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Hey everyone, this is my first post, glad to be on the site. I drive a 2002 trans am. Anyways, onto what I wanted to talk about. I took my car to my local GM dealer, where I've bought 2 cars from, not my current car but I've had plenty of experience from them. My experience with them is almost always sketchy. I went in for a simple oil change ok July 12th because I thought I had a leak and wanted it diagnosed. Turns out no leak, oil changed, good to go. So 2 days ago, I decided to check my oil which I've been meaning to, and I saw it was way over. I'll try to attach a pic. I called and they said they couldn't have overfilled it, but that I could bring it in to be checked. They owned up and said they overfilled it but how could something so simple slip by. I could've caused major damage. Probably not at their expense, at least that's how they'd see it. What are your experiences with your dealer? Do you switch if something seems fishy?
You will see that 99% of the guys on here never go to a stealership, I don't think I would even buy a used car from one, can't tell you how many sketchy things ive seen numerous dealerships do in the past.
Vast majority are clueless, overcharge and try and sell you on things you don't need and like to fight you over recall work.
Learn to work on your own car seriously, you will save money and most importantly you will know its done right. Buy some race ramps and change your own oil.
There are endless write ups and "how tos" for everything on this site from changing the air filter to pulling the engine and drivetrain out.
dealerships are where mechanics get their training in a lot of cases , if you aren't able to do your own work find a reputable independent mechanic .
I have 2 friends that started out at dealerships in their early 20's and started their own shops in their 30's that are both trustworthy and knowledgeable now we are all in our early 50's and those guys have all the work they need....
the only problem I can see with independent shops is they don't get all the latest training on the newest technologies. the world is changing daily. now we have variable lift, variable valve timing, Displacement on demand, hybrids, and fully electronic cars. your mechanic that completed training 20 years ago isn't likely to be on top of the latest technology where manufacturers invest time/money into their dealer mechanics to make sure that they understand the latest and greatest.
the oil change guy is most likely a high school grad and NOT a mechanic.
I overfill my motors (and transmissions) a little bit on purpose. no worries.
This^^^
When I was n/a I always ran between 6-6½ quarts of oil with the bigger filter, and also ran about an extra half quart of trans fluid after I stalled it. Now that I'm boosted I run between 6½-7 quarts of oil with the bigger filter (WIX 51522), so you have nothing to worry about man. I would run 6 quarts on each oil change, it's only a half quart more than our cars call for.
08-03-2016, 09:51 AM
Look what the dealership did.. 
