2nd Gen R56 Cooper S Most liked posts in thread: $114.00 Oil Change?

Could also be 30 minutes is the smallest increment they can charge.

Posted using Tapatalk on my HTC EVO.

 

$114 seems a little high. I pay $90 when I go to the dealer. I'm too lazy to do it myself so paying an extra 40 bucks or so to sit in a leather chair for an hour while someone else does it is worth it to me.

 

I thought they used an extractor?

Even if they are letting it drain, they can work on other stuff during that time. They aren't required to watch it drain.

Any way you slice it, $50+ for the LABOR to do an oil change is way, way more than most places charge, and it's high enough that I'm happy to do it myself.

 

Keep in mind that not all of us have the tools, skills, desire, confidence and/or location to do oil changes ourselves. Sure it is one of the easiest things we can do to our cars but often times it's just not one of the things we can do.

I sure do wish more dealers were proactive with MINI owners in their area and looked at MINI of Dallas where they open the shop once a quarter to allow owners to work on their cars. I miss that ability quite a bit since moving from the Dallas area.

 

$10+ dollars a quart for OIL ! ! !

What a waste.......

 

I do my own changes, but it's like above... $50 for oil + $10 for the filter. $60 for labor means that they probably charge for 30 minutes of time, which is probably about right by the time you think about getting the keys, pulling the car into the shop, draining the oil, changing the filter, refilling the oil, checking the level, topping up, cleaning up and getting the car off of the lift. Add 5-10 minutes of other checks on the car (tire air pressure, mechanical once-over, etc) and that 30 minutes is gone pretty quick.

Like Nathan said: They didn't give you a great deal, but they didn't rob you blind either.

 

Yeah, I understand not being able to do it yourself, whether it's time, tools, whatever that keeps it from being feasible to do.

I'm just saying that comparatively, whether it's actually 30 mins or not, $50+ is a lot for labor on an oil change. Most places charge ~$5-15 more than you could buy the oil/filter for yourself... Maybe a little more if they do it really quickly (Jiffy Lube, etc.).

As a result, I'm much more willing to do it myself. It's not worth it to me to save $5 on the F-150, but $50? I'll do it myself.

 

Minidave, I agree. The last oil change I got on my ex-R53 at my dealer's shop in January was about $120, and included a rather complete vehicle check in engine compartment and underneath that found a few potential problems to watch for in the future. So the tech was not just standing around while the oil was draining...

 

That's worse if they extract it. Yes they don't watch it drain but replace filter, check all fluid, tire pressure etc. My point being that 30 minutes in not a long time that's all

 

Like everything else in the world the prices go up. Last year the RP oil was 7.25 a qt now it's 9.99. Gone are the days of 2.00 qts of oil, it's the cars blood is it really a waste?

 

I had my break-in oil changed at 3k by Sewell MINI of Plano (Dallas) and the out-the-door cost was $71.58 which I thought was actually a good price.

 

I do my own as well, and I do it more than once a year, and because I have over 40 years of automotive repair experience I feel comfortable doing so. However, I hold shop days in my garage for the local MINI club and more than a few of those who attend not only could not be trusted with doing this job, they really ought not to be doing anything requiring tools - their strengths lie elsewhere.

Look how many threads there have been on this and the other sites expressing frustration at breaking the filter casing, losing the cannister internals (for those cars that had them) and the biggest failure, either not being able to get the drain plug out and/or destoying it in the process.

To someone who's used to doing all their own work we have a hard time understanding how someone can have such a hard time doing a simple job like changing the oil, but there proof is there. I know I've had to come up with some innovative ways to get a club members drain plug out, just within our membership.

So, to someone who's not skilled, doesn't have the tools or facitities like Nathan mentioned it can be a daunting task - at that point, $114 is money well spent.

For those who can do it, more power to you, just dispose of the oil and filter in a responsible manner.

 

Agreed on both counts.

 

I have never heard of a dealership opening up their garage doors to the public, that is pretty cool!

$100 is about the norm in my neck of the woods.

 

I'm still amazed every time that MINI of Dallas does this... I had an initial bad experience w/ their sales staff back in 2005, but they have earned my business back with all of the incredible things they do for the local club.

All of our Dallas dealerships are good to the club and are cool in their own ways, but the DIY days at MOD have won me over.

 

$114 seems like a lot, but I applaud the OP for getting their MINI's oil changed. Probably the single most important thing one can do for their engines longevity.

Having an R53 & now a R55 all I can say is the R56-R55 is a whole lot easier to change oil on than my R53. There are wonderful how to's here on M/A. If you read them & follow instructions the oil change is not hard to do. Heck even I can do it. :crazy:

 

Depends on the "beer change" capacity and the "viscosity" required!

 

It is simple, and I've taught a number of club members the right way to do it.

But for someone without a garage or flat place to work, it's a bit more of a challenge. Some apartments don't allow renters to work on their cars in the parking lots.

It also requires a bit of an investment in tools, either a jack and stands or a set of ramps to get the car up, a drain pan for the oil, the right wrench to remove the drain plug, the right wrench to remove the filter housing, plus the associated driver - ratchet and extension, plus on the turbo cars the right socket to remove the screw holding the coolant reservoir in place.

Add to that the possibility of rounding off the plug on the R53 and cross threading the housing trying to get it back on and the cost of fixing those issues - well unless you're going to continue to do all you own maintenance, it might be cheaper to just pay the dealer once a year to do it for you. Plus, there's the hassle of properly disposing of the used oil and filter.

The turbo engines are easier to access, that's for sure, and you never burn your arm on the exhaust manifold removing the filter housing. I do wish they still made the housing out of aluminum tho, instead of plastic.

 

Just paid 138.00 for oil and filter change at the dealer here i think it's a little high.
I'll have to see if they offer a discount for our local club members, I like that concept.