# Oil Changes and Keeping a Valid Powertrain Warranty



## one4turbo (Jan 14, 2014)

I mean... I can see how getting oil changes done at the dealer would place more ownership of any failures on GM's shoulders, but I would honestly feel better about doing pretty much anything to the car myself.


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## Vetterin (Mar 27, 2011)

You should be able to do routine maintenance on your car but what they are telling you is just one MORE thing I don't like about extended warranties.


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## one4turbo (Jan 14, 2014)

Vetterin said:


> You should be able to do routine maintenance on your car but what they are telling you is just one MORE thing I don't like about extended warranties.


Well I'm not sure whether it has anything to do specifically with the extended warranty or the original manufacturer warranty


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## giantsnation (Oct 11, 2012)

Legally they can't do this. *UNLESS* the extended warranty was an extended warranty exclusively for that dealership. Keeping receipts of the oil purchases is a great idea so you show and document a trail of doing your own maintenance. I would also suggest writing the mileage on your receipts.


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## one4turbo (Jan 14, 2014)

giantsnation said:


> Legally they can't do this. *UNLESS* the extended warranty was an extended warranty exclusively for that dealership. Keeping receipts of the oil purchases is a great idea so you show and document a trail of doing your own maintenance. I would also suggest writing the mileage on your receipts.


That's what I was thinking. It's the GMPP extended bumper to bumper, so I don't believe it's tied to this specific dealer.

Edit: I guess another point to bring up is whether they would void a warranty if a different oil was used, like an AMSOIL of equal weight to manufacturer recommended.


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

Keep receipts (of an equivalent Dexos-1 oil + filters) and good maintenance records...and you'll be just fine. They can't and won't void your powertrain warranty because you don't do oil changes at the dealer.


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## one4turbo (Jan 14, 2014)

jblackburn said:


> Keep receipts (of an equivalent Dexos-1 oil + filters) and good maintenance records...and you'll be just fine. They can't and won't void your powertrain warranty because you don't do oil changes at the dealer.


That's what I was thinking the entire time I was getting this whole spiel of nonsense at the dealer.


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

I really don't know why they let people that have no clue what they're talking about work at dealerships...but it's all too common.


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## giantsnation (Oct 11, 2012)

one4turbo said:


> Edit: I guess another point to bring up is whether they would void a warranty if a different oil was used, like an AMSOIL of equal weight to manufacturer recommended.



No they can't void the warranty on this unless they found or could prove it caused XYZ problem. just don't using anything risky such as race oil or a weight like 10w40, for example. Use 5w30 or 0w30 and you're fine.


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## Erastimus (Feb 9, 2012)

You got ripped off with the purchase of an extended warranty. Do you know that the commission to the dealer on a "gold plated" extended warranty, which typically sells at the finance manager's desk for about $2400, is about $1200? Do you know that the things you buy at the finance manager's desk are more profitable to the dealer than the profit on the sale of the car? 

IF YOU BOUGHT THE CAR LESS THAN 3 MONTHS AGO, YOU CAN GET A REFUND ON THE EXTENDED WARRANTY. TYPICALLY, IF YOU FINANCED THE CAR, THE REFUND GOES TO THE FINANCE COMPANY AND REDUCES THE PRINCIPAL OWED ON THE LOAN. 

And have you read the horror stories about trying to get any money out of these extended warranty companies? There is only one U.S. based auto company that keeps the extended warranty program in house and that is Ford. Would I recommend an extended warranty on a new Taurus with All Wheel Drive? Yes, but ONLY the Power Train Care level, not the silver or gold level. And did I buy it from the finance manager at the Ford dealership and thus pay a commission? No, I bought it directly from Ford on Fordowner.com. No commission that way. There was a guy named Sy Simms here in Massachusetts that had a small chain of men's suit stores. His slogan was "An educated consumer is the best customer." He is out of business!! To the contrary, an educated consumer going into a new car dealership is their worst customer!!


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## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

Find another dealership. This one is trying to rip you off.


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## one4turbo (Jan 14, 2014)

Erastimus said:


> You got ripped off with the purchase of an extended warranty. Do you know that the commission to the dealer on a "gold plated" extended warranty, which typically sells at the finance manager's desk for about $2400, is about $1200? Do you know that the things you buy at the finance manager's desk are more profitable to the dealer than the profit on the sale of the car?
> 
> IF YOU BOUGHT THE CAR LESS THAN 3 MONTHS AGO, YOU CAN GET A REFUND ON THE EXTENDED WARRANTY. TYPICALLY, IF YOU FINANCED THE CAR, THE REFUND GOES TO THE FINANCE COMPANY AND REDUCES THE PRINCIPAL OWED ON THE LOAN.
> 
> And have you read the horror stories about trying to get any money out of these extended warranty companies? There is only one U.S. based auto company that keeps the extended warranty program in house and that is Ford. Would I recommend an extended warranty on a new Taurus with All Wheel Drive? Yes, but ONLY the Power Train Care level, not the silver or gold level. And did I buy it from the finance manager at the Ford dealership and thus pay a commission? No, I bought it directly from Ford on Fordowner.com. No commission that way. There was a guy named Sy Simms here in Massachusetts that had a small chain of men's suit stores. His slogan was "An educated consumer is the best customer." He is out of business!! To the contrary, an educated consumer going into a new car dealership is their worst customer!!


Calm yourself. It was only $1250 for me to have a bumper to bumper warranty for 6 years and it's through GM, not some random warranty company. Now, let's stay on topic please.


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## one4turbo (Jan 14, 2014)

obermd said:


> Find another dealership. This one is trying to rip you off.


Funny thing is that I work at this one... :eyedroolA:


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

one4turbo said:


> Funny thing is that I work at this one... :eyedroolA:


Hah! You wouldn't be the first then.

Another member, WhiteandBright here, has been given the runaround on things by the dealership he works at as well.


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## Erastimus (Feb 9, 2012)

I can stay on topic or I can try to help you. Read the extended warranty material - it is with Ally Auto, a division of Ally Bank. Yes, you can trace some lineage of Ally back to GMAC, but good luck getting extended service contract (let's use the correct term for the product you bought) payments from a bank. A bank that is majority owned by the U.S. Government and is in bankruptcy due to subprime mortgages.


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## Eddy Cruze (Jan 10, 2014)

Erastimus said:


> I can stay on topic or I can try to help you. Read the extended warranty material - it is with Ally Auto, a division of Ally Bank. Yes, you can trace some lineage of Ally back to GMAC, but good luck getting extended service contract (let's use the correct term for the product you bought) payments from a bank. A bank that is majority owned by the U.S. Government and is in bankruptcy due to subprime mortgages.


 The GM Extended Service Contract (there is no such thing as an extended Warranty) by ALLY is about the top contract you can purchase, sold under the GMPP name. They have many different plans along with many different deductibles. The profit margin is not as extreme as Erastimus would lead you to believe? Its about 25% pure profit. I found out my Sales Manager had 'backloaded my service contract with $500 in shared commissions and profits. GM and most Service Contract companies allow you to cancel the contract within the first 2 months at no charge. I bought the most expensive GMPP plan, 84 months with a zero deductible priced at $1600. I decided to go to a closer dealer and ask if they would sell me the same contract at a lower cost to rip the profit out of my Sales Managers throat. They were HAPPY to do so and I saved $550 off the original $1600. These guys didn't know me, but they knew the guy who took advantage of me!


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## ChevyMgr (Oct 27, 2010)

one4turbo said:


> Funny thing is that I work at this one... :eyedroolA:


Take your warranty booklet to this Service Advisor and ask him to show you in writing that you *must* have a dealership perform your oil change services.


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## BowtieGuy (Jan 4, 2013)

What I do is keep my receipts and take legible pictures of the receipts next to the odometer and with before and after oil life monitor percentages. In addition to keeping maintenance records.


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## cruze01 (Mar 25, 2011)

READ THE SMALL PRINT!

I purchased one on my 2013 Cruze but 30 days later canceled it. One of the things I read was that if their is a problem that you make a claim on they will require documentation on all service and repairs and all work must have been done by a certified shop! Doesn't say dealership but doing your work at home is not considered a certified shop. I ask my service manager about this and he indicated that it could very well be a point of contention if I were to make a claim. He also was very honest about it and told me that there was very little the extended warranty would do for me that the car didn't already have. That's when I made the decision to cancel it.


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## Eddy Cruze (Jan 10, 2014)

My last Car came with a 60K Limited (aka Bumper to Bumper) and 100K Powertrain coverage. The G.M. Factory Warranty is not too impressive no matter how you look at it? I don't see why a service manager would tell someone they do not need additional coverage? It is always a good idea to get to know your G.M. service team. For the first two years in the 2014 all maintenance is FREE (4 Oil changes). If you expect to use your Warranty or Service contract, it is always suggested that your bring your car into the dealer for regular service. Its $20 for an Oil change, maybe $30?


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## spacedout (Dec 7, 2010)

cruze01 said:


> He also was very honest about it and told me that there was very little the extended warranty would do for me that the car didn't already have. That's when I made the decision to cancel it.


Smart man! These extended warranties are a scam. The 5 year 100,000 miles power train covers the two major components of the car (engine and transmission). It would take allot time to rack up enough switches and sensors failing to equal the warranty cost. 

This page below list allot of what is covered by the standard warranty. 
Chevy Warranty Information | Owners | Chevrolet


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## spacedout (Dec 7, 2010)

Eddy Cruze said:


> Its $20 for an Oil change, maybe $30?


Depends on the dealer you use for service. Two local dealers near me charge almost $50 for a dexos oil change on the cruze. My dealer charges $29 for the same dexos change & $45 for Mobil 1.


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## Eddy Cruze (Jan 10, 2014)

You didn't necessarily make the right decision, you just were told the brutal truth with these policy's . If you do buy a Contract and don't have service records for the Car, chances are the claim wont be paid. If you know the Dealer and have had a majority of your routine work done at that shop (Oil Changes...), your chances are greatly improved with all service needs. Even Billy Mays had a Car Repair Contract, any Car, any Year, unlimited mileage???? Like ObamaCare for Cars!


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