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Meineke Care Care Complaint - Damaged Car, Lied About It, Refused to Repair - Oil & Filter Change
Oil & Filter Change - Complaint
BROKEN ARROW, OKLAHOMA -- I took my Mercedes to Meinekes in Broken Arrow, OK for an oil & filter change. I asked if they had the filter and the synthetic oil needed. They said "yes." They said it would take 30 minutes. So, I waited there in the lobby. It turns out they did not have the filter and had to order it, but they did not tell me, just let me sit there waiting.
When the car was finally done, I drove it home and received a call stating that they had added 11 quarts when they should have added 8, and asked me to return. I immediately returned, they took out the overfill. However, the warning light kept coming on, so we took it back. Manager Chris said that they had corrected the problem but they would take another look at it to be sure.
When we went to pick it up he stated that the light never came on and they could find nothing wrong with the car. He stated that if the light came on again let him know and he would take it to the Mercedes shop to get them to reset the sensor. The light kept coming on and we smelled burning rubber, perhaps synthetic oil burning. So my wife called Chris who told her that after 150 miles the sensor would reset. If it did not, bring it back and he would take it to the Mercedes shop. After 150 miles we brought it back.
When I called and spoke to Chris I reminded him of his promise to take it to the Mercedes shop. He stated "OK, just bring it in." I did that Friday, 12/11/11, a little after 8 am. Chris was not there so I told the fellow at the desk that Chris was taking this to the Mercedes shop and what for. I asked how long did he think it would take and he said probably all day but I could call back later and talk to Chris.
I called back around noon to see when it would be ready and was told that it was already ready. We picked it up about 5:20 pm. We asked Chris about the burned rubber smell. He stated that was from a cracked valve cover gasket showing us oil on the manifold, the valves not being visible, and he stated it was not due to anything they had done. We thought that was odd because the valve cover gaskets had been replaced in 6/10/11.
We took the car home and the warning light was still coming on. So, today, 12/11/11, we took it back and Chris admitted that he reset the light himself and stated that we could take it to the Mercedes dealer if we wanted to, that he never said anything about taking to the Mercedes shop. He said that was "final". When I asked for his boss's name and number he would only give me the Meineke customer service number. Customer Service refuses to do anything about it.
When the car was finally done, I drove it home and received a call stating that they had added 11 quarts when they should have added 8, and asked me to return. I immediately returned, they took out the overfill. However, the warning light kept coming on, so we took it back. Manager Chris said that they had corrected the problem but they would take another look at it to be sure.
When we went to pick it up he stated that the light never came on and they could find nothing wrong with the car. He stated that if the light came on again let him know and he would take it to the Mercedes shop to get them to reset the sensor. The light kept coming on and we smelled burning rubber, perhaps synthetic oil burning. So my wife called Chris who told her that after 150 miles the sensor would reset. If it did not, bring it back and he would take it to the Mercedes shop. After 150 miles we brought it back.
When I called and spoke to Chris I reminded him of his promise to take it to the Mercedes shop. He stated "OK, just bring it in." I did that Friday, 12/11/11, a little after 8 am. Chris was not there so I told the fellow at the desk that Chris was taking this to the Mercedes shop and what for. I asked how long did he think it would take and he said probably all day but I could call back later and talk to Chris.
I called back around noon to see when it would be ready and was told that it was already ready. We picked it up about 5:20 pm. We asked Chris about the burned rubber smell. He stated that was from a cracked valve cover gasket showing us oil on the manifold, the valves not being visible, and he stated it was not due to anything they had done. We thought that was odd because the valve cover gaskets had been replaced in 6/10/11.
We took the car home and the warning light was still coming on. So, today, 12/11/11, we took it back and Chris admitted that he reset the light himself and stated that we could take it to the Mercedes dealer if we wanted to, that he never said anything about taking to the Mercedes shop. He said that was "final". When I asked for his boss's name and number he would only give me the Meineke customer service number. Customer Service refuses to do anything about it.
Comments:
Posted by azspots on 2011-12-16:
Don't take anything to Meineke...they have a habit of upselling things you really don't need. You have a nice car, take it to Mercedes or a -trusted- mechanic. They are almost as bad as Pep Boys.
Posted by crabby on 2011-12-28:
Overfilling the engine oil as you described will likely damage your engine. Overfilled by 38% is rather dangerous.
According to ehow: "When too much engine oil fills the crankshaft in your car, the oil becomes aerated and is whipped into foam. This is caused by the high rotation of the crankshaft. Foamy oil cannot lubricate your car well, and in many cases it will cause oil flow to halt completely, overheating your oil and causing loss of oil pressure. The engine then becomes starved for lubrication and may potentially lock up."
A new valve cover gasket should be good for 100,000 miles or 7 years, minimum. It is possible for a new one to leak if not installed correctly, but cracks are very unlikely if it indeed was replaced as described. You need to investigate the valve cover gasket issue further.
Yep, avoid Meineke and all of the other chains.
According to ehow: "When too much engine oil fills the crankshaft in your car, the oil becomes aerated and is whipped into foam. This is caused by the high rotation of the crankshaft. Foamy oil cannot lubricate your car well, and in many cases it will cause oil flow to halt completely, overheating your oil and causing loss of oil pressure. The engine then becomes starved for lubrication and may potentially lock up."
A new valve cover gasket should be good for 100,000 miles or 7 years, minimum. It is possible for a new one to leak if not installed correctly, but cracks are very unlikely if it indeed was replaced as described. You need to investigate the valve cover gasket issue further.
Yep, avoid Meineke and all of the other chains.
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