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Yes I know I shouldn't of went to Jiffy Lube, but I had a gift card....

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Old 03-20-2012, 12:12 PM
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Default Yes I know I shouldn't of went to Jiffy Lube, but I had a gift card....

In hindsight I should of known this was not a good idea and should of just given my gift card to a homeless guy.

I got my oil changed there about a week ago and didn't think much of it. Then I was driving one night and noticed my voltage gauge was reading really low and was continually going down. I checked the date on my battery and it was about five years old so I replaced it and crossed my fingers. It didn't fix it.

Then I noticed power steering fluid leaking out of the fluid reservoir so I took the cap off and the fluid level was maxed out! It was completely filled to the brim even when it was cold. Guess where it went....Right onto my alternator! I called Jiffy Lube support and finally got ahold of the general manager and explained the story to him. (I can't seem to find my receipt which may or may not of proved if they filled it up. Oops) He of course said none was added but it didn't leak before and I never noticed it leaking and I've had the car for over a year. How could it still be maxed out if it had been leaking before they touched it? I asked him why they wouldn't of taken any of it out if they had infact checked it and found it to be over filled. He said a lot of people run them with extra fluid because a lot of power steering pumps leak. Moral of the story is, don't go to Jiffy Lube even if you have a gift card.

The car is a 2002 and I'm not sure if the alternator has ever been replaced but I think there is a lot of reason to believe that they caused this. What do you guys think?
Old 03-20-2012, 12:20 PM
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check the little red exciter wire that plugs into the top of the alternator, that thing comes out all the time, I dont think a little bit of fluid would be enough to ruin your alternator
Old 03-20-2012, 12:46 PM
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Yes excessive fluid CAN and WILL ruin an alternator. Now proving Jiffy Lube is at fault is another story..
Old 03-20-2012, 12:53 PM
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That sucks
Old 03-20-2012, 12:57 PM
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i'd have given the gift card to someone i didn't like.

that said, have you checked all connections to the alternator?
Old 03-20-2012, 12:57 PM
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I had a close friend who went there for a oil change and they spun the filter off and never checked for the o-ring. They left the old one in and spun a new filter on. About two days later the filter loosened up and fell off. The worst part is it was a girl driving and when the oil pressure dropped and bells and whistles started going off she kept driving hoping to make it home . Needless to say she didn't I end up flat towing it back. And jiffy lubes answer was "I don't know what to tell ya" they swore it wasn't them. That's why u can't expect much from peoria making minimum wage and turning wrenches....
Old 03-20-2012, 12:58 PM
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People .. Damn spell check
Old 03-20-2012, 01:14 PM
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I felt around for a connection and couldn't find anything. As I ran my finger across the bottom of the alternator though I felt a lot of power steering fluid. I think I'm going to wait until they're busier in the afternoon to go in there and make a scene. I got ahold of corporate and told them everything and said they will see me in small claims court.

I have owner the car for over a year and haven't even checked the power steering fluid. There is no way it could be still over filled and leaking after an entire year of not checking it.
Old 03-20-2012, 01:15 PM
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I found a website dedicated to people that have problems with their service. it's Jiffylubeproblems.com
Old 03-20-2012, 02:10 PM
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Originally Posted by its turbo time
The car is a 2002
I have an important question. You say that the car is an '02, but in your sig is a '98 Trans Am. So please confirm if this is in fact a 2002 LS1 car.

The reason why this is so important is because if the car is a '98 base model V8 (meaning non-SS/WS6), then you can forget what I'm about to tell you.

If the car is any kind of '02 LS1 F-body, then you have a power steering cooler that is connected to the driver's side radiator hose ('98-'99 LS1s did not have this, except the WS6/SS cars). Engine coolant runs through this cooler to "cool" the PS fliud that is pumped into the cooler. These coolers are known for failure, and when that happens, coolant leaks into the PS system and PS fluid gets into the coolant. Both systems need to be flushed at that point.

You will find this is a very common failure as these cars age. There are many threads on this, and you will notice that one of the most common first things that people notice is a super-filled PS fluid reservoir (it's over-filled because of the coolant leaking in).

So please check this before making a scene at the Jiffy Lube. It may have nothing to do with them at all.
Old 03-20-2012, 02:13 PM
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That surprises me. Anytime a complaint is made in my company (Im an automotive tech) and it gets to corporate we are told do everything necessary to please the customer. And trust me, we get some complaints from lying fools.
Old 03-20-2012, 03:10 PM
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My wife actually takes her daily beater to jiffylube and we have never had a problem in 6 years. The guys at my location appear to be pretty knowledgeable. The reason we take it there for oil changes – I don’t have enough time to work on all 3 vehicles.

As RMP WS6 said - check for the heat exchanger issue. I cut my lines from the factory one and run a dedicated cooler in front of the radiator now.
Old 03-20-2012, 03:37 PM
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Originally Posted by Petey02avalanche
I had a close friend who went there for a oil change and they spun the filter off and never checked for the o-ring. They left the old one in and spun a new filter on. About two days later the filter loosened up and fell off. The worst part is it was a girl driving and when the oil pressure dropped and bells and whistles started going off she kept driving hoping to make it home . Needless to say she didn't I end up flat towing it back. And jiffy lubes answer was "I don't know what to tell ya" they swore it wasn't them. That's why u can't expect much from peoria making minimum wage and turning wrenches....
company i used to work for in blackwood.....we averaged 2 to 3 a month towed due to those places.
Old 03-20-2012, 03:45 PM
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Originally Posted by RPM WS6
I have an important question. You say that the car is an '02, but in your sig is a '98 Trans Am. So please confirm if this is in fact a 2002 LS1 car.

The reason why this is so important is because if the car is a '98 base model V8 (meaning non-SS/WS6), then you can forget what I'm about to tell you.

If the car is any kind of '02 LS1 F-body, then you have a power steering cooler that is connected to the driver's side radiator hose ('98-'99 LS1s did not have this, except the WS6/SS cars). Engine coolant runs through this cooler to "cool" the PS fliud that is pumped into the cooler. These coolers are known for failure, and when that happens, coolant leaks into the PS system and PS fluid gets into the coolant. Both systems need to be flushed at that point.

You will find this is a very common failure as these cars age. There are many threads on this, and you will notice that one of the most common first things that people notice is a super-filled PS fluid reservoir (it's over-filled because of the coolant leaking in).

So please check this before making a scene at the Jiffy Lube. It may have nothing to do with them at all.
It s a 2002 SS camaro. I will definitely look into that once my motor cools down. That sounds very likely.

On a side note.....I'm kind of ashamed to say this but.....I jiggled the wire on my alternator and it seems to be holding a charge. I figured it could very likely be a wiring issue because the battery gauge was low immeadiately after I installed the new battery.

Uh...thanks guys. I didn't make a scene at Jiffy Lube and I'll probably never show my face there again even if my silly mom does buy me another gift card.
Old 03-20-2012, 04:04 PM
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I stopped going there after they didn't tighten the oil drain plug on a car of mine. Luckily I caught it before the plug completely came out.....it was 2 quarts low. Too many kids work there that don't give a ****.
Old 03-20-2012, 04:22 PM
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Originally Posted by BrntWS6
I stopped going there after they didn't tighten the oil drain plug on a car of mine. Luckily I caught it before the plug completely came out.....it was 2 quarts low. Too many kids work there that don't give a ****.

no...they give a ****.....about their commission, not your car though.
Old 03-20-2012, 07:03 PM
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Originally Posted by its turbo time
It s a 2002 SS camaro. I will definitely look into that once my motor cools down. That sounds very likely.

On a side note.....I'm kind of ashamed to say this but.....I jiggled the wire on my alternator and it seems to be holding a charge. I figured it could very likely be a wiring issue because the battery gauge was low immeadiately after I installed the new battery.

Uh...thanks guys. I didn't make a scene at Jiffy Lube and I'll probably never show my face there again even if my silly mom does buy me another gift card.
hope that fixes it. Damn plug had been rigged before when I changed my alternator. I have no idea it lasted even the year I owned the car before falling out. I'm sure there are good jiffy lubes and bad ones.. It is a franchise, so I'm sure it varies by owner.
Old 03-20-2012, 07:13 PM
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Have them pull film from their cameras and have them check.

Usually those big oil change shops will stand behind their work and fix any issues people have that they were at fault for.

I'm not saying they always will, but when they **** up, you at least have to notify them. If you go in there all pissed off to make a scene, don't expect **** from them right away. Be polite and respectful, and in return, you'll get the same. They will prob. go above and beyond what they need to if you're easy to deal with.

Those people get BS claims all the time "you changed my oil and now my window doesn't work!" or "I had an oil change and now my exhaust is rattling!". People deal with those all day, so that's why they just don't immediately take blame unless it's 100% without a doubt their fault (like putting on a wrong oil filter, double gasketing it, or leaving something loose.

Be polite, reasonable, and most importantly, make sure it's their fault before you just go in there raising hell.
Old 03-21-2012, 01:09 AM
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Jiffy Lube sucks. I took my wifes '03 Acura TL-S there Sunday for a simple headlight replacement. The lady mechanic said she didn't need to see under the hood and that it was just a simple headlight job, no biggie. Well after waiting for 45 minutes she came back and told me the job was too difficult to perform and that messing with the HID system was too big of a risk for their mechanic, assuming they were referring to the "Warning: High Voltage SYstem May Cause Injury or Death" sticker on the HID assembly cap. Needless to say we had to drive home in the dark with one headlight. Funny part about it, the very next morning I took it to another shop and they fixed it in about 20 minutes.

Back in 2002 my brother took his rare 30th Anniversary '97 SS to one of their shops for a simple coolant flush. They put some young teenage mechanic on the job and the guy forgot to open up the purge valves and overheated the car almost damaging the motor. Luckily my bro was monitoring the temp gauge because the tech guy wasn't. Yeah Jiffy Lube sucks.
Old 03-21-2012, 09:59 PM
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I took a look at that Jiffy Lube repair site, and this was too funny not to share

Today's Unusual Experience

[1817] Jam in Columbus, OH Peeing in Fuel Tank

I went to the jiffy lube here in Columbus Ohio on 8/13/2011 to get the oil and oil filter changed on my 2004 sable witch is my baby. well siting and waiting over 2 hours I got up to take look out of the service station window to see my car. while looking at my car I noticed something that didn’t seem rite. the service man had taken my fuel cap off and was just kind of standing there with a funny smirk on his face about 3 minutes later I look back over at my car and the guy is peeing in my fuel tank!!!! I said.”sir!!! why are you pissing in my tank??? he advised me that that’s what they do on all 2003 and newer models to clean the injectors. so I said ok,thanks....god idea. About 3 miles down the road my car lost all power and stalled. I called the manager and told him about this matter. he said to me. that’s what you get for coming to jiffy lube idiot!!!!! I will never EVER return to this store again and am very dissatisfied.


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