Valvoline Instant Oil Change

This location had a terrible reputation when I worked down the street years ago, and still deserves the exact same recognition. I was in for an oil change and the technician pointed out that my transmission fluid fill cap had blown off and sprayed fluid all around the area (a common problem on my make & model due to a clogged tranny vent), and suggested that this caused the fluid level dipstick to dislodge into my transmission (would be a MAJOR design flaw). The manager came over and told me that since she had no way to confirm the fluid was filled to the correct level, I should just pay for a transmission fluid change which costs about $180. I declined this service (obviously - you just told me you don’t even know how to check if the fluid is refilled properly), did some quick research and found that: a) my car was never made with a transmission fluid dipstick; b) you check the transmission fluid via a bolt on the side of the transmission; and c) about the vent as mentioned above and how to fix it. After fixing this small issue myself, I returned to this location for the remaining portion of the 18-point safety inspection which was not completed at the time of my initial purchase. The same manager told me she “didn’t feel comfortable” checking the fluid level if I was still unwilling to pay for the fluid change. I stated that this was specifically mentioned as a part of the 18-point safety inspection which was due to me with the oil change that I paid for, and that fluid top-offs were also supposed to be included in the inspection. After some argument about Valvoline’s definition of “all automatic transmissions”, she allowed another tech (who clearly knew what he was doing) to check the fluid level. Shortly after writing this review, I logged into my email to find an ad from Valvoline with the tagline “We know transmissions” and a coupon for $15 off - laughable! That’s what prompted me to write this review. Maybe Valvoline should re-examine their promotional tactics if it’s causing their managers to go to such unethical ends just to raise a little revenue.

I have brought one of my cars here for oil changes over the past few years. My windshield washer fluid stopped flowing a few weeks back. After having a repair shop look at it was discovered that the fluid put into the tank was not appropriate and had frozen. The corporate office patched me through to this local branch where I spoke with the manager Dan. After I explained what the issue was Dan stood by his company's products, refused to take ownership, or to make it right. The amount of money it took to fix it is not outrageous, but this company has lost a loyal customer.