I go to a dealership for:
1. Recalls.
2. Warranty work...... ( minor BS stuff only )
3. Oil changes - ( in the winter, & the dealership lets me in the bay with the tech )
.

 

I don't trust anyone to treat my truck as good as I do, so I perform my own oil changes. I read where these oil change places don't realize you have to wait at least 15 minutes with the EB engines, and they overfill them often. Also, dealerships use bulk oil and I don't trust bulk oil. I use Pennzoil Platinum Ultra fully synthetic and wouldn't use anything else. Warranty work is the only reason I would go to the dealership at this point. I know there are very good ones out there, but it's just a trust issue with me.

 

If I may ask, what is it about bulk oil that you don't trust??

 

It's not the oil itself so much as the guy pumping it. Grab a nozzle and go, without paying attention to the weight of the oil. It happens quite often.

 

I don't think there is any bulk oil that any dealership uses that is as good as what I use. I know that is up for debate, but that's my thoughts on it. Dealerships don't use the best premium oil that is available, because it would affect their profit margin. Of course they are going to go the cheapest route available. It's as much a peace of mind thing as anything else I guess. I know more expensive is not always better, but the research that I have done says that Pennzoil platinum plus fully synthetic (made from natural gas) is the best. Yeah, I know that may not be the case, but it's good enough for me.

 

I use Pennzoil Platinum too. Have for years since the guys at BITOG like it so much. But Motorcraft synthetic blend is held in high regard too. Most oils these days are good. But you are probably right about them stocking the lowest cost oil. My biggest concern would be getting 5w20 put in. From some posts I've read at BITOG, improper spec oil is put in more often than you would think.

 

I had my IWE and hub (both destroyed because they couldn't get me in for weeks) on the drivers side replaced about a month ago. I asked how the vacuum system tested, the tech said "we didn't test anything". They claim the IWE failed not a vacuum issue. Well guess what's grinding again... Of course it's not doing it all the time so i guess ill baby it until it gets worse and have them fix it again, hopefully it won't take 2 weeks this time.

 

I've always wondered about bulk oil myself. I was never sure if rumors are true but I've heard that bulk oil is reprocessed used oil. Of course someone is going to say, "no it's not." If there's no difference in the bulk oil that Ford dealers use and the engine oil that comes in quart Motorcraft labled containers then why do they stock both. Just curious here. No argument from me because I don't know.

I guess it shouldn't matter as long as the oil meets Ford specifications.

 

A large amount of of oil sold is "recycled" unless its virgin base stock.

Why in the world would a dealer want to stock hundreds if not thousands of qts of oil individually when they can just store a few drums. It's also much cheaper to buy oil in drums.

 

Had it out with the dealership GM yesterday over the complaint I had. I went in to ask what they were going to do about the front-end alignment of my steering wheel. After they decided to send me to another shop for a correct alignment I commented, "why didn't they do that in the beginning knowing the alignment machine wasn't working right." The GM replied, "We're not perfect, what do you what me to do, fire the guy?"

That's not exactly the diplomacy I was expected. Oh well!

 

Well. I deal directly with the delivery guy for the bulk oil. He tells me that the oil is FRESH, NOT recycled oil. We sell oil in bulk, and our lube guy, can set the amount of oil down to the 10th of a quart. I fill out the lube tickets myself, and list the oil down to the exact amount that FORD says. I do it everyday.

So............................. I don't know what else to say.

 

By the time the oil gets put in cans and packed in boxes and loaded on trucks and hauled to distribution centers and hauled to stores and stocked on shelves and advertised and sold at the cash register, I wouldn't be surprised if all of this costs more than the oil did to start with.

 

Right there is a big problem - poor management. So the only recourse the GM has for poor performance is to fire someone? If someone is to be fired, it should be the GM, IMO

 

Yeah, because the delivery guy is the one doing the formulation and blending. There are very few 100% virgin base stock oils, I would even doubt that the pennzoil ultra platinum thats derived from LPG is 100% virgin. Almost all oil is going to have some recycled base, nothing wrong with that since the base is normally fine it's the additive pack that wears out and the contamination that make the oil "used".