Pre-Oil Change Procedure Problems (long post)
Posted: Wed Jul 19, 2006 3:38 pm
Nothing ever goes smoothly for me in a hardware or auto store.
Back in March of this year I went into an Auto store to buy bulbs for
my turn signals. I knew then that that auto stores and I were
probably not a good match. But I need to be able to do as much of my
own work as I can on my '05 RR, so I had to visit one again this week.
I was attempting to do my first oil change early Tuesday morning. I copied the oil change instructions posted in the FAQ section with the list of items needed and headed to the hardware and auto store. However, since the BMW dealer was not open on Monday I needed to find a substitute for the BMW oil and the BMW oil filter.
I went first to the local Ace Hardware to get a 3/8 Socket drive and the 8mm hex bit socket - per FAQ instructions. All I knew were the names of the tools I needed. I didn't have a clue what to look for, but since I know a man who works there, I felt certain he would get me the right items. As my luck goes, he was not at work that day. Instead a teenage clerk took my list and led me through the store handing me the items I needed and then gave back my list.
I went to the register to pay. As I was paying, there was a sudden raucous about me. The next thing I knew, there were people surrounding a guy between me and the front door. There was yelling and tension building. The cornered guy had stolen something and didn't want to cooperate. It felt like the situation was going to escalate quickly and a couple of the clerks started to back away. Then I heard the Manager say, "Don't make me pull my gun on you for just a couple of dollars." I thought to myself, "I hope the manager is not bluffing because he just sort of 'showed his cards.'" A couple of tense moments, and then finally the guy handed over whatever it was he had stolen and left the store.
Next, I needed to get a substitute filter and oil. I passed by AutoZone and O'Reilly's because of my last experience with them and headed into Napa Auto Parts. At this point, none of the substitute filters that I had found on the board were carried by Napa, and I really didn't want to have to go to the other auto stores, so I made a phone call to fellow board member MikeCam, who had helped me before through emails when I had questions about the R. He had given me a phone number to call if I ever needed help with the bike and didn’t have access to email. Fortunately for me, he answered the phone and he was able to give me the information I needed to get the right Napa filter and the right oil. I paid for the items and got back in the car. I went over the instructions and then I realized I didn't have an oil filter wrench to fit this new oil filter. I went back into the store yet I could not find what I was looking for.
Another call to Mike. This time he graciously offered to talk to the clerk for me. The clerk handed me back the phone, looked around the store and then told me they don't have the wrench I need. He explained what I needed and then he suggested I go to AutoZone or O'Reillys which is next door. Great. I have a Napa filter and I'm now having to go to one of the stores I avoided to ask them for a filter wrench to fit a competitor’s filter.
Once in O'Reilly's, I was able to get a clerk to help me find the wrench. I took the Napa filter with me to make sure the wrench would fit properly. The clerk took it, and slammed a wrench on it. It went on crooked and then it wouldn’t come off. So then he took another tool and eventually worked it off. It's not the exact fit, but it is the only one they have which will work. I expressed concern at not being able to get the wrench off the filter so he took me to an aisle that had some other tools on it. There was a multitude of different sizes of the thing he picked up. He said, "if you can't get the wrench off, just use one of these and it will come off eventually." I'm not sure which one he took off the rack, but I could see the prices were all between $6.99 and $8.99. I asked him how much it cost, and he replied, "Oh, I don't know - $66.00". It was evident I was dealing with a jerk, so I just told him "no, thank you." At the register, I wanted to make sure for myself how the wrench was going to fit on the filter, so I placed it on the filter and commented about the fit. At that point I was subjected to some blatant harassment from the clerk and couldn't believe what I heard. Even the other clerk looked at the guy with shock. I left there as quickly as I could without a word to them. I won't ever go back there.
Once home, I set out all my supplies and got ready to change the oil. The only problem I had was the 8mm hex bit socket did not fit the drain plug. So,….another call to Mike. He promised it had to fit and I should try again. But it just would not fit. So I described to him what it was the boy at Ace Hardware had sold me. Mike told me I was sold the wrong thing, but not to worry, because I should have a 8mm Hex Allen wrench in the BMW tool kit that came with the bike. I looked and apparently I did not get one in my tool kit. But, the good news was that I did have a set of Allen wrenches that I had bought along with some other household tools in February/March when I knew I needed to be able to do some of my own maintenance. Fortunately for me, there was a 8mm in the set. At that point I was ready to start the oil change. Mike gave me some final instructions and then I started on my first oil change on my bike! Finally!
The oil change took me less time and gave me less hassle then trying to gather the tools I needed from the stores. The instructions were easy to follow and everything went right the first time. While I was in one of the auto parts stores, one of the clerks had asked me why I wanted to change my own oil when there were "hundreds of places that will do it for you". That seemed like an odd question to ask when he was making his living by selling items for people to do their own maintenance. My only answer at that time was, "because I need to learn how to do it myself." But after doing it successfully by myself the first time, and after dealing with incompetent and rude clerks I think I'm better off doing it myself anyway. The added benefit was the fun I had learning something new and the pride I felt in accomplishing a task that is probably pretty minor to you guys, but is really major to me.
Many thanks to Doug for the presence of this board and a special “Thanks†to MikeCam for helping me get past the hurdles to complete my first oil change.
Back in March of this year I went into an Auto store to buy bulbs for
my turn signals. I knew then that that auto stores and I were
probably not a good match. But I need to be able to do as much of my
own work as I can on my '05 RR, so I had to visit one again this week.
I was attempting to do my first oil change early Tuesday morning. I copied the oil change instructions posted in the FAQ section with the list of items needed and headed to the hardware and auto store. However, since the BMW dealer was not open on Monday I needed to find a substitute for the BMW oil and the BMW oil filter.
I went first to the local Ace Hardware to get a 3/8 Socket drive and the 8mm hex bit socket - per FAQ instructions. All I knew were the names of the tools I needed. I didn't have a clue what to look for, but since I know a man who works there, I felt certain he would get me the right items. As my luck goes, he was not at work that day. Instead a teenage clerk took my list and led me through the store handing me the items I needed and then gave back my list.
I went to the register to pay. As I was paying, there was a sudden raucous about me. The next thing I knew, there were people surrounding a guy between me and the front door. There was yelling and tension building. The cornered guy had stolen something and didn't want to cooperate. It felt like the situation was going to escalate quickly and a couple of the clerks started to back away. Then I heard the Manager say, "Don't make me pull my gun on you for just a couple of dollars." I thought to myself, "I hope the manager is not bluffing because he just sort of 'showed his cards.'" A couple of tense moments, and then finally the guy handed over whatever it was he had stolen and left the store.
Next, I needed to get a substitute filter and oil. I passed by AutoZone and O'Reilly's because of my last experience with them and headed into Napa Auto Parts. At this point, none of the substitute filters that I had found on the board were carried by Napa, and I really didn't want to have to go to the other auto stores, so I made a phone call to fellow board member MikeCam, who had helped me before through emails when I had questions about the R. He had given me a phone number to call if I ever needed help with the bike and didn’t have access to email. Fortunately for me, he answered the phone and he was able to give me the information I needed to get the right Napa filter and the right oil. I paid for the items and got back in the car. I went over the instructions and then I realized I didn't have an oil filter wrench to fit this new oil filter. I went back into the store yet I could not find what I was looking for.
Another call to Mike. This time he graciously offered to talk to the clerk for me. The clerk handed me back the phone, looked around the store and then told me they don't have the wrench I need. He explained what I needed and then he suggested I go to AutoZone or O'Reillys which is next door. Great. I have a Napa filter and I'm now having to go to one of the stores I avoided to ask them for a filter wrench to fit a competitor’s filter.
Once in O'Reilly's, I was able to get a clerk to help me find the wrench. I took the Napa filter with me to make sure the wrench would fit properly. The clerk took it, and slammed a wrench on it. It went on crooked and then it wouldn’t come off. So then he took another tool and eventually worked it off. It's not the exact fit, but it is the only one they have which will work. I expressed concern at not being able to get the wrench off the filter so he took me to an aisle that had some other tools on it. There was a multitude of different sizes of the thing he picked up. He said, "if you can't get the wrench off, just use one of these and it will come off eventually." I'm not sure which one he took off the rack, but I could see the prices were all between $6.99 and $8.99. I asked him how much it cost, and he replied, "Oh, I don't know - $66.00". It was evident I was dealing with a jerk, so I just told him "no, thank you." At the register, I wanted to make sure for myself how the wrench was going to fit on the filter, so I placed it on the filter and commented about the fit. At that point I was subjected to some blatant harassment from the clerk and couldn't believe what I heard. Even the other clerk looked at the guy with shock. I left there as quickly as I could without a word to them. I won't ever go back there.
Once home, I set out all my supplies and got ready to change the oil. The only problem I had was the 8mm hex bit socket did not fit the drain plug. So,….another call to Mike. He promised it had to fit and I should try again. But it just would not fit. So I described to him what it was the boy at Ace Hardware had sold me. Mike told me I was sold the wrong thing, but not to worry, because I should have a 8mm Hex Allen wrench in the BMW tool kit that came with the bike. I looked and apparently I did not get one in my tool kit. But, the good news was that I did have a set of Allen wrenches that I had bought along with some other household tools in February/March when I knew I needed to be able to do some of my own maintenance. Fortunately for me, there was a 8mm in the set. At that point I was ready to start the oil change. Mike gave me some final instructions and then I started on my first oil change on my bike! Finally!
The oil change took me less time and gave me less hassle then trying to gather the tools I needed from the stores. The instructions were easy to follow and everything went right the first time. While I was in one of the auto parts stores, one of the clerks had asked me why I wanted to change my own oil when there were "hundreds of places that will do it for you". That seemed like an odd question to ask when he was making his living by selling items for people to do their own maintenance. My only answer at that time was, "because I need to learn how to do it myself." But after doing it successfully by myself the first time, and after dealing with incompetent and rude clerks I think I'm better off doing it myself anyway. The added benefit was the fun I had learning something new and the pride I felt in accomplishing a task that is probably pretty minor to you guys, but is really major to me.
Many thanks to Doug for the presence of this board and a special “Thanks†to MikeCam for helping me get past the hurdles to complete my first oil change.
Not to uphold ANY stererotypes (especially being a native Vermonter 
Probably wet himself!