Woman takes 2014 Ford Focus into Valvoline for $170 oil change. Then she gets it home
A Florida mom claims that a Valvoline Instant Oil Change irreparably damaged her son's car.
Now Sherry (@thatpatriotchick34) is warning people not to get their oil changed at Valvoline.
A favor gone horribly wrong
Sherry says she paid $170 to get the oil changed in her son's 2014 Ford Focus. She was being a "nice mom," she says, and paid extra high-grade oil.
Everything was fine at first, she says.
That changed the next day.
"He’s driving to Disney with his three friends and his car starts smoking," Sherry says.
The car wouldn't go over 35 miles per hour, so they called a tow truck.
The driver knew exactly what was wrong, she claims.
"The tow truck driver took a peek at the oil and realized that the Valvoline overfilled our oil by three to four quarts," she adds.
She called the company and they sent a technician to look at the car.
She may have thought Valvoline would make it right. Sherry says that's not how it turned out at all.
From bad to worse
The technician reportedly drained the oil. There was at least one quart more in it than the Ford Focus should've had, according to Sherry.
She claims that the car kept smoking and still wouldn't go over 35. "Every time I stepped on the gas, the RPMs went up into the red," she continues.
So they took it to Valvoline.
A few days later, the company called. Sherry couldn't believe what they said.
"I’m told this wasn’t their fault. Them overfilling the oil did not cause the problems," she says in the TikTok. "They told me it was the motor mount."
Sherry told the Daily Dot that she's a single mom who mortgaged her home a few years ago to buy the car for her son.
"He needs it to get back-and-forth to work," she said via TikTok DM.
"...Valvoline did create a claim initially, but denied it saying that it was a motor mount and oil switch even though the tow truck driver and their own technician that came out, said it was over clearly overfilled."
She's livid and she wants Valvoline to pay.
"It would be nice if the Valvoline shop could accept responsibility and repair my son’s car," she said.
Via email, a spokesperson for Valvoline declined to comment on an inquiry sent Wednesday other than to say the company is "still in communication with this specific customer."
Sherry confirmed that Valvoline contacted her.
"Ironically enough, the district manager reached out to me at 11 o’clock this morning and would like to know what the bill is from my private mechanic and he would like to work something out," Sherry told the Daily Dot on Thursday.
She said that she'd previously been told that the claim was done.
Commenters offer advice
Hundreds shared their thoughts in the comments.
Many were blown away by the cost of the car maintenance
One says, "$170 for an oil change is criminal in itself!"
They may have a point. Per NerdWallet, an average oil change should cost between $20 and $100.
The outlet reports that Valvoline oil changes range between roughly $45 and $95 in the Chicago area.
Sherry says she's not sure why the oil change costed so much.
One person suggested Sherry take the vehicle to an independent Ford-certified inspector.
"Sue under Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act," they added.
Another urged her to file a complaint with the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Sherry replied that she already had.
Sherry is already planning her next steps.
"Now my son doesn’t have a car thanks to Valvoline so I’m going to spread Valvoline and their B.S. all over the internet," she says in the video, adding, "and probably file a small claims suit as well."
@thatpatriotchick34 #valvoline #valvolineinstantoilchange ♬ original sound - ThatPatriotChick34
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