I have been taking my wifes Jeep to the same Jiffy Lube for several years, the transfer case is dry and it has been 500 miles since the last oil change and I specifically asked them to check it.

Does anybody know of any recourse I can take to get compensated for excess wear on the transfer case?

I have no idea how long it has been dry.

Any help or ideas would be appreciated,
Thanks,
Al

 

I thought that was suppose to be one of their 21 point services or whatever it is. Don't they say they check and top off all fluids?
Well, unless you can actually prove any damage, you don't have a case. Just be thankful you discovered it and you can take care of the problem. Good luck.

 

First off I pray you kept your receipt from your last service at Jiffy Lube.

I use to work for Kwik Kar, I know its not Jiffy Lube but both are very similar in the way they do business. If they were anything like where I worked there should be a check list on your receipt for what they checked. Look at the receipt nad see what it said about your fron diff, if it doesnt say anything about checking your front diff then you have a case. In their full service oil change or whatever they call it they are suppose to check "ALL" fluid levels and let you know if there was one they couldn't check beacuse of a frozen plug or whatever.

 

They should be able to print oa receipt out for you, as most of them keep the records on computer. Don't go in with guns a blazing as you will probably get no cooperation. Instead try and be calm and get as much information as possible, especially if you need them to print you a duplicate receipt. I would ask them that you be able to take the Jeep into a certified dealer for inspection and have them perform a full service to the differential and make an evaluation if their is any damage.

Just out of curiousity, how could the differential get dry? Didn't you notice any leaks?

 

Navi Man, you'r logic is sound but its flawed. If you ask them to pull it up on their computers they can probably go in and change it so that it looks as if they did do the service so they can cover themselves. All they haft to do is say its upstairs/downstairs/or elsewhere so they haft to pull it, when they pull it thats where they change it. With the origional receipt you can prevent them from trying to pull a fast one on you. Most ownrs of these lube shops care very little about you or you'r veichel, they just care about the money you are going to be paying them when they are done.

Again I dont know if they can do this but where I worked we could change anything on the computer we wanted. Make a receipt say anything we want.

 

f150freak,

My point was if you can't find the original receipt. If you approach the Jiffy Lube with the idea that you just need the receipt for your records because you lost the original, chances are they will print it out for you just as the original one was. Don't give them any reason to suspect what you really want.

On the other hand, if you do have the original receipt, I would still go in there and let them know about the problem first and then ask for a printout of the receipt. If they change it, you have just that much more evidence against them.

No flaw in this logic, just careful planning and setting the trap.

 

I Went into Jiffy Lube with the receipt and told them what is going on and what had happened, and asked what they plan on doing about it.

They offered a free oil change, I asked for a free tranny flush and next oil change free, they went for that.

Also they found the a very minor leak out of one of the bolts that holds the transfer case together.

I figure the damage done is probably fairly minor.

At first I was pissed and wanted to sue them for a new transfer case, but then you lawyers and crap like that.

Naviman: I discovered the transfer case was dry because there was a weird noise like gears without oil sound, at first it was intermittent then lately it was steady, I checked the differentials but to check the transfer case I had to go buy a 1 3/16” socket. It has a VERY slow leak I remember about 4 years a Jiffy Lube discovered it was dry, that is way I go there instead of other oil change places.

Well, thanks for the advice.

 

Glad to hear it worked out ok. One thing to keep in mind, when you file a lawsuit for damages, the burden of proof is on you. Unless you can show that there has been any damage or prove that the transfer case being dry caused excessive wear, you probably wouldn't have had much of a chance. It's always best to try and resolve between the two parties first. Lawsuits only make the lawyers rich.

 

I have never gone back to any Jiffy Lube since one of them stripped the drain plug on my previous vehicle. I guess I'm too picky, eh?? Of course they either didn't know or didn't want to go through the trouble of fixing their mistake. I found out at the next oil change at you guessed it, a Jiffy Lube. And, of course I was forced to fix it myself at the next oil change. I'm sure glad the pans are tougher than the plugs!! Never went to one again, after that.,,,,98

 

I can't remember which chain left the oil out of the engine on my friends' 4 cyl Mustang back in the late 90's. The car was never the same after that We put something close to the full capacity of the crank case back in the engine There may have been a quart in it at the most.,,,,98

 

I hope now Jiffy Lube hires high school grads. About 10 years ago my friends wife took their Jeep in to have the oil changed. It was about 15 miles from their house. She gets home and my friend and I were standing outside. We hear this God awful noise coming up the road only to see that its his wife in their Jeep. She pulls in and its slightly smoking. She said it started sounding funny a few miles back.

My friend and I are looking around at the motor and you can smell that it is very hot, like its cooking. I look underneath and could not believe what I saw.

NO OIL FILTER.

We are like WTF? The morans forgot to put the oil filter on. Guess that was before hiring high school grads and 21 point checks????

I change my own oil. But to those of you who don't at least look under the truck to see the filter is there then start it and look again for leaks.

By the way Jiffy Lube did NOT cover it. They said no way they didnt put the filter on that someone must have taken it off after she left so they could get a new motor. Ya right, it was brand new with only 1500 miles on it, go figure.

 

I haven't been back to Jiffy Lube since they used my '96 F150 as a learning experience in how *not* to remove the fuel filter. Now, I am sure we all know about the little fingers in the fuel line that holds the filter, eh? Well, they didn't. They got the biggest employee down in the pit, and had him yank it apart. Which is when they discovered the little fingers. And promptly put it all back together, and gave me my service free for the day. Which was fine and dandy until the filter wiggled loose and started dripping fuel and sucking air. On the interstate. Which is where I had to lay to jury-rig it with fuel line and hose clamps.

Buncha freaks...

 

good to hear they are at least going to flush the tranny and give you a free change.

personally I refuse to take any of my vehicles to Jiffy Lube. (or any place for that matter) thier "21 point" checklist is a joke. my wife took her car there (before we got married) and when they were done, she looked at the recipt. It had the top off washer fluid checked off. well, she didn't have a washer fluid tank in her car! she asked them if they really topped it off, they said yes. then she asked where they put the fluid. the tech then went back and looked under the hood, then said, well that was accidentally checked off.

I know of several similar stories from many people. the few times when I had to take a vehicle to a lube place (just about kills me to do that)I watch them do the work, and I've inspected it before it leaves the rack. I check mainly that there is oil in it, a new fillter, and the washer and coolant levels are topped off.

 

I learned my lesson the hard way with Jiffy Lube. I had an 87 Nissan Hardbody pickup, I went to the for my 2nd oil change on the truck (5500 miles), they kept adding oil until I had 8 quarts of oil in the truck. The idiots figured that because it was a 4x4 it needed more oil than usual. Hell I didn't know...I drove the truck for a couple of weeks and the engine started screaming...Checked the oil and it was blowing all over the inside of my hood. I drained 3 quarts out, the noise stopped (only for a week) I thought everything was fine. One week later I had to have the truck towed to the dealership, My seals were blown out of the truck. Nissan gave me a new enging, they thought they had goofed. But I knew.

 

They are IMHO the best quick oil change place around. That said, they are still a quick oil change place. They hire high school kids and some really stupid people ( hey they hired me ) you have to understand that they pay like $5 bucks an hour which unless you want to pay $40+ for an oil change is the best they can get.
I am a high school drop out but have a very strong work ethic which made me good at my job. but I still made mistakes...mostly dumb ones...for some reason I forgot to put the oil cap on Camrys...no other cars really...just the Camrys
they at least down here in GA are a good company (owned by Penzoil) and a good place to learn some basics about cars, I know I learned a lot there and I now change my own oil in 10 minutes or less

just my 2 cents
Stan