The free oil change really was free
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Last week I mentioned that Mazda was offering free oil changes to educators. No Mazda required, but my wife's Mazda was due for its annual oil change anyways (see mileage for why it's an annual change, and note that we've had it three months shy of seven years).
I scheduled an appointment for this morning, and was greeted warmly. They made a copy of my school ID to submit to Mazda corporate to get paid, and then I grabbed a cup of decent coffee and had a seat in a comfy chair in the waiting area. Mazda dealerships have really become nice open and airy places.
After I finished my first cup of coffee, I got a second cup and decided to take a look-see at the CX-9 they had in the show room. They're nice, and I could see maybe getting one to get some more space eventually. The sticker was an eye-watering $45k though!
Predictably, as I was looking it over, a sales person did take a run at selling it to me. It was a reasonably light sales push, and I nicely deflected it. It was no big deal, and if I had just stayed in the waiting area, nobody would have tried to sell me anything.
I got the car back before I finished that second cup of coffee. I was pleased to see that they had reset the TPMS light. That's been on for a while, despite the fact that the tires have all been holding pressure just fine. The service advisor hadn't mentioned that, hadn't mentioned that the tires should probably be changed due to age (they will be this fall), and didn't try to upsell me anything either.
TLDR: I surfed the ultranets on the free wifi and enjoyed sitting in the AC, drinking free coffee, whilst they did my free oil change. Not too shabby.
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@shop-teacher
My Mazda dealer is a similar joint. Folks are always helpful and never pushy.Curator, Kia enthusiast, dad joke specialist
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@chariotoflove I believe you would qualify as an educator was well, so you can probably get a free oil change too.
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@shop-teacher said in The free oil change really was free:
tires should probably be changed due to age (they will be this fall)
My impression was that most places age out tires at 10 years, unless there is visible evidence of rot?
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@shop-teacher said in The free oil change really was free:
@chariotoflove I believe you would qualify as an educator was well, so you can probably get a free oil change too.
Good point.
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@facw I've always been told 5-6 years. There is no evidence of rot, but they're crappy tires anyways and my wife wants new ones.
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@shop-teacher Car and Driver says:
There is a general consensus that most tires should be inspected, if not replaced, at about six years and should be absolutely be swapped out after 10 years, regardless of how much tread they have left.
https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a15339994/how-long-should-a-new-set-of-tires-last/
Edmunds says:
Many automakers, including Ford, Nissan and Mercedes-Benz, tell owners to replace tires six years after their production date, regardless of tread life. Tire manufacturers such as Continental and Michelin say a tire can last up to 10 years provided you get annual tire inspections after the fifth year.
https://www.edmunds.com/car-maintenance/how-old-and-dangerous-are-your-tires.html
Obviously lots of things can factor in to how quickly a tire ages, cars parked outside and getting constant exposure to UV probably won't do as well as ones that are garaged for example.
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@shop-teacher Our local Mazda dealer has always been a pleasure to deal with. It always seems the nicest dealers are never the ones I end up buying from sadly.
I've hitherto only bought cars from assholes (with the Jeep being the exception)
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@facw some mfrs recommend 8 i think
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@shop-teacher So many variables with tires. I believe they can be sold until they are five years old (optimum storage assumed) and the guideline is 6-10 years.
The majority are replaced (hopefully) long before that due to wear.
I've got a set of 10 year old winter tires for my Boxster, used a few months a year but stored inside for the rest of the year (they sit in the garage most of the time even when on the car)....they are in great shape. But from what I've read, it's oxidation (from the inside and out) that degrades the tire more than anything over time. I'll probably only give them one more season.
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Mazda dealers are always great, same with Lexus dealers and Mini dealers. They are always a pleasure with light sales pitches.
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@shop-teacher was that Wilkins? I had a great parts experience there last week too.
Current DD - My badass grandma's 2001 Accord EX 5-speed
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@shop-teacher sounds like a good experience. And a cool thing for Mazda to do for educators.
I had a similar experience while looking at cars on the lot at Volvo the other day. They had one V90 that was beautiful and spec'd really well, beautiful color inside and out and it basically was what I would order if I had money (or a job). Unfortunately it was $78,000.
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@rctothefuture My mom just bought another Lexus and she claims it's 90% due to the service department and how nice and organized those appointments are.
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@khalbali It was indeed Wilkins. I usually go to Pugi, where we bought it. I've always been happy with them too. Wilkins is a lot closer though, so I decided to give them a try.
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@sovande The V90 is so gorgeous, and do out of my price range.
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@shop-teacher @Sovande Used V90s seem to be pretty affordable (at least for today's used car market). ~$37,000 for a T6 with ~40,000 miles, and occasionally see one around $30,000. Just too big a car for me though. Looks like V60 T6 prices are coming down a bit, I'd love a second gen, but I think I need to wait for a bit more market correction/depreciation.
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@shop-teacher Solid win.
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@facw can't even find them around here. The dealership had the one I mentioned and a Cross Country version (which is really stupid looking with all the plastic and lifted ride height). There was one V60 and it was a $50,000 special order Cross Country, which is both too high off the ground and suffers from the plastic cladding problem.
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@sovande It is pretty sad that the non-Cross Countries of both are apparently gone for the '22 model year, with the exception of the V60 Polestar T8. It seems really weird that their crossover alternative is basically a short crossover, but I guess Volvo must know their market and their sales.
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@facw Yeah, they followed Mercedes who also ruined their beautiful wagon. I am probably done with Volvo after this one. The sales and service experience have been bad, my parents had a bad experience at another dealership and I don't like the product they are pushing anymore. I don't blame Volvo, they can only make cars if they can sell them, but they aren't making any cars I would buy so...
My next purchase will likely be something like a Maverick. Cheap, fine and useful.
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@shop-teacher well Lynn in their parts department was super awesome too, I work in Itasca now so stopped by to pick up new rear springs for my 2 since one broke somehow. Biggers wanted $90 each and I had to pay first since they're special order, which they wouldn't let me do over the phone. Lynn ordered them first without payment, and at $75 each, and she was very nice when I picked them up too.
Current DD - My badass grandma's 2001 Accord EX 5-speed
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@khalbali Good to know!
Also, you work pretty close to where I work now. We should actually meet one of these days.
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@facw said in The free oil change really was free:
@shop-teacher @Sovande Used V90s seem to be pretty affordable (at least for today's used car market). ~$37,000 for a T6 with ~40,000 miles, and occasionally see one around $30,000. Just too big a car for me though. Looks like V60 T6 prices are coming down a bit, I'd love a second gen, but I think I need to wait for a bit more market correction/depreciation.
As affordable as they may be, I just can't see paying that kind of money for a used car. I've never paid close to that much for a new one.
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@shop-teacher We should! I'm finally signed up for a motorcycle safety class finally too, I'm jealous of your scoots I want a new monkey pretty bad. Still working through our vinyl too lol, but in the middle of building a new entertainment center so haven't made much progress of late.
Current DD - My badass grandma's 2001 Accord EX 5-speed
