Having read many reports here of incompetence by the WM Tire and Lube Department, I am compelled to outline an incident that occured to my family at our local Wally World.
I drive a 98 Volkswagen Jetta TDI (Turbo Diesel) which by now has over 200 thousand miles on it. I love this car and take very good care of it. Due to the high number of miles I drive weekly, I have occasion to have my oil changed often, sometimes as often as every two weeks.
A new "Super Center" opened near our small town - Wal-Mart having closed the regular store to open this large facility. During their fledgling week in business, they were having an introductory "price break" on their oil change service. The price listed was a mere $11.00.
My normal oil change place charges around $25.00 each time, my hubby and I thought "why not give them a try?" So, we pull into the lane right in front of the service bay (note my car was in plain view) and eventually, a CSR from Tire and Lube came out to find out what service we required. Oil change special is what we replied. He proceeded to ask about the car, what kind, how many miles etc. My husband made a point of telling him that it was a TDI or Diesel engine and asked if it would cost more, because usually it does due to the specialized oil required for a diesel.
The "mechanic" overheard this conversation and proceeded to tell us (from the pit) that Volkswagen didn't make a Turbo Diesel in 1998 on the Jetta model and that we must have a "Bug." I said, no, it's a Jetta. He came out of the bay and argued with us about how we didn't know what were talking about. Now remember, I said this car has 200 thousand miles on it, was in plain view and he continues to tell us it must be a "Bug" or gas powered because he knows Volkswagens and they didn't make a Jetta with a TDI engine in 1998.
My husband and I laughed and walked away. He came after us and was saying he was sorry, but he in good conscience couldn't put diesel oil in a gas engine blah, blah, blah... I looked at him and said in my best stupid woman voice... Oh, well I guess I must have been wrong... So... Have I damaged the engine by running it over 200 thousand miles with diesel fuel in it all these years??? The "mechanic" starts to go into some kind of tap-dance about fuel and damage to the engine and we just walked away and kept laughing.
I'd rather pay $25.00 for an oil change than to have anybody from Wal-Mart work on my vehicle for any reason. My children are too important to trust a high school drop out with a very dim bulb for a brain with their safety.
For those of you who would attack my statement that he was a drop out, I can verify that the "mechanic" was in fact a drop out due to the fact that our area is very rural, small and sparsely populated. My hubby knew this guy... He dropped out in the 9th grade.
Buyer beware! You do get what you pay for.
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