the dealer. I should know, i've paid significantly for dealer provided services...and was more than happy to do so. Relatively speaking, the older jags may be more of sensitive animal to work on, and you should consider this when making your decisions, but the newer ones like mine, with ford 'influence' can at least allow the oil change to be an easy task. The most important thing is to find a place you trust, whomever it may be.

 

My Mother up inOhio has an independent mechanic who looks after her car on a regular basis. The good thing about establishing a relationship with a good indy is they will usually do as JTO described and go over the whole car on every visit. Then they may tell you something like "you're coming up on a front brake job soon" just so you'll be ready (both emotionally and financially) when the day arrives. If you aren't a regular customer at some shops they tend to do work prematurely as they don't know if they are going to see you again and they gotta get you while they can. Also someone whom you go to on a regular basis usually has a better idea of your driving habits whereas a shop that you're not known at has no idea how you use your car.
The other thing I remind my mom about is when her mechanic takes care of her it is not at all out of line to give him a tip ($a fiver or so) and to remember him at Christmastime. There are times when she goes to him and asks him to check her tires or something and he won't charge her because the time to do up a bill would cost him more than the service time used. Once she had a problem and had him call me and explain it since she could not understand what was involved which he did. He sounded like a straight up guy.
Chad
I guess the point I'm trying to make here is when you find a good mechanic that takes care of you, take care of him/her too!

 

Both parties benefit from a loyal customer/repair shop relationship. Repair shops who take good care of customers are rewarded with repeat business and referrals. Loyal customes are rewarded with those "little extras"....and sometimes big extras, too, like staying late the night before a holiday weekend to take are of an unexpected problem.

Like so many other things in lifeit's a two way street. One-wayers usually suffer.

I could spend hours on the subject but I'll spare everyone.

Cheers
DD

 

Personally opinion from first hand tales of horror about the Quick Lube places..et al..


STAY AWAY FROM THEM !!

 

Thanks everyone for the advice. I have an independent jag specialist who is a very good mechanic but not the best manager of time. If it's tech work I'll leave the car, but for a oil change I like to walk in and out and I usually can't do that with him even if I make an appointment.
I think I'll stay away from the Quick Lube places for now.