Comments by "guyonearth" (@guyonearth) on "CBC News" channel.

  1. Without in any way defending these bozos, there's a couple things people should understand. First, no business could stay in business doing $20 oil changes, it's economically impossible. The material costs for a 5 quart oil change would be around $12 alone. So it's to be expected that they will "upsell" to some extent, or try to get you to buy other services. Second, many cars now require synthetic lubricants, that's what their original fill is. Obviously, synthetic oils will cost more. This is not a scam, it's the correct fill for your vehicle. Third, smart people know you should do things like change your transmission oil, flush your coolant, and flush your brake system periodically. The vast majority of people neglect to do these things, ever. So getting that done on a car you've never had it done on is not being scammed. If you've not been to a particular shop before, they will have NO WAY to know whether you've ever had these services done. There is no reasonable way they can know a transmission was "just serviced". Looking at the fluid is not an indicator, by any means. Also, their mechanic is just wrong about the coolant. GM discontinued OAT Dexcool many years ago, this is the only Dexcool that would have compatibility issues. All modern HOAT coolants will mix with conventional coolants. And somebody needs to tell this mechanic that coolant colors mean nothing, and are only a brand identifier. Any replacement coolant at an auto parts store will most likely be green, whether it's conventional or HOAT long life. While you can buy orange Dexcool branded coolant, it is not any different, and can be used in any car. So the part about the coolant is just wrong. The real fraud being committed here is services being charged for and not performed. This is why I suggest either watching the work being done, or having things like brake and transmission services done at a more serious establishment than a lube place. Of course, this doesn't mean you won't get scammed there, too. Any sensible person should know you can't do all these services in 10-20 minutes. A brake flush requires attaching hoses and fittings to your master cylinder, and opening all bleeders, at each wheel, something that should be obvious by observation. A transmission flush requires disconnecting cooler lines and hooking up a large machine, something that should also be obvious. It would take a single mechanic an hour or more to change oil, transmission lube, and do a brake flush. If you don't see somebody doing these things, I would suggest that should at least raise some suspicions. If you are so non-car savvy that you have no clue, then avoid these scam places and go to a reputable shop or dealer, they usually have oil change and flush specials as well.
    32
  2. mark robertson Calm down, Superman, we don't need you to save the world. If you walk into something ignorant and clueless, and get stung, it's at least half your fault. When we encourage an economic system that rewards poor service and cutting corners, then poor service and cut corners is what you'll get. The stuff this place pulled is exactly what they were TOLD to do by their superiors, and the practices they used are exactly what is taught in a lot of business classes, and exactly what is done on a different scale all through business. Like I said, I don't condone it, but if you think firing some poor schlub who makes $7.50 an hour for doing what he was forced to do to keep his job is going to change anything, you're delusional. I find it hilarious people will piss and moan about a $20 oil change not done right, but they have no problem with hospitals charging $20 for an aspirin, as long as an insurance company pays for it.
    4
  3. MrJOE3D You apparently have some reading comprehension difficulty. I'm not defending this shop's crooked practices. What I was saying is that no shop can stay in business doing $20 oil changes. You're going to be upsold to some extent, that's to be expected. Every fucking shop out there is going to upsell and recommend other services, some of which you might actually need. Cars need more than just oil changes. If you're too dumb to understand the concept, maybe take a business course and learn something.
    4
  4. Masterown35 What difference does it make? They didn't take it to a good mechanic. They took it to a $20 oil change place. Oil change places DON'T HAVE MECHANICS WORKING THERE. They have technicians who get paid a little above minimum wage. You'd only go there because you wanted to save a buck, and you get what you pay for. The knife cuts both ways. If you don't know enough about your car to tell if things need to be changed, then you shouldn't be going to a $20 oil change shop, because THEY PROBABLY WON'T KNOW EITHER.
    4
  5. Masterown35 In a perfect world, everybody knows what they are doing and does it right the first time, when they say they will, for the price they say they will, and nobody ever makes mistakes and is always conscientious. In the real world, not so much. People have unrealistic expectations. Upselling is a big part of business.
    3
  6. ***** I think you're very misinformed about cars, if you really think an EV has 3 wearing parts. EVs have complex electronics, just like ICE cars. They have heating and cooling systems that are even more complex, because they cannot be driven parasitically off the engine, which always has power available. Heat and cooling for climate control is a major challenge in an electric car because all that waste heat from the engine isn't there, nor is the always-on rotational energy of an idling engine that can turn A/C compressors, hydraulic pumps, etc., all the things people take for granted. Engineering an electric car that does everything an ICE car can do does not result in a less complex vehicle. This was the same absurd argument for diesel engines back in the 70's and 80's...oh, they're less complex. Open the hood of an F-350 Super Duty and tell me it's "less complex" than the gasoline version...LOL. Electric cars need to have electric heaters and electric air conditioners, electric hydraulic systems for brakes, electric servos for steering, electric window motors, seat motors, door locks, power mirrors, seat heaters, etc., etc., all of which have to run off the same battery system that powers the traction motor. Both the battery packs and traction motors themselves need cooling systems to keep them from overheating, which means more electric pumps and blowers still. These are not less complex vehicles, in fact, I'd be willing to bet they have just as many "parts" as an ICE vehicle. Also, it should be pointed out, the $5500 battery cost for LEAF is actually subsidized by Nissan, they lose money on it. I wonder how long they'll be willing to keep losing money?
    3
  7. Masterown35 OK, so what if it had all "been done". You show up at an oil change place, they assume you want your oil changed. They're not going to look at it and say "oh, you don't need that". Who the fuck does that? How would they KNOW it had just been changed? How would they know how many miles were on it? Should they care? If you pull in for service, they expect you want the service. Nobody with a brain looks at oil to decide if it's "good" or not. What does that have to do with the fact they didn't do the work? Not doing the work is wrong, it's fraudulent and dishonest. Nobody's disputing that. But don't fill your fucking car up with "new" oil, then expect these guys to know it's new and send you on your merry way, that's idiotic.
    2
  8. ***** No, I just took the time to explain how business works to the twerp dropouts like you...otherwise how would you ever know?
    2
  9. Except when your battery pack wears out and costs $4000 to replace. OOPS!
    2
  10. ***** LOL, your battery costs more than any car I've ever bought. Just bought a 2005 Town & Country for $2995. I fully expect it will last me at least 150,000 miles (3 years for me), and I will never spend that much repairing it, and that's the important thing, I actually CAN repair it, not stand there and stare at it when it decides not to work. I can also haul 6 people, tow a 2000 pound trailer, and carry a thousand pounds of freight when I feel like it, and take a non-stop drive across several states if I'm in the mood, and get 22 mpg doing it. Now, when you have an electric car or a plug-in hybrid that does all that for the same kind of money, you call me.
    2
  11. ***** Your implications about "pollution" are largely a myth. Building an electric or hybrid from scratch causes a massive environmental impact, far more than just driving a conventional properly operating vehicle. Where do they make these all these batteries? China. You been to China lately? I doubt it. It's one of the most polluted countries in the world. You think it saves the environment? Well, if we got our electricity from renewable energy, maybe...but we don't. Most power in this country has either a smokestack behind it, or comes from a nuclear plant. Both are environmental hazards for different reasons. You're just taking the carbon out of the tailpipe and sending it somewhere else, then pretending it's not there. It's not a solution.
    2
  12. ***** Sorry, I don't believe you. You don't even seem to understand how hybrids work. A Prius or similar hybrid can not run on battery power alone. A Prius would not make it 10-15 miles on it's battery pack without the gasoline component running, and I've been informed from reliable sources that attempting to operate one that way would destroy the battery pack, most likely. Current electric car designs never even fully charge the batteries as a kludge to extend their life. A new battery pack for a Nissan Leaf is $5500, and that includes the trade in of the old one. Batteries have no predictor for failure, there's no way to know how long one will last, and there is no incremental repair possible. If the valves wear out on my car, I can repair that for a few hundred dollars. Ditto a transmission, water pump, fuel pump, etc. If your electric car doesn't work, what are you going to do? Do you really think people are going to be taking out second loans to buy a battery pack? I doubt it. I think we're only at the beginning of a learning curve with these vehicles, and there are going to be a lot of unpleasant surprises for people down the road.
    2
  13. ***** You're living in a state of delusion, my friend, pure and simple. It has nothing to do with "oil and gas company talking points" either. In many parts of this country, on days of peak demand, the electric grid is strained to capacity, and you want to plug in thousands, maybe millions of cars. Not going to happen. That kind of demand is going to drive electric rates through the roof...and most of that electricity has a smokestack behind it. Increasing demand will only increase GHG pollution as new plants are built, IF they are built. Let's have a few blackouts and see what your public thinks of your electric car ideas. They'll probably be tipping them over and burning them in the streets. 
    2
  14. ***** Nonsense. If you have a single motor car, you need cv shafts, a differential, traction control mechanisms, in effect, all the parts that an "ICE" car would have. Electric motors have windings, bushings, bearings, lubricant, etc, etc. If they didn't, why am I always having to replace things like blower motors, window regulators, windshield wiper motors, etc., on various cars, that seem to stop working? According to you, none of these things should ever break, since they have so few "moving parts". I've seen many "ICE" cars run for 15-20 years without ever taking the engine or transmission apart...I wonder if your LEAF will do that?
    2
  15. GMbusa1 I think you hit the nail on the head, there. Most of these electric car aficionados are well-to-do yuppies who want to cruise around smugly in their electric green machines while the rest of us schlubs who can't afford one get to ride the bus. I'm sure they'll happily junk all our old clunkers and give us a few hundred bucks each in compensation, too.
    2
  16. ***** Sounds like salesman math to me. 50 mile commute? That's 100 miles a day or about 2200 miles a month, about 100 gallons of gas for the vehicle I drive. At $2.39 a gallon, that's $239 a month, not $400. Driving an economy car, it's more like $150 a month. You could buy a new economy car and drive that far for $400 a month. And last time I checked, electricity wasn't free.
    2
  17. ***** Why the hell would anybody lease a car? Do you lease your TV? Your refrigerator? Your pants? Leasing is a scam. Second, why would I trust Nissan after their CVT debacle? I think they've forgotten how to build good cars.
    2
  18. historyskyz The cost of the oil would only be a small part of their expense.
    1
  19. ***** Actually, I'm not in the car repair business.
    1
  20. TheSmileyFacedPizza Thank you. Everybody has heard the expression: "If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is", but surprisingly few people seem willing to believe it. They really think they're going to drive into a business and get their oil and filter changed for $20, and that the shop is somehow making money on that. Well, either they're going to get upsold, or somebody else is, and that's the only way the $20 oil change can exist, plain and simple.
    1
  21. TheSmileyFacedPizza Well, it costs them around $10-11 for the materials, leaving them $9 in income. You do the math and see how much money they would make from that.
    1
  22. Jim Gord Oops, I need to do a 400 mile round trip...will that battery last that long? Doubt it....I usually drive 200 miles a day...think that electric will work for me?
    1
  23. ***** I'd be willing to bet you that they emitted more pollution, toxic chemicals, and greenhouse gases making your electric gem than I will ever emit in the entire lifetime of my poor old fossil fuel clunker.
    1
  24. ***** My point is that simply repairing and preserving and older vehicle is both far more economical and far more environmentally friendly. Barring some radical new developments, electric vehicles will never supplant internal combustion, for the simple reason that when they run out of power, they're useless, you can no longer move. A gasoline/diesel powered vehicle has no such limitation. I've seen Teslas, and I'm not impressed. They could never compete against what most people consider a realistic price point, and they don't even try. Hybrids are the worst of both worlds, twice as complex, more expensive, ludicrously expensive to repair, and they still need gas. The real kicker is yet to come, though, the first time a hybrid or electric is involved in an accident with a battery explosion or fire, and somebody gets killed. The outcome of the lawsuits will determine the future of these cars as much as anything else.
    1
  25. ***** The water situation in the Southwest has little to do with climate change and a lot to do with 40 or 50 million people deciding to move there in the last 100 years. There is not enough water in that part of the country, period, and that situation is only going to get worse. Power monopolies in this country will not change. Business interests are far too entrenched in the political process and can pour unlimited funds into electing who they want, so good luck with that. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=an_h5ld3skM
    1
  26. ***** I don't think electric cars will save humanity. The biggest threat to humanity is not GHG but the vast and increasing gap in wealth between the "developed" world and the rest of it, and the corresponding massive culture gap as well, something we see being played out in the middle east and Africa right now. How will your electric car fix that? It's the height of absurd arrogance to think that buying electric car parts and solar cells from people in one part of the world who hold us in contempt will be any more beneficial than buying oil from people in another part of the world who hold us in contempt for different reasons. I can only marvel at the brazen indifference of people who think they're saving the world by smugly driving some little imported toy while our workers line up for food stamps because our own car companies are bankrupt and downsizing, while our core industries fade away, and while our bridges fall down  and our roads crumble through utter neglect.
    1
  27. ***** LOL, you think there is no "computer" in an electric car...that's rich. It has a PCM of the same or greater complexity as any other car. I think you should call up Nissan and check some prices on these parts you think your car doesn't have.
    1
  28. Texas, land of the stupid and home of the lame.
    1
  29. The exact same thing goes on in the car lockout business too. Always have insurance to cover this thing, or you're at their mercy. I called a mobile locksmith to make me a spare key once (I was not locked out). Price listed was $79. A guys shows up in a beat up dirty car with no signage or anything, no uniform or ID badge, and worst of all, doesn't have the right key fob! Says he'll make me a "key that will work" for $300. I told him to get off the property after calling the service. They said they "contract" with various "providers" who can charge whatever they want. I said not in my world, BYE.
    1