ntworkg0d

So I finished breaking in my car this week and took it to my usual place to get the oil changed and put in some Mobil 1. So after I get the car back I immediately notice an issue with the car. It feels like there's absolutely no power whatsoever and it takes quite a bit of pedal to get the car moving at all. I also felt vibration coming from the engine bay through the steering wheel, the dashboard, break pedal and gear shifter. I drove it around for several miles and took it back to the shop, and apparently they put WAY too much oil in. They drained the oil out and put in the correct amount, but the car still feels like something is wrong. While I definitely have more power than I did post oil change, it still feels like I'm lacking power, and you can definitely something unusual coming from the engine while accelerating. Also, when I rev the engine, there's a slight catch when the RPMs drop to about 1500 RPMs and you can feel the engine jolt a little.

So could the shop have caused any serious damage by putting too much oil in? I'm going to take the car to the dealer early next week to have them check it out, but does anyone know of anything that I need to have the dealer look for after I take it in?

Thanks

15951

If they really crammed a lot of oil in there, the crankshaft can make contact with the oil, which results in foaming. Foam doesn't push through the engine very well. Your ECU might have interpreted the loss in pressure from same as a fault, and put the car in limp mode. I'd have the dealer check it out.

This is all a SWAG, but I can't figure out what else could cause this, especially if you only drove the car a few miles.

ntworkg0d

Thanks, I have an appointment to drop the car off on Monday, I also have my refund slips from the shop so I go after them if there really is some physical damage to the car.

mindonmatter

I had this exact same thing happen to me with my previous car. In my case, overfilling with oil caused excessive amounts of unburned oil to exit the exhaust and it ended up in the catalytic converters. Basically this clogs your cats and that's all she wrote. My car would barely run, no power, etc. Had to have cats replaced. Sounds like that might be your problem. Overfilling can also cause excessive oil pressure, churning(foaming), destroyed seals, etc.

My experience with this is the main reason that I will never use a "quick lube" place to change my oil. I'm even skeptical letting the dealer do it. I don't enjoy changing my oil, and I don't do it to save money. I change it because I want it done right, and that's the only reason.

Imagine what would happen if they'd have left your drain plug loose? Happens all the time.

ntworkg0d

Ugh, I have a feeling my baby is pretty messed up then. I'm going to leave the car in the garage all weekend and nurse it over to the dealership on Monday. Did the place that overfilled your car cover the cost of replacing the cats?

SkyMG37x

Just a thought - hopefully they didn't mistakenly fill the tranny with engine oil.

ntworkg0d

I hope not. The car is lurching a lot when shifting gears, but I think it's due to the loss of power and I'm having to give it a lot more gas to compensate. When I drop it off at the dealer I'm just going to have them check every possible thing that could have been affected by these a$$hats.

mindonmatter

Yes, they paid for all of my repairs. They should in your case as well. My brother worked at a Walmart lube years ago. He said they were constantly paying out to fix damaged cars.

P.S. - I would have it towed. No need to risk driving it.

mindonmatter

I would hope not. The only way to do that would be to add it through the tranny dipstick. To do that, you would have to be a full blown retard.

NonAme

i thought these car need ester oil and only the dealer does them?

15951

Nice segue!

fkat

like mindonmatter says, have it towed to the dealer.

ozzypriest

iTrader: (2)

If you can go to a quick lube place that lets you watch, and bring your oil with you, and watch them put it in, you'll be okay - you just always have to check their work, dealer included - check the oil level, make sure the filter is on tight (easier said than done in our cars) and that there is no dripping oil coming from the pan, and that the oil fill cap is on tight. I take my 5 q's of ester over to quickie lube and watch them, and all is good.

Foaming oil is also bad in the sense that it doesn't lubricate very well - badly foamed oil can result in engine damage.

SM_Shadowman

Agreed there. I know quick lube shops are bad, but even the world's dumbest employee would at least be able to correctly identify the oil filler cap.

Back when I drove a Hyundai and didn't know any better about auto service I used to go to various Jiffy Lubes and one time I when I was getting a coolant change, someone filled my washer fluid reservoir with coolant. Somebody noticed and the manager took me out to the car and showed me.

He said, "Somebody put coolant in your windshield washer tank. Probably one of your buddies thought he was doing you a favor or something and put the wrong fluid in the wrong place. We'll go ahead and drain that out for you."

For whatever reason I was being pretty dense and didn't figure it out until about a minute after I left the place -- I guess I was just baffled by it at the time. And nobody else had driven my car in a long time, certainly nobody else had filled any fluids. I was more thinking along the lines of, "are you sure that's coolant? I'm pretty sure I used the window wash earlier today and it worked just fine -- possibly you're mistaken."

Obviously one of their guys did it and the manager didn't even own up to it. That was the last time I ever went to a place like that.

ntworkg0d

Thanks for the tips. My future brother in-law was saying that JL has some fine print CYA language stating that the customer is obligated to check all work performed, yada, yada, yada.. They better not try to pull any crap with me. I should have recorded the manager when he came out to talk to me and admitted that his employees twice failed to perform quality assurance checks before returning the car to me. I think I will have it towed, and I'm going to have to rent a car since my local Infiniti dealer is out of loaners until next Friday... What a pain!