Why DIY Oil Changes Can Actually Cost You More

Apr 9, 2015

Oil Changes Eau Claire

Oil changes. They’re that annoying stop we have to make every six months to keep our vehicles running smoothly. They also cost somewhere between $30.00 and $80.00, so why not do it yourself? You can do it on your own time and save money, right? The truth is, there are hidden costs to changing your own oil that can hurt you in the long run.

Service Centers Provide Additional Inspection

When you take your vehicle to a service center like the one at Markquart Toyota, additional steps are performed like a Quality Vehicle Inspection, complementary alignment, battery checks. These are both preventative measures that can help prevent future issues. When you change your oil yourself, unless you know cars really well, you’re not able to perform some of these extra tasks.

Doing it Yourself is More Complicated Now

Due to the placement of oil drain plugs and oil filters on a lot of the new-design engines, they are not very easy to get at. Some oil filters are not spin-on-and-off anymore, so they are more difficult to change, and if you don’t have the proper tools to lift your vehicle, changing your oil can be dangerous. You also aren’t allowed to put oil and oil filters in normal garbage, so it can be extremely inconvenient to dispose of them.

The Markquart Way

At Markquart, we also provide a free wash* with every service completed, and we top off additional fluids like washer fluid. All of these things combined would easily add up to $30.00 or more if you wanted to do them yourself – and we haven’t even talked about the time it takes to change your own oil. Between going to the store to pick up the oil and the filter, and actually performing the oil change you could have been in and out of the service department.

You can watch this video on the service experience at Markquart, or view our service homepage to see why getting your vehicle serviced as opposed to doing it yourself is truly worth it!