Went to get my oil changed today. I know real enthusiast change their own oil, but I think it is a pain in the tush. Anyway, took my car over to WalMart tire and lube and paid $29 for lube oil and filter using Mobil 1. Now Mobil 1 usually goes for $3-4 a quart, new filter a couple of bucks. Basically it is free labor, plus I can run inside and get a Big Mac and a new CD whie I wait. Is America a great country or what?

You only think that they used Mobil 1...

That might turn out to be an expensive burger you bought.

That is exactly the reason I hate leaving my car with some assclown in a garage. I took my '84 SC for inspection, and found a large piece of SOMETHING in the trunk, and the thermac tube was laying on top of the cat! Never went to that guy again. I can't even trust my father, who once pinched the egr tube in an alternator mounting bracket bolt! There is only person I totally trust to do ANYTHING on my car; it's my friend's father, who is the chief airplane mechanic at Aetna.

Well, if they did use cheap oil, I would only have to speculate why they would leave half a quart of Mobil 1 in my trunk, and why I SAW them ring up 5 qt of it. C'mon, these kids get paid by the hour, and Sam Walton wasn't anywhere around. What do they care? And of course I inspect the work they have done. Don't be so freakin paranoid, buddy! (Try to help a brother out and wind up the object of scorn. Just when I was feeling pretty good about people ) One more thing, do you do chemical analysis on the oil you buy to put in yourself? How abot that premium unleaded that comes out of the same pump as the regular? Who do you trust?

[This message has been edited by stimpy (edited 02-07-2000).]

The guy looked legit, set up behind McDonalds and offering oil changes for five bucks. No I didn't do a chemical analysis and the car worked fine. The exhaust even smelled pleasently like french fries, how do they do that?

Having been an employer, I can believe someone would put in $4.00 oil and not charge the customer for it. You probably got lucky. Personally I'd be more concerned about what is in the hamburger than the oil or gas. Thats probably what killed old Sam Walton

Too bad WalMart doesn't sell flame retardant suits. Yeah, I would say I got lucky on the price, but I have had countless oil changes in three different vehicles in four cities in two states. I have paid as little as $17, no more than $32. Always using synthetc oil. If you think I am gullible or an idiot, keep burning your arm and staining your driveway. Or pay $47 at speedylube. The fact remains is that WM has a price structure of additional $.50 per qt for non standard oil. And thats how they bill 9 times out of 10. So make funny lil jokes at my expense, haha ok. For every comic there are 10 others going "hmmmmmmm".

[This message has been edited by stimpy (edited 02-06-2000).]

[This message has been edited by stimpy (edited 02-07-2000).]

I buy mobil syntetic for my tbird turbo coupe because the turbo creates a lot of heat. Its about 4.89 a quart so its about 25 dollars every three months. I change the oil myself even if its this cold.

I usually know that im getting premium fuel because of the octane level. When i buy 87 octane ,which i didn't know the fiero wasn't suppose to have because it was my first fiero, this was years ago.
You can tell which octane grade it is because the fiero will start pinging if its to low.

Good gawd stimpy, have you no sense of humour?

And YOU'RE saying to ME - "Don't be so freakin paranoid" ??!!!

Maybe it's time to take a look in the mirror. Careful now, who's that behind you...

Psst, patrick,maybe I was talking to the guy who actually stated that he does not trust anyone. go ahead scroll back up...I'll wait. Ya know, the Doctor says that Paxil works wonders on that social anxiety.

[This message has been edited by stimpy (edited 02-07-2000).]

HHHhhmmmm.... lol

I like going to duralube and getting the oil changed. The guy that works there loves fieros. I change it myself in the summer.

stimpy, anyone reading the above posts can easily determine that your comments were addressed to me. If there were any doubts in my mind, your email to me certainly erased them. My initial reaction to your last post was to trade smart-ass remarks with you, but after thinking it over I've decided that this would be pointless (as it is in most cases). You've taken what started out as a harmless joke (complete with smiley face no less) and unfortunately interpreted it as some form of personal attack. The last line in the email you sent me stated - "Screw you guys, I'm going home". I'm not sure if that meant you planned to leave the forum, but if it did, I'm asking you to stay. I looked up and read over several of your past posts, and they indicated to me that you've been a worthwhile contributing member of this forum.

So, shall we put this nonsense behind us and bury the hatchet?

I guess I got home just in time! What's up with you guys? Cool out! Take a chill pill! Loosen up! Don't get so testosterony! Dump some hormones! Ease up! Calm down! Don't get so uptight! Mellow out! Umm...I can't think of anymore right now!

Actually Patrick, I thought Stimpy was being sarcastic in response to Shiner's comment, not yours. Monkey's right, we don't need any more fighting in our "Fiero family." We all are getting a little cabin fever this time of year. Come on everyone, group hug! Kiss and make up!

batboy, you're a valuable long time forum member and I appreciate the fact that you're trying to be a peace maker. However, forgive me for saying so, your assessment of the situation is just plain wrong. The second post by stimpy was full of references to the Mobil 1 oil. There was nothing mentioned in the previous post by Shiner about oil at all. Also (and this is important), you don't have the "advantage" I have of being able to read the email that stimpy sent me. It's pretty clear in there who stimpy is ticked at. I've already given the guy the benefit of the doubt and expressed my desire to forget about the whole thing. Let's leave it at that.

Uh, my bad? I thought Stimpy was mad at Patrick! I didn't say ANYTHING about your oil change! I was just in agreement with Patrick's statement that you never know what happens to your car once you leave it with someone. Borrow some of Monkey's meds or something. This kind of stuff NEVER used to happen on the forum a couple of months ago! Everybody would respect everone else's opinion, whether they agreed with it or not.

Hokay, seems like it is time for a little air cleansing. Patrick, buddy, I realize that your initial response was a joke. A little borderline on mean spirited in my opine, a joke nonetheless. As far as my PERSONAL email to you, I was merely pointing out to you that your joke painted me as a bit of a sucker. On top of that, shiner, your post reinforced that notion. Or am I the only one who got that impression?
I am not mad at anyone, nor do I intend to leave this forum. Got nuthin but love for you baby. But if one is going to start some banter, then they should be able to take as well as dish out.
And Patrick, c'mon, that was a private email and no where near being a flame. I really don't think it is appropriate to bring it in to the forum for the purpose of painting me as some kind of hothead.

It's all good in the hood, OK?

Humor is another one of those "relative" things. I can see where the comments made could be taken a number of different ways, depending on who is doing the interpretation. Maybe we need a tongue-in-cheek face to but in with sarcastic remarks?!? Went and saw a stand up comic last night at the local "Comedy Club" and it reminded me that humor is often acheived at someone else's expense. Like Robin Williams for example: he is a laugh a minute, but it is often because he is making fun of someone else. We all need the ability to laugh at ourselves, but it just doesn't go down as smoothly when somebody else initiates it! I go with Red Skeltons' philosophy: "Why take life so seriously...none of us are going to make it through alive anyway!" I don't believe any malice was meant by anybody in any of the posts, so I vote with Batboy, lets get back to Fieros! Just thought I'd put in my two cents, which now that the dollar is worth .25 means absolutely nothing, fact is, it puts me in the whole! Ok now somebody can tell ME where to get off, to stick it somewhere dark, to crawl back under my rock...you know...have the last WORD?!?! Fiero...Fiero...Fiero...Fiero...oh, sorry was just doing my mantra........

Stimpy, all I can think about whenever I see your "handle" is that little cartoon dog and cat. I actually keep thinking of the phrase "you eeeediot". It makes me laugh!!

Sorry, I had to bring that up.

[This message has been edited by BOILERMAKER (edited 02-06-2000).]

Everything is cool with me. I tend to have very cynical views on human nature and the future of human evolution, heh. I never doubted you were telling the truth, or that Walmart put Synthetic oil in your car. They can probably afford to put synthetic in that small % of cars when people ask for it, because the rest of the time they are using $1 per quart oil, which I am sure costs them MUCH less. Personally, I grab a case of Castrol GTX at wallmart for $12 or $10 or whatever they charge, and grab a bunch of Puraltor oil filters at Pep Boys for 2/$5, and I am set for months!

Anyway, no harm intended by the original post

"Stimpy, say hello to a superior creature."
"Duyay...Hello thuperior creature!"

Joy!!!

Well, I've had plenty of people tell me that I don't know when to keep my big mouth shut. I hope my last post didn't add fuel to the fire. Maybe my assessment was inaccurate, but I was just trying to point out that even though some toes were stepped on, I don't think it was intentional. Ok, I'll shut up now. Sorry, I should of stayed out of it since it was none of my business.

My joke was mean spirited. I painted you as a sucker. I can't take it as well as dishing it out. It wasn't appropriate of me to mention anything about the email. I was painting you as some kind of a hothead.

Thanks a bunch stimpy. If I hadn't held out the olive branch earlier, asking you to stay with the forum, and describing you as a worthwhile contributing member of this forum, I wonder what you would have said.

You and I are on a different wavelength. Let's just move on...

C'mon, a little doublethink would be plus good right now. Quick, go back and edit the original messages, Make yourself misunderstood and the other guy a lunatic. What is the frequency, what is the frequency.
Sometimes you guys drive me crazy, then I drive my Fiero crazy. Daamn that's fun! Fight some more.

AAAARRRRRGGHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
What exactly do I need to do to make myself understood? I AM COOL ABOUT THINGS, PATRICK. If I could fill the page with the little smiley faces, I would. That still don't change the fact that you are getting your knickers in a twist about MY sense of humor.
Repeat after me, it's all good, it's all good, it's all good, it's all good.

Was this the topic about the oil changes? Or am I lost?

Well, the first time I went to a Wal-Mart Quick Lube, I found the oil cap laying on the intake manifold of my V-8 Buick a week later. I called them to let them know that Billy Joe needed to be reminded to replace the caps. The manager said that if I brought the car back, they would put the cap back on for me. I laughed and said, yeah right, you guys arent touching my car again.

I have moved since and havent had a problem with my new Wal-mart, and just last week I got a oil change with 6 quarts of Penzoil in my Jeep for less than $20.

I usually do all maintenance and repairs to my cars. I find it's the only way I can be assured that the job has been properly done. One time years ago while I was having new tires installed on my Z28 at a Canadian Tire location, I suffered a weak moment and decided to also have them do an oil change and lube. When I got home I thought I should check over the car. The first thing I found was that the crankcase was overfilled by one quart. I figured I might as well drain the excess myself before the engine blew a seal. While I was underneath I noticed that there were several locations that were never greased. I took the car back immediately and told the manager about it. He got the same guy to redo the lube job. I was watching from a distance and he seemed to do it awfully quickly. I expressed my reservations to the manager. He laughed off my fears and said that there would be no problem. When I got home, I looked under the car again. Do I need to say what I found? I again went back and asked the manager what kind of clowns he had working there. When the car was put up on the lift the THIRD time, I stood below the car and pointed out the locations to a different lube guy. The original idiot was hiding behind another vehicle pretending he didn't see me. Did the manager offer me my money back on the lube job after all this bullsh*t? Yeah, right. I've never taken any of my cars back to a Canadian Tire store since.

Earlier in this convoluted thread, somewhere among all the recently added smiley faces, I was asked who I trusted.

..... Nobody.

Thought so...

Storie's like these are why I never let anyone but me work on my car's. I've never had a problem like you guys, but i've never brought my car in before. I don't like the idea that somebody I don't know and who may have virtually no skills whatsoever is performing maintenance vital to the life of my car.. I may not know how to fix everything on my car, but I'm a quick learner!

I never take my car in except for tires or exhuast. If i cant fix it, i ask you guys what might be wrong or my friend whos going through mechanic classes for cars.

Heres one story about my moms car. She owned a 88 chevy celebrity station wagon with the 2.8l. The car would stall at stoplights and i replaced numerous things on the car. plugs, oxygen sensor, coolant temp sensor, tps sensor. I said i have no idea why its still stalling. We took it in to my moms friends sons work, and they ran the diagnostic, and he said it might be the ecm. So we took it to the GM dealership. They said there was an updated chip for the mass air sensor, and they changed the chip, while her car was there, the next day she picked it up and told me the mechanic had a tough time shifting it into park. The following day i was driving the car and came home and tried to put in park and it wouldn't hold, i finally got it. I told my mom and she yells at me for breaking the car. <known to hotrod cars> I went to look underneath the hood and followed the cable and saw that the trans cable was broke and they wrapped it up with electrical tape. I told my mom the car wasn't like that, and i never even touched anything on the trans, front wheel drive. We took it to the GM dealership and told them that they broke the shift cable, they denied it, we were talking to the assistant manager big time dick head, hes like well we didn't do it and all that bullshit, my moms like we want the manager and after 15 minutes of waiting, we finally get him and we show him that the car has tape holding the shift cable so it doesn't kink. After arguing saying why do we have to pay for this if the guys broke it. After arguing the manager finally agreed to take 50% off the bill. Our stall problem still existed. I told my mom just wait till my friend came over but she didn't listen, and my dad <no car experience> and mom took it back to the first mechanic and they replace the fuel injection all 6, new oxygen sensor, and couple relays. 1000 bucks. I yelled at my mom, and told her i changed the oxygen sensor already, and she should have told me she was going to bring the car in. The car still acted the same. She brought the car back in and some guy hooked up a timing light i think and said two of the wires are not firing and the coil might be bad. I said im going to fix this, I should have done this myself and checked the wires with my timing light. The ignition module which is 100 bucks was going bad. The car runs great now. I told my mom i could have done the work for half of the cost. I replaced the module myself which was a pain in the ass. I would believe a mechanic with a diagnostic computers would figure out whats wrong. More equipment than me. The GM dealership pisses me off for breaking that shift cable, we got it fixed at a trans place, cheaper of coarse.

I dont trust any of these people. I work on all my cars, and i spend a lot of money on sears tools, those module kits. 5 more to buy to have a 4000 piece set. Its worth it. and its my hobby.

Heres another story that was on 20/20. This one guy who bought a brand new SUV which was a ford brought to a 15 minute lube place. He got his oil change and drove the car for a few days. One day he was driving and his car just died and his engine just locked up. The lube place didn't tighten the oilfilter enough, unless it was the plug. The point was he lost his oil. I want to know why didn't he see that red light that says oil and pull over?????? He took it to the ford dealer and they replace the engine with a total of 4000 bucks. The oil lube place isn't taking responsibility for it. I think he's sueing them now.

Is it any wonder I trust nobody...

Standard, if you continue to listen to what we're all saying, you'll be the smartest and the happiest person in this whole thread.

Wow, I feel special!

Seriously, tho, the only time I have had my car in a shop was when I got new tires. I went to Tires Plus, but my friend's dad also manages the store I went to. good work, and I must say that the managers get a pretty nice discount.. not that I would know.