Josh has been paying $30 extra to change out the air filter each time he brings his car to Jiffy Lube for an oil change. This time, to save money, he decided to do it himself—and that’s when he discovered that Jiffy Lube lied to him about the filter.
I don’t know a lot about cars but every time I go to get my oil changed I am asked if I need to get my air filter replaced. Normally I say yes, and deal with the extra 30 dollar charge, but today I was watching my spending and had to decline.
In order to better sell their point, the salesman show me a pitch black SQUARE air filter, covered with leaves and oil, claiming it was mine. I recalled getting my air filter changed the last time my oil filter was, so immediately my suspicions were raised. I had to stop at a parts store and pick up some coolant for my car anyway, so I figured I could buy a new air filter and change it out myself.
When I went to store I was immediately suspicious of the service I had received at Jiffy Lube. The filter I was shown by the mechanic was SQUARE, but the air filter I purchased (the only kind that would work for my car) for my car was RECTANGULAR. When I got home I was certain that Jiffy Lube had been trying to rip me off. The ‘filthy’ air filter was in fact only slightly yellow in color (not black,) and nothing at all like the one they showed me.
The Jiffy Lube repairman lied to me in order to sell me a new air filter. Jiffy Lube should be ashamed, and I don’t think I will ever get my oil changed there again. This is exactly the kind of cheating that turns people off to hiring a mechanic in the first place.
Maybe the mechanic meant “this is your filter in theory,” right? Then why wasn’t he more specific? Hmm, unless he wanted the customer to confuse the issue and assume that it was literally his car’s filter, and then fearfully pay a premium for the service. (We’re suspicious of Jiffy Lube because Jiffy Lube has a long history of shenanigans. )
Luckily for you, it’s very easy to change your own air filter. The guys at Car Talk equate it with being able to hang a picture on the wall, and you won’t have to deal with the extra labor charges from a place like Jiffy Lube.
As far as when to replace it, we’ve seen a wide range of suggestions, including “every 15,000 miles,” “every time you change your oil,” “every 3-4,000 miles,” “check your car’s manual,” and “when it’s dirty.” So while Jiffy Lube may have been right to suggest replacing the filter, it’s such an easy thing to do that you’ll save money by doing it yourself.
“How To Change Your Car’s Filters” [Edmunds]
“Car Talk Service Advice: Air Filters” [Car Talk]
(Photo: Karen Eliot)
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I will never again go to Jiffy Lube. I had a coupon for a free oil change that ended up costing me about $700…
The tech claimed he couldn’t get the oil drain plug out and therefore couldn’t change the oil, then gave me my keys back and said it was good to go.
About half of a mile later, my oil pressure dropped to zero – I got out and checked the oil…none left. I looked under my Jeep, and there was oil covering everything aft of the engine…and a long line of oil from Jiffy Lube left on the street.
The guy had turned the drain plug the wrong way and sheered it off in the oil pan.
He broke my car, lied to me, and most importantly, handed me back an unsafe car with no warning.
Had to pull the engine and replace the entire oil pan.
Oh…I went straight back, and Jiffy Lube claimed they had never seen me nor worked on my car.
Never again.
I am spreading the word to help people stay away from Jiffy Lube. I am convinced ALL Jiffy Lube are crooks. DON’T GO TO JIFFY LUBE!
I was really busy for awhile and didn’t have time on the weekends to do my own oil change, so I took my car to Jiffy Lube during lunch to get it done. They told me I needed a special kind of oil filter for my car and it costs $25. I have a 20 year old BMW. There’s nothing special about it. The same oil filter sells for $7 at Pep Boys. I was told I needed this “special” filter by 5 Jiffy Lubes.
So this really didn’t surprise me. They are crooks. Leanr to do your own oil changes if you have the space to do it. It takes less than an hour and you end up saving a lot of money.
Jiffy Lube is a very expensive place to get an oil change. Beside, check your owners manual for how often you need to change you car oil. I really doubt it will say every 3,000 miles. It is probably closer to every 10,000 miles.
Midas Muffler pulled a similar trick on me a few years back when I brought my previous car in for some brake work. I had already bought the shop manual for the vehicle and had it in the car under the back seat. The mechanic after checking the car, brought me into the shop to tell me that my rotors couldn’t be turned down since they were already worn down below the minimum thickness and said they had to be replaced.
I asked him, “what’s the thickness now?” He gave me a number, and I said, “well, let’s see” and reached into the car and opened up the shop manual to the page on bake system specs (I had a bookmark in it). He was off by a huge amount, there was still a lot of thickness left on the rotors, and he sheepishly agreed with me and turned the rotors instead of replacing them. Saved hundreds of dollars. A little knowledge is money in your pocket.
And I’ve never been back to that Midas, or any other after that.
@scoosdad: err, make that brake system specs, not bake system. We weren’t making cookies.
@scoosdad: Why would you trust them to turn the rotors after they lied to you?
No matter which chain, the quick-lube places will *always* try to tell you your air filter is dirty. Every time. No matter what condition it’s in – one time I’d only changed the thing out myself a month or so before.
I always thought it was funny that these guys will go through the trouble of removing my filter to show it to me – not a straightforward operation on my car – hoping to charge me $30 to replace it. So they wind up wasting about fifteen minutes of labor to remove it and then put the same filter back in, every time.
@rekoil: There’s a Tire Choice (a Florida chain) near me that does all kinds of basic stuff. The first time I went there I knew exactly what the car needed.
They changed the oil and came out with a list of things that needed to be done. The battery was getting older, they said, and would only last another year or so. (True.) And the rear windshield wiper blade was shot. (True–but the wiper doesn’t work.) No hard sell. And they listed the things they’d checked that were in good shape.
They got a customer for life. And they’ve treated me fairly ever since.
Jiffy Lube, on the other hand, can take a flying leap. I went there once before I found Tire Choice, and it was the usual horrible experience.
@nsv: Er… no hard sell on the air filter, which was in good shape, is where I was going with all that.
This happened to me, too.
I had changed my air filter the week before. I went in for just and oil change.
He showed me my filter and claimed it needed to be changed.
It’s become such a sleazy business. I’ll just do it all myself now.
I want to a quick lube place for my last oil change. I was way overdue and this place was close by. During the whole time I was getting the oil change, they tried to upsell me on everything. My car is 3 years old with almost 35,000 miles. “Transmission Flush? Only $59.99. Wiper blades are only $25/pair. Your coolant needs changing -only $79.99.” Then they showed me my air filters. My regular one was fine, but they would change out “this extremely dirty air filter for only $49.99 – Hey, it would cost you $70 at the dealership!” What a bargain! It’s a good thing they showed me my cabin filter, because that really needed to be changed… but not for $60! I declined everything, knowing I could go to ANY parts store and get the filters for $10 each.
Simpletons at the lube place left a screwdriver in my engine compartment and the oil filter was barely on. I noticed a puddle of oil on my driveway the next day. Just had to hand tighten it. I went to my regular mechanic after the holidays were over and had him give my car the once-over.
Moral: go find a reliable mechanic, someone you can trust and won’t mind answering questions. Yeah, it’s difficult to find one, but they’re out there.
Why would anyone get their oil changed by these peeps who tighten your drain plug with an impact wrench??
When I go to those places…. I get the cheapy $19.00 oil change. And I automatically assume they will try to upsell me something. I always say no to ANYTHING they suggest.
I get the oil change, have them fill my tires, windshield washer fluid, lube my chasis & I provide my own oil filter for them to install (they use cheap junk oil filters).
Afterwards I always check & make sure they didnt fuck anything up.
Yeah, my local Jiffy Lube tried to tell me that my battery needed replacing… three weeks after I had just replaced it because the CCA were low. I have them change the oil, not least because disposing of the used oil responsibly is a PITA, but I don’t let them do anything else.
I used to work at Jiffy Lube and I never once lied to a customer about their air filter or heard anyone else try to.
That aside though, never have them replace your air filter. It is by far the easiest maintainance you can do for your car. For the vast majority of cars it is as easy as poping a few metal clips and swaping it out. Can you open your car’s hood? Then you can probibly change your own filter.
THIRTY DOLLARS? EXTORTION! HIGHWAY ROBBERY!
Good God man, it’s like $8 at Wal-mart, $13 for a good one at Napa. Thirty effing dollars?!?!?
Ok, I’ve used my bold allowance for the week.
Jiffy Lube are franchises aren’t they? Got to say, with all of the traveling I used to do, that the experience from one to another was never consistent. Some were good. A lot tried to pressure you to buy stuff. And some made me want to shower afterwards.
It doesn’t hurt to just take out your air filter, blow the dust and dirt out yourself, and put it back in. I wouldn’t do this more than once before buying a new one, but you can get a few extra thousand miles out of it by just doing that.
Uh… a Square filter that’s black and covered with leaves= Carbon cabin filter. changed mine in my jetta recently, and that’s what it looked like, a black square filter covered in crap like lint and leaves. alternatively, the ENGINE air filter for my car is a rectangular one. Also, Cabin filters are always 30-45, and engine filters are always 14-16. So, sorry but I call BS on this story ^_^
@Aaron Gopen: Actually I checked my cabin air filter today and it was perfectly fine. They may have shown me a cabin filter that was dirty, but the fact of the matter was that there was nothing wrong with my car to begin with.
Jiffy Lube did a number on the engine of my last car, putting in an extra half quart of oil which caused it to spill over and into the emissions equipment. The repair was a few hundred bucks. The regional manager who I tried to make a reasonable settlement with told me that he wouldn’t pay up because I didn’t have the air filter changed like they recommended. I finally had to get the state’s Bureau of Automotive Repair involved and Jiffy Lube paid up.
Jiffy Lube tried the air filter scam on me, too about 15 years ago. I took in my Chevy Beretta, and the guy recommended mine needed to be changed, showing me a filter that actually looked clean — probably because I had changed it myself a week earlier. “Look at all this dirt!” he said, shaking his head. When I told him I had just changed it, he muttered, “Well, it looks dirty to me.” Looks like they’ve started investing in props now!
About 5 years ago I took my vehicle, for the first and only time, into a Jiffy Lube for an oil change. About 10 minutes after it was driven into a bay a worker came out, showed me “my air filter” and told me it was clogged with dirt and had to be replaced. The filter he showed me was very dirty.
I looked in the service area where my vehicle was, seen it was still on the ground and walked over to it. What I found told me all I had to know about Jiffy Lube. My vehicle, a Dodge Ram Van, was sitting there with the engine housing cover still bolted down and all of the things that were on top of it were still there.
Since the air filter could not be removed, or replaced, without removing the housing I questioned the worker who told me he would get the manager. The manager tried to tell me the housing was put back after the air filter had been removed. I then asked him why that would be done since they would either have to again remove it to either put in a new one or, if I did not want a new one, put the old one back. He reluctantly agreed with me and said he would “check on it”.
About 5 minutes later he came back and toldme that his worker made a mistake. The dirty filter supposedly came from another car they were working on. When I asked him why there wasn’t another car in his other bay he did not answer me. Needless to say I took my van, which had not had the oil changed yet, and left.
That Jiffy Lube closed about 3 months later.
I have been getting my oil changed at Jiffy Lube in Slidell Louisianna for 8 years and have always received exemplary service each time. I have never felt that they were being dishonest. Don’t let one bad apple spoil the crop.
Repeat it with me: Jiffy Lube is not a mechanics shop. They are not certified. Do not let them touch your car.
Good mechanics are hard to find .Honest mechanics are hard to find .Cheap mechanics are hard to find .But this is why the Jiffy Lubes thrive .
If I give a mechanic or shop something like a 30 dollar air filter I do it to either build a relationship with a shop or do it out of fear-30$ filter or 150$ repair .Some shops know how to accept no and don’t get offended and won’t poke holes in hoses or tear windshield wiper blades .Others will not .As far as they’re concerned THEY WILL bill you for something else .
I’ve used Jiffy Lube type set ups and never had a problem .The biggest thing with these shops besides forgetting to tighten your filter and plug is over tightening the plug with an air wrench which can strip plug or pan threads .
The biggest problem the oil change consumer has and it’s common is lack of knowledge about a car and simple things like air filters,oil changes,tune ups etc .The consumer who got taken admitted he didn’t know much or sounded like he didn’t even care .But they wised up and learned .
Believe or not this is one reason they need to push shop for everyone in high school or possibly even college with a consumer/vocational course or two .Education and training but it’s up to you to learn .
If you have Jiffy Lube change your air filter make them write the date and mileage with a sharpie on the filter somewhere. Ask them to use a paint pen or similar is there is not a “white” place on the filter element to write this.
I do this on my wife’s and my cars – simple solution.
Arrgh. It’s so frustrating to me when I hear about companies like Jiffy Lube pulling this sort of scam on unsuspecting people. It’s all about the up sell to folks who don’t know enough basics about vehicles.
One place tried the “your oil is black, so you need to flush your engine” trick on me. It didn’t work. The guy brought out the dipstick from the car, proceeded to wipe it with a white cloth, and said “look! see how dark it is? it shouldn’t be! you need to have your engine flushed.” He gave up after a couple minutes.
A few months ago though, a different place here in town did the same thing to my girlfriend, and it worked! *sigh* Needless to say, I’m taking her car in there next time to see if they pull the same shenanigans.
@fl0722: Black doesn’t mean that much especially on older oil .And a pressurized flush is worse than black oil .If the pressure they use is more than operationg pressure they could blow a seal of some kind creating more problems that it’s worth .Or if a solvent leaves residue it might disolve new oil as well .
All these Jiffy Lube employees cry it’s corporate pressure .Which I believe but sometimes you just have to ignore that .Quick oil changes-that’s it .I had a jiffy lube place tell me we don’t do any repairs as to put me at ease thinking I won’t be sold un-necessary repairs (just un-necessary filters) .
What bothers me is that a professional salesman can take no for an answer .Mechanics ,techs and service writers can’t or are told not to .But if you work on commission I guess that’s what these jobs attract .
My father and I took our trucks to a Jiffy Lube for 5 years.
I am really anal about watching anyone working on my vehicle after some bad mechanics tried to hose me for repairs (presumably because I’m female and unassuming) however I am lucky to have basic knowledge of my engine.
On the last visit I will ever make to Jiffy Lube, they were decently busy and my truck was brought into the last bay. I watched from their dismal little waiting room but I could hardly see my truck with two vehicles in the way.
I figured “They’ve taken care of me for 5 years, I should be good” …the one time I’m not looking and everything goes to hell.
I didn’t have the extra $50 for my air filter and so I passed on it.
They finished whatever it is they were doing and I went home. The next day I was driving to school and I felt a buzzing on the gas pedal when I accelerated. Eventually I also noticed this weird whizzy-whine from my engine. I called a friend and he said I probably had some blockage in the throttle body but I should be okay to drive to and from school.
The next day I was off from work/school so I decided to take my truck to the dealer, but when I got in and started it, I had the dashboard of death. Lights I’ve never seen were on and my excellent condition truck refused to move.
I had the dealership tow it because it was still under warranty. When they were done, they asked me to come into the dealership to discuss what had happened. The first thing they asked was “Did you take your truck to Jiffy Lube?” i said “yes, I just got my oil changed”. Then the guy shows me this wadded up piece of paper like they lay on your engine or floorboard to keep thigns from getting dirty. He said “this was stuffed in the pipe to your throttle body. There is absolutely no reason for them to have opened this part of your engine. It has nothign to do with any part they would have needed to touch in order to do anything including the air filter. Someone had to purposely and maliciously stuff paper into this tube” ….
Of course I was furious and no amount of exuecutive complaint could get anything more than a “we’ll get back to you” .
Nothing ever came of it, and I have refused to take my vehicle anywhere but the dealership from there forward.
I own a small independent (european import) workshop. Treating my customers fair has earned me far more in repeat business than this kind of ripoff possibly could have. Customers happily wait weeks for an appointment and drive more than an hour each way to have me work on their cars even when they have plenty of shops within 15 minutes of their home, because they are sick of being ripped off by the chains and some dealers.
…not to mention how changing oil every 3,000miles impacts the environment. Please people! Pay a little more, run full synthetic and drive at least 7,500 miles! And depending on conditions, you shouldn’t have to change an air filter for 50,000 miles unless you live in a desert or on a dirt road.
@magic8ball: I’ve only had to change mine once, I think it was a little over 5k maybe 5.5K or 6K. I wait until the car tells me to change it, too.
And I’m still unsure how someone couldn’t change their own air filter but maybe no one ever showed them how to do it. My dad showed me on my first car and how to do a couple other things. I also helped him anytime we needed to fix something on the car I had so I would know. I’m so glad to have a brand new car that I don’t worry about now.
@oneliketadow: I’ll chip in on this: You should consult your owner’s manual for the oil change interval, and then base your change interval on that information and your driving habits. If you drive almost entirely on the highway, and everytime you drive the car, go at least 15 or so miles, then you can probably wait until the factory recommended change interval. If you drive primarily in the city, or start-top conditions, or most of your trips are under 5 miles, you should probably adjust to somewhere between 50 and 75% of the factory recommended change interval. Not all old cars actually recommended a 3k change interval either – my ’92 Buick Roadmaster specified a 7500 mile change interval, although I usually changed it around 3k since I didn’t drive it much and it wasn’t in very good shape. Ultimately, though, changing at every 3k isn’t going to damage your engine, and it gives you some piece of mind, so if that’s what you want to do, I certainly won’t recommend against it.
Everybody posting here needs to educate themselves regarding air filter (for your engine) and hepa filter (for the air entering your car’s interior).
I think you may be enlightened.
Two. Different. Filters.
Oh, and BTW, hepa filters are rectangular. Go figure!
/not a paid Iffy Lube spokesman
Any business run by honest people and employees will do right by the customer. Any business can be owned or operated by dishonest people. I do not paint everyone with the same brush and decide whom to trust based on experiences that I have had with those businesses. Kudos to an educated customer because they are every businesses best advertisment, if the busisness is honest.
EVERYONE HERE.
PURCHASE A K&N TYPE FILTER REPLACEMENT FOR YOUR VEHICLE.
You can take it off, let it soak in soapy hot water, then hose it down and put it back on your car and never worry about this crap again.
Jiffy Lube is the worst. I have a Prius so luckily I do not have to change my oil often (every 5,000 miles). I brought my car into a Jiffy Lube last month, and I waited forever for my oil change. They did the dirty air filter sales pitch, let me knew i could have my fluids topped off, vacuumed my car, yada yada yada. When I drove away, I noticed that my oil change light was still on. I was suspicious. I figured they must have forgot to reset the light.
I usually get about 50 mpg on my car. However, once I left the Jiffy Lube, I noticed a drastic change in my gas mileage. For the rest of the week, I was getting about 39 mpg. I knew something was wrong. It got even worse, my mileage went all the way down to 32 mpg. JIFFY LUBE DID NOT CHANGE MY OIL!!! I called the manager and explained what happened, and he said that my mileage was low because of “winterized gasoline.” I let him know that my car did not have low mpg last winter, but he insisted that he had a videotape recording of someone changing my oil. But since I was so upset about my oil change light and low mileage, he arranged for a free oil change at a different Jiffy Lube location. They changed my oil and my mpg shot right back up to 50 mpg.
Spend $50 on a K&N. Never have to change it. Just clean and oil every 50k miles.
Quite a while ago I went to Jiffy Lube. The mechanic tried to sell me synthetic oil at a substantial mark-up, saying “This is the stuff they put in jet engines”. I told him that until this car takes off and flies me across the country, regular oil is just fine.
FWIW, I just had my oil changed at my local Jiffy Lube. As usual, they went over everything they thought I should pay for. As they marched down the list they said my wiper blades were fine, the coolant levels were fine, the air filter was fine… The only thing the recommended was a tire rotation which I am, admittedly, due for.
I guess it’s a matter of hunting down a shop where they do things right.
I always know quick oil change places are lying when they tell me the air filter on my VW is dirty. I’ve changed that filter before, and it takes a solid five minutes of disassembly just to get to the point where you can see it.
I’m not a fan of the K&N oiled gauze filters, personally. I feel like it’s a lot less effort to buy a new paper one than to wash the old one, and I’d worry about the environmental impact of the oil I was rinsing down the drain when I cleaned it.
Oh I see now, I am taking all of these consumer feedback is telling me something. I will start doing things myself. I will not and cannot trust a mechanic who claims or have ASE written on their garage. I know one mechanic here in Rockdale Texas who says one thing and do another. He even says he is Godly. You have to watch out for the repair shops. They will rip you off in a heartbeat. I have seen it and been through it. You all can message me here. I am glad to be targeted by rich multi million dollar business to be taken out. I speak for the consumers and will help the consumers. the little guy always win the battle. the only thing wrong with USA is nothing but crooked coniving executives who tell you one thing and do another. I am a consumer advocate. I believe consumer have bills of rights that should not be trampled up on.
Chris, I work for Jiffy Lube and was disappointed to read what Josh describes in his visit. The practices described by Josh are unacceptable and contradict Jiffy Lube training. We would like Josh’s help in determining the service center responsible as well as the opportunity to address Josh’s concerns with him directly. I would encourage him, or any customers that have an experience like this, to contact our Customer Service department at 1.800.344.6933 or email jiffy-lube-customer-service@shell.com. I’ve already made Customer Service aware of Josh’s experience. If he would contact us we can put him into direct contact with the operators in charge of this service center.
Thank you for bringing this to our attention,
Paul Brown
I’m sorry, but if you pay $30 to have an air filter changed, you deserve to get ripped off. Are you insane?? $30???? Dude, grow a sack and stop by Kragen and buy the $15 filter and do it yourself. Is it really that difficult to pop open two latches, pull the old one, and insert the new one? Done. 1 minute max. Who the hell pays $30 for that??? Why do you even take your car anywhere else to have the oil changed?? Do you realize how important making sure it’s done right is to your car’s health? I always change my own oil. That way I know new oil actually went into the engine. Most lube places don’t even change your oil. They just charge you for it. Don’t ever leave something that important to someone else. It takes all of 15 minutes to change it yourself. People are friggin weird!
I stay away from all auto repair shops that do not have a viewing window to the shop. And I video all work done on my car. If the shop manager balks..and most do, I politely take my business elsewhere. Because of this economic crisis, we will be seeing more attempted rip-offs from everybody that thinks they might get away with it. Sometimes it can be quite amusing to watch…and then call them on it.
I usually change my oil and filters myself, one because its cheaper and two because i know its done right. but i dont feel like doing it in the cold so something i suggest is if you bring it into a place sign your filters with a sharpee. after they change your oil or filters check it and if its still got a signature you know they have ripped you off.