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Mr. Lube Canada

Mr. Lube Canada review: held hostage sell sell sell 83

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12:00 am EDT
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When I rarely go to an oil change place, I want to go in, get my oil change and leave. In the past it normally takes 10-15 minutes to do so. I've tried a number of oil change chains here in Canada over the last 20 years and they've consistently provided 10-15 minute service. On 10/02/07 at Mr. Lube on Fraser Highway in Abbotsford, BC, I was essentially held hostage and exposed to a 30 minute sales pitch while waiting for my oil to be changed. It took 25 minutes for my oil to drain before they put in new oil. I wanted an oil change but they tried to sell me a, high-end oil, a deluxe air filter, new battery, engine flush and more. Every few minutes I was told by the pimply faced kid that they had checked something and recommended it be replaced. It didn't stop. I told the kid that I didn't have that much money and only wanted an oil change but that wasn't good enough, he didn't believe me. Every time he addressed me, he called me sir. Two or three time is enough but over a dozen times, give me a break! I've been charged with assault in the past and this was one of those rare occasions since that I wanted to beat somebody so bad. It's as if Mr. Lube employees follow a script for selling to customers, I don't know. An e-mail to the company e-mail went unanswered.

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83 comments
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Sherveen Tajarrod
, US
Nov 16, 2016 4:22 pm EST

I went to Mr, lube on warden and Eglinton to change my front winter tires. after an hour and half I was told my lug nut is broken and they need $200 to fix it, I left Mr, lube with broken front tire lug nut.
I complaint to H/O, the manager of Mr. lube on the above branch contacted me " we will give you $40 for broken lug nut" Now the lug nut that they broke and they wanted me to pay them $200 plus taxes, only cost $40 to replace.
Can anyone make sense out of this?
How big company can operate as such?

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Sherveen Tajarrod
, US
Nov 16, 2016 4:19 pm EST

I went to Mr lube on warden and eglinton to change to winter tires. after an hour and half I was told my lug nut is broken and they need $200 to fix it, I left Mr, lube with broken front tire lug nut.
I complaint to H/O and Manager of Mr. lube on the above branch " we will give you $40 for broken lug nut" Now the lug nut that they broke and they wanted me to pay them $200 plus taxes, they were willing to pay $40!
Can anyone make sense out of it?
How big company can operate as such?

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Sherveen Tajarrod
, US
Nov 16, 2016 4:17 pm EST

I went to Mr lube on warden and eglinton to change to winter tires. after an hour and half I was told my lug nut is broken and they need $200 to fix it, I left Mr, lube with broken front tire lug nut.
I complaint to H/O and Manager of Mr. lube on the above branch " we will give you $40 for broken lug nut" Now the lug nut that they broke and they wanted me to pay them $200 plus taxes, they were willing to pay $40! any anyone could make sense out of it?
How big company can operate as such?

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A civic duty
, CA
Jun 09, 2016 11:14 am EDT
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

On June 8, 2016, I've been to Mr. Lube in Moncton, 1684 Mountain Road to change my oil and the winter tires as I usually do for the all three cars that I use along with my family. Everything was fine, the same old routine in which they try to sell you what you don't need, some new faces (I was always wondering why this personnel turnover but now I think I know) till the point where I had to start the engine. That was the moment when my nightmare started. The engine had no intention to work anymore. And from now on I will talk in stages of lies and deceiving:

1. The staff from MR. Lube tried to get the job done asking me repeatedly to turn the engine on. After they checked the fuses and other small things the car didn't started at all. In the meantime the car from too many attempts to be started went into the "theft mode". At some point they put a tester on it and the result was "faulty cam position sensor prevented start check from being completed, PO342" according to the comments from my invoice. In the end we decided to let the car there and to talk next day with the manager.

2. I came next day and I spoke with the manager. He told me very polite that if is their fault they will fix it. In order to do this I have to pay the bill first and then they will send the car in a garage that they would trust. I paid the bill, I told them to send the invoice via email, and I gave them the key from the car leaving and waiting for a call from them.

3. After I paid the bill I received the sticker with the new mileage for the next oil exchange. Although I paid for a high mileage synthetic oil, the next exchange was due after 4 or 5000 km instead of 7500 km. I asked them why? And a blonde tall guy with a beard told me that "this is the regulation." This was very weird and even if it was true they should have warn me. In the end they printed another sticker with the real mileage.

4. The call came and the result was that the car is in the "theft mode" and this is not their fault, and they will not pay for this. What I need is to reset the computer and this can be done only at the Chevrolet dealership.

5. I went to the Chevrolet and I spoke with someone there. The person told me that in order to reset the car I need to keep the key in the contact at the first position for about 15 min.

6. I went back at Mr. Lube trying to negotiate with them about the issue. I told the manager that being in the "theft mode" is not an issue in itself, we need to see why the car went into that mode, and most likely entered into that mode because I tried repeatedly to start the engine at their personnel request. He didn't want to hear anything.

7. I went to the car and I tried to reset the computer according to what the person from Chevrolet told me and it didn't work. Then I went back to Mr. Lube's manager Mr. Jack and I told him that being in "theft mode" was not the real issue. Then I told him that I want to bless him because in my system of values we "turn the other cheek".

8. I picked up my car from the garage and brought it home. When I opened the trunk I realized that the winter tires were not there. I went back at Mr. Lube and I asked them where my winter tires are? I wanted to use them for one more season. The tall blonde guy with beard told me that he cannot give me back the tires because they were too used and, again, it was against the regulation. I asked him why you didn't tell me yesterday. He said because you left. Was I supposed to sleep there in front of Mr. Lube to find out that information? However that was the moment when I started to realize that I "turned the other cheek" and they transformed me in a punching bag.

9. I was waiting for the invoice to come via email and it didn't. So, today I went back to ask for my invoice. After another lies "maybe is in the junk box" I realized that I am the victim of an intentional act. I asked the manager Mr. Jack to print me another invoice. He printed a void one just with my name and address on it with no amount of money paid. I asked him to give me the real invoice and he started to tell me to not raise my voice to him otherwise he will send me out of his office. In the end he gave me the invoice still without some parts like that code for the online survey in it. He told me that I will receive this via email. At this point I didn't receive anything. When I read the invoice I discovered that the incident was mentioned in the "service comments" area like this: "faulty cam position sensor prevented start check from being completed, PO342"

Conclusions:

What I believe it happened is this: at some point one of the guys struggled hard to take the air filter out to tell me how dirty it was, like every time when I go there. The air filter cover has a problem with one of the screws and probably in his determination to squeeze 20 more dollars from me, the guy touched a sensor who is by the filter, very important in ignition. Then one problem led to another and in the end the car didn't start everything happening as I said above. Again, this is just a presumption which however doesn't matter at all because I do not intend to ask any compensations.

Anyway, what intrigues me was manager's decision to send the car to a garage in order to see what is wrong with it even though he it was mentioned on the invoice "faulty cam position sensor prevented start check from being completed, PO342." Then how could he say that the problem was that the car is in the "theft mode"? Even a child knows that if you try to start the car to many times, like it was my case, the car will enter at some point in this mode.

Then all those lies about the mileage and the new due date, why were those necessary? Why did they confiscate my old tires without telling me anything? That was my property.

And the stupidity of all stupidities! I use to go at Mr. Lube because it is very close and I like the fact that you don't need an appointment. My family has three cars and for each of them I change the oil and the tires periodically. If they would look at my history will probably see hundreds of dollars paid already. Only for this car Chevrolet Aveo I can read about 7 services like oil or tires change and I have two more cars. If I am your client and I brought you all those money already then why do you treat me like this? This is against any business rule. With a bit of diplomacy you would have probably paid some money to fix my car and then you would have had a happy client. Or even a nice word would have made a big difference in all this nightmare for me.

Anyway, considering what happened I decided that is a civic duty to warn everyone, individuals and public institutions, about this experience.

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JlbM
, CA
Apr 19, 2016 4:40 pm EDT
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

My daughter took her car into Mr. Lube in Pickering, On. They don't have bays, but hoists. When they lifted the car on the hoist, they dented the rocker panel. This was back in November. Not thinking they were going to damage her car, she never inspected it. It wasn't until the paint started coming off that she noticed something was wrong. She took it to her dealership, as she thought it may be a paint issue. The gentleman at the dealership came out and bent down to look at it, and that is when they noticed the dent. In order for it not to rust, we had a quick paint job done on it, and very glad we did, as it showed the dent perfectly. We took it into Mr. Lube, after we contacted the head office, and when we got there, they were rude from the start. They said no tapes were available. Even though they hoisted it up and could see that it lined up, they denied that something like that could ever happen, We have photos of the car on the hoist, showing the dent in comparison to the hoist, and because of this, the 6 employees of Mr Lube decided it was time to become intimidating. They refused to talk to my daughter even though she is the owner. They lowered the car and told her to get it out of there. When she has tried to post comments on the facebook page of Mr Lube, they deleted her and blocked her. Head office refuses so far to get back to us. I would recommend that everyone stay away from Mr Lube as customer service is non existent.

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AzarKhan
, US
Apr 04, 2016 10:28 pm EDT

I went today for ATF change. I confirmed with the tech not to flush. I need only drain/fill. After doing the job. He again mentioned we did flush. OK than I paid and left the bay. On the way back I started hearing whining noise when I accelerate the car. By the way it is fairly new car 2013 toyota matrix.
Everything was find until the service was done. So to test drive I went to highway and drove about 3 km to confirm what I was noticing was infect true.
It was high pitched sound. I drove home. After dinner I warmed the car up and popped the hood. First thing I noticed that the ATF dip stick was different color. That I could accept but the next thing was the ATF level was way too low. Even lower than the low mark. I am waiting to go back to this shop to tell the bad job they did on my vehicle

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Ryan Ngo
, CA
Mar 01, 2016 4:01 pm EST
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

Hello
I recently bough a used BMW from a private owner in Vancouver, today I change the engine oil and find out that oil filter that Mr Lube used was wrong size so I check other work have been done at Mr Lube, They spray paint the drain and fill plugs if it expose they did not spray paint it if they can't access it. They spray paint so you look and think it been done, Fact none of the fluid was change at all.
the last bill from MR Lube was over $1000 that was in June 2015 and still under 5000 km, So I change all the fluid myself,

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Raymond007
, US
Dec 17, 2015 4:58 am EST

Engine oil changed(standard oil, manufacture filter) by Mr. Lube on Nov. 15, 2015 with odometer reading 12000 km.
The car was asking me to change oil again on Dec. 16, 2015 with odometer reading 14750km.
Wonder why.

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Brento
North Vancouver, CA
Jan 19, 2015 9:49 am EST

I had Mr. Lube (North Vancouver BC) maintain fluids on my Acura TL since I bought it in September 2010 with 50, 000 km on it. In July 2014 they did a transmission fluid flush and replaced the fluid. In November 2014 I was looking at a few things under the hood, by chance I checked the transmission fluid with the car running and on level ground, and it was overfull. Not just a little overfull, but past the "full" indicator line on the dipstick almost as far as the distance between the "empty" and "full" indicator lines. I took it to Mr. Lube to show them. The technician told me that "with these cars you are supposed to run it, then turn it off for 30 seconds, then read the transmission dipstick. He read the fluid level by his method and thought it was OK... but these cars like most are supposed to get the transmission fluid checked with it running. So much for Mr. Lube's current radio advertising that they know all of the manufacturer requirements, even the rare ones. The transmission died with finality on Jan. 2/15. MR. LUBE YOU INCOMPETENT SOBs... I JUST PAID $4, 450 TO REBUILD THE TRANSMISSION ON AN ACURA WITH ONLY 104, 000 KM ON IT.

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jay 1
Bridgeport, US
Nov 09, 2014 4:11 am EST

I Did a oil cleaner that was put in the motor that the tech recommended At splash oil in bridgeport ct north ave and it mess up my motor there saying that there not responsible he put 4 and a half of oil and two bottle of that junk the guy couldn't tell me what was in the bottle all he said is they just sale it it not going to look good for them in court

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Herc123
Oakville, CA
Nov 06, 2014 5:00 pm EST

took my 2013 genesis in for an oil change at the Dundas location in Oakville, ...and 250.00 later!...I was told that I need a differential fluid change and with 42k, I thought..it's possible, I really didn't know..so I agreed for 120 bucks. I assumed they were following the recommended maintenance of the manufacturer..WRONG!..as it turns out my car DID NOT require this service. I declined all there other BS add ons and I wish I had of said no to that one, but I wasn't sure and put a little trust in their advice. I phoned Mr. Lube's customer service line...had to leave a message...and never heard back. I have no problem paying for what the car needs, I have a HUGE problem being lied to and ripped off!...these guys are trained to drain your wallet. Never going back ... beware of Mr.Lube...stick to an oil change ONLY!

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Herc123
Oakville, CA
Nov 06, 2014 4:49 pm EST

took my car into the Dundas st. location in Oakville for an oil change, ...and well, 250.00 bucks later.I have a 2013 Genesis sedan with 42k, the "service advisor" told me that it was due for a differential fluid change.I assumed he was going by the scheduled maintenance outlined by the manufacturer since they scanned the VIN into a computer.I thought, well..it's possible and agreed.When I researched further after getting home I found out that the car DID NOT require this service.I knew enough to decline their other BS services (fuel line cleaning, etc).I called the Mr.Lube customer service number, ...had to leave a message...and have not heard back from them.I also called the "manager" of the location who insisted that it is part of Hyundai's recommendations(pure BS).I have no problem paying for what the car needs, ..I have a huge problem with being lied to and scammed!..these guys are trained to get as much out of you as they can.Shame on Mr.Lube!...be aware, never going back!

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moongirl0715
Vancouver, CA
Nov 05, 2014 3:13 pm EST

Fak u, Mr. Lube!

Very dangerous place to go. If u wanna commit suicide, feel free to go in. Spent over $300 for anything they suggested to change because I wanted to make sure it's safe for my family trip. I have baby less than a year and old mom. Technician was trainee and he was all by himself. He was confused from time to time and asked others but didn't get enough support. Anyhow, he didn't close a hose which connect Coolen pipes. Coolen leaked during my trip and almost blew up my engine. My whole family stuck on street out of no where for few hours till some ppl came for help.

Went back to this store for refund. Only asked for the poor service refund; didn't ask for any damage or hazards caused to my family. Manager Alex said he can't. He said he can only gave me one free regular oil change and two movie tickets...and told me I wouldn't get anything if I go complain head quarter. He was right. I complain to head quarter. No response from them for a week. I will report to BBB and any other customer protection organization. This isn't over!

Alright, the engine check light is on. Good job Mr. Lube! It's a new car with only 50000KM and I really hope u didn't burn the whole engine!

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ThirdYear
Kelowna, CA
May 31, 2014 7:40 pm EDT

I agree and disagree with Mr Lube. I have to. I work there. Currently, our store is going under. And the head office we work under is full of cut throat punjabs. I'm not racist, but they'll do just about anything to save a dime. They tell me product cost is too high, so I should use Dex3 instead of Toyota TIV. However, I was brought here to bring this shop back up. And that's exactly what I aim for. Regardless of what they say. And I'll probably lose my job over it. Anyways, I don't push for sales, I don't use scare tactics unless Iraq belt that's about to snap into a million pieces. I simply pull up the Factory Schedule Maintenance, tell them whats been recommended by the dealer, THEN I ask if they've had any of these services done within the timeline. If they don't know, or just bought the vehicle, I give them my honest opinion. If the transmission looks like its been serviced, I don't shake them down for their money. I use PH sticks and a hydrometer for the coolant, because if it's "expired", then the PH will give me insight. Belts shouldn't be cracked straight across. Air filter shouldn't have holes in it, or been restricted. If the vehicle isn't equipped with a fuel filter, then a system cleaning should be done once every two years at least. Not all of the employees are whipped into overselling. I don't make bonus because I'm sticking my head out for customers. Yes there are customers that will say "that employee is such a ###", well it's because they were rude to me first, which automatically gives me the right to be rude back. But ask the other 99% of MY customers. They'll tell you what a breeze it is to work with me. I've worked in mechanics shops, I've seen what happens when maintenance is neglected. Certain things do matter. I don't just tell customers what I think they need, I find out what their car needs by evaluating their driving habits, or if their going on trips. My customers trust me because I don't ### them into buying crap they don't need. I want my customers to feel like we're neighbors, and that's what I've been working towards. If my lower tech or myself screw up a car, I'll fix it myself. I've worked hard for a good reputation, and when my customers aren't happy, I want to be the first to hear about it.

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Sumguy
london, CA
Apr 22, 2014 6:57 pm EDT

Apparently I have nothing better to do than to take the time to read about these customer complaints. So having spent the time to read most of these complaints spanning over a few years I may as well take the time to put in my 2 cents.

I had laughed out loud several times reading what customers had to say, and was bothered to see that anything positive said about Mr lube was downvoted.

I have worked in customer service industry for over a decade. and have worked in a few sales positions for several companies.
One of which being world vision. You know, that christian organization taht has been around for 50 years.. and for only $40 a month, you can feed some starving kid. Thing is though, an office of 15 employees, uses company rented vehicles to pay these door knockers $14 an hour to get this $40 a month. Well where does this money come from? From the charity organization, who get's it from you. So really how much of that money is going towards the cause? Hmm.
I have also worked in door to door HVAC sales. An industry where %90 of the people i talk to genuinely benefit from the services I offer. I will give you cheaper rent, a sign on bonus, and in ten years you own the equipment! It is all canadian owned. Most people rent from reliance, have union gas installed equipment and don't even know that an American company bought their account for $40 10 years ago. And yet do you think anybody would listen? No, people are far too self important to pay a worker 20 seconds of attention to benefit themselves.

Now I work at Mr lube.
I've been at my location for nearly 6 months now, and it s amazing the ammount of knowledge I have learned about cars. As I've said I come from a customer service background. And one thing that I know, is that most poeple know absolutely nothing about anything, but act like they do. I am also treated on a daily basis like I am just trying to rip people off.
I cannot tell you how many people I ask "when is the last time you completed this service? You appear to be overdue on it" "oh, I take it to the dealer so they take care of it". No. They don't. When you go to the dealer for an oil change, they change your oil.
Mr lube is warranty approved. What does that mean anyway?
It means that we warranty any services we do for you, and none of our services void warranty because all of our specifications for completing these services follow manufacturers recommendations. It seems that alot of the posters here don't trust Mr lube. As described though, we are completely transparent.
Yes I will charge you $220 for a transmission service. But I'm also dropping the pan, replacing the filter, cleaning the magnet, replacing the gasket, using a pressurized device to clean all of your fluid out, and I'm doing it all right in front of your eyes. With warranty. Answering your questions. And I will vacuum your vehicle, give it a hand car wash. Are you going to do all of this in your driveway?

What I don't understand is how it is thought our prices are high. First off we are doing a 32 point inspection on your vehicle. Many a times i have had a first time customer with a broken liscence plate light, who has had the vehicle for 8 years and didn't even know there were lights there. Also if an oil change takes 20 minutes, and you have 4 people running around your vehicle, and we do 3 cars an hour at 20 minutes. At minimum, Mr lube is paying $40 an hour to those employess, for 3 $46 changes. So You expect us to run and operate a business with such low margins? Of course we need additional services. But don't blame us because you know absolutely nothing about them.
I have had a women scoff at me, and say "oh that's not a service for you guys to do, I have a trusted mechanic I've been goign to for 4 years." Lookng at ther account, they havnt done a single service with us, only oil changes. So i explained to her "look, you have absolutely no coolant in your rad. What is crusted in your overflow res, and the condition of the existing deer clamps is a strong indicator to me that your coolant has never been serviced on this 7 year old vehicle. I strongly recommend getting this service done. It will cost you $130, I know you won't wanna do this without the husband, so I'll put it on your reciept. Ask your mech, and talk to your husband." 3 day's later she came back with her husband, and got the coolant service done explaining to me they were shocked to find out their mechanic had neglected to tell them about this. No kidding, you get what you pay for, and you pay us to check EVERYTHING.
Yes a fuel filter may cost you $15. But who's gong to put it in and warrenty it?

Sure an air filter may be cheaper are part source or princess auto. But this is nothing new. Hasty mart charges $3.59 for a loaf of bread I can get for $1.99 at no frills. Difference s, hasty mart is 2 blocks away.

I have had customers come in with a cadillac, and tip me 5 bucks just to check the level of their brake and power steering fluids. I say it's low, sorry I don't have any in stock. They run to canadian tire to get some, and then come back and spend $400 on services.

As for bonuses, commissions, and all that... well bag of crap. It's simply untrue.
f my manager tried to recycle oil, or re-use air filters. I would be a responsible employee and contact a superior manager. Simple. Sobey's doesn't take their food returns and put them back on the shelf.
Service advisors do not make commision. I make the same whehter you come in for a $10 light bulb, or spend $700 to fix everything. I don't care either way. But still, the store has to pay employee wage, product cost, electricity, oil disposal fees, delivery charges, insurance, this that and that and this. A store can't make any money if every person that comes in just wants an oil change and nothing else. Of course there are incentives and bonuses laid in front of us. If you have two work horses plowing separate fields, and you dangle a carrot in front of one of them, that field will be plowed first.

We charge $.99 oil recycle fee. Change your oil at home.. do you even know how to properly dispose of waste oil? Here is a fun fact by the way.
http://www2.epa.gov/cfl/cleaning-broken-cfl-0
Read step 6, I bet most people are unaware of this even.

Read the simpler service guide. We offer it to you at the beginning of the service, but people don't wanna take it because "I'm just here for an oil change and your an idiot, hahahaha!".
Standard oil package $42.99. Gasoline 6L.
So for a gasolne engine, we include up to 6L of oil. Most large trucks take 6.6L of oil. So using math, lets try to figure this one out. Hmm. Looks like your gonna pay for .6 litres. Huh. Kinda like how a $5 subway will cost me extra if I want bacon. Well guess what, a 2014 dodge super duty, comes with bacon.
*prices include a $2.99 shop supply charge to cover assorted supplies and hardware. A recycle fee may also apply.
**Oil changes include oil to the volume indicated in the table above. additional charges may apply if a higher volume is required.
***additional filter charges may apply for some vehicles.

Do you really think it costs us the same to order in saab, mercedes, BMW ol filters as it would for a dodge neon?

It is also dissapointing to read alot of this attitude.
"I suspect these employees are trained to use hi pressure sales tactics on customers if they want to keep their jobs so IT IS MY FEELING THAT MR LUBE CORPORATE office is to blame for this regular practice of ripping off the public."
Mr lube locatoins are independently owned and operated.
I am curious though how you feel about those dam stores that put all those chocolate bars right in front of the cash register. That way when your forced to stand there with your bratty little demon spawn crying for the $1.29 oh henry you have no choice but to shut the kid up by giving in to the high pressure product placement.
It's called marketing. it works.
If you Think an engine flush is a waste of money, don't do it. Don't clean out your engine. But do you use the same dish cloth for 17 years? Or do you get a new clean one once in a while? Do you change your furnace filter once a month, or never?

It annoys me that so many consumers, don't know how to seperate themselves from being a consumer to being an informed customer. And yet these unintelligent people, blindly blame "the corperate machine" for their own lack of knowledge.
If you are going to just lindly consume anything laid before you, than yes shady sale people will take advantage of you for personal gain. How are Mr lube employees any more guilty of this than a care salemen, realtor, the tight butt blond at mcdonalds who ask's you if you want to upsize your combo for $.69?

Go ahead and trust your dealer. Sit in your waiting room, get your keys back in 15 minutes. But you don't even know what they have done, and you haven't watched them do it. If you arn't going to listen to the importance of the servces we offer, then you shouldn't go to Mr lube. Simple. Everything we tell you to do, can be found in your owners manual. But wait.. when is the last time you've actually bothered to look in there. Have you even EVER looked at it? I can honestly say as a responsible shopper I research products and services before I get them everywhere I go. I won't buy headphones without reading a reveiw. I choose what I'm goign to buy, based on my needs. SO when I tell you, "hey your overdue on your coolant by 3 years, its highly acidic and can do some serious damage to your vehicle." I do not care if you say yes or no. But don't treat me like a high pressure salesman just because you don't know any better. 3 ******** years overdue, and been recommended to you 4 visits straight.
Majority of the people that come in my shop know no more about cars, than I know about performing knee surgery.

It is unfair to judge an entire company based on a few shops bad experiences. If you go to wendy's and get a burger with no pickle. But you get a pickle. Are you going to tell everyone in the world to boycott wendy's forever? Ridiculous.

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Esstie
Grosse-�le, CA
Mar 12, 2014 3:18 pm EDT
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

I work at a Mr. Lube near Montreal and yes, WE ARE PUSH TO UPSELL.

We have to meet a target of 90$ per client, or our bonus will be cut by half. Speaking of bonuses, which are heavily promoted during the job interview, those are complete scam too. You are told that you will make more cash by anything you sell except oil changes, and that those bonuses are so easy to get and you will make so much cash with them. All you have to do is have nice work habits (discipline, don't be late, wear proper safety equipment, the basics...) and that you will get so much more than the 12$ an hour they pay... Yeah right! They cut the bonus by 50% whenever they fell too and for any reasons: not enough customers (is this really my fault given the high-pressure sales tactics we must use to keep our jobs?), monthly sales below average, etc. It always end up with risible bonus of 20$-something per month...

And do I need to explain that my manager is a complete failure? No management courses or degree, no nothing... Promotions goes by how well you can get brown-nosed of the big boss... Speaking of which, is a truly loud guy, with no management diplomas either. But hey, ask him a question and he will proudly blast you with how good he was when he was a Service Advisor like you, pulling sales of 200, 500 and 800 by customers, each day every day.

The fault here is always the technicians, and the service advisors. Management is so great, so excellent, so perfect... To their eyes.

Avoid M. Lube. And avoid to work here.

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jamie1971
, CA
Dec 04, 2013 3:07 pm EST

on friday at 644 pm i arrived at the weber st mr lube in kitchener Nov 29 2013. i was refused service because they close at 7. i drove 20 minutes to get there so it was a total waste of time. I kept asking them to serve me and saying you have to allow customers to be served until 7 even if that means the employees may be there after 7. the 3 boys refused. None of them would give me their names. I was told there was no manager. Since mr lube is suppose to have me in and out in 10 minutes they would have had my vehicle done by 7 anyways. Either way when a company says it closes at 7 they cannot all expect to be gone by 7. I WILL NEVER GO TO MR LUBE AGAIN.

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Rafie 11
Toronto, CA
Dec 01, 2013 12:08 am EST
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

I went to Mr Lube today for a standard oil change the same package i get from my Mechanic for 30 bucks i did end up paying $72. Please never go to the Mr Lube at Victoria Park and Lawrence they will rip u off . Please let me know if someone Knows who to contact (someone else than the store manager) to put a complaints
Thank you

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londonexposefraud
London, CA
Nov 30, 2013 11:55 am EST

This place is a total rip off. In the interest of canadian lives I appeal to the Government to shut down this business. The person who runs this business must immediately be treated as a criminal and arrested in accordance with law.

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bigyenta
Toronto, CA
Oct 29, 2013 11:46 pm EDT
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completely TRUE

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bigyenta
Toronto, CA
Oct 29, 2013 11:41 pm EDT
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I am very unsatisfied with the experience at Mr Lube this week. I went in for an oil change with my newly purchase used 2006 Lexus and these unqualified 'trainees' tried to sell me on EVERYTHING IN THE SHOP...
Air filter - $35.99 - usually costs 20.29
Cabin filter - $69.99 - usually costs 22.99
Differential fluid - I am looking into this charge - I'm thinking now that they probably didn't even use the PROPER DIFFERENTIAL OIL for my vehicle.
Oil filter - ADDITIONAL $11.99 but should have been included in the oil change price AND they charged me an EXTRA few bucks for the EXTRA bit of oil that my particular vehicle apparently required - what a RACKET !

Their quote came to $307.11 for this work and it is way out of line with what these services are worth. Plus I didn't need most of the work, to begin with because I had replaced my air filter and cabin filter just 5 months ago - MYSELF.

I asked the employees if Mr Lubes pricing was competitive on these items, AND WITH A STRAIGHT FACE these high school drop outs told me that these items were competitively priced AND that 'MR LUBE doesn't charge for installation like the dealerships do'. I told them that I think that I had recently replaced my cabin filter and air filters but they pointed out that the cabin filter was grey and it should be white. The cabin filter in the my vehicle was replaced 3 months ago and is a charcoal filter that is grey in colour not white and I would suspect 'Mr Lube ###' would know this.

I also must point out that Mr Lube's staff didn't even take the time EVEN to input the correct mileage on my vehicle OIL CHANGE STICKER when they completed the oil change, which is really surprising as well.

The practice of overcharging destroys customer confidence in the company. I suspect these employees are trained to use hi pressure sales tactics on customers if they want to keep their jobs so IT IS MY FEELING THAT MR LUBE CORPORATE office is to blame for this regular practice of ripping off the public. If you go to MR LUBE, be prepared for a CLOSE SHAVE AND A GOOD LATHERING - BETTER TO SHOP ELSEWHERE I PRESUME! :(

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Mrlubez
Montreal, CA
Jul 11, 2013 12:51 pm EDT

Hey, i work at mr. Lube montreal and i have to say the way that the management and the what the bosses asks us to do is completly ###ed. We have a store ticket which is the overall price of each car into one price. Now they keep on asking us to have a ticket of 120-130$ a day which means all cars must finish with a bill of 120+ . I find that completly stupid ans utherly ###ed that they ask us to push the sell to upsale every client just for an oil change. I used to be an upper tech and i would get in ### because when people would say no to requiered services i wouldnt push them to take it. I'm the type of person that will let you know what services are due and i'll show it to you if you have to and if still you dont wish to take it i would continue with the oil change and let you leave with what ever recommendations the client will have on the car. Yet everyday or most days we would get a call on why do we have such a low ticket and when we say its because the clients dont want to buy anything and we then get told to bring it back up. I personally hate forcing people to take a service when everyone know you can ( for exemple) get an air filter a lot cheaper at a canadian tire or part store. Now if i may suggest people should still go to mr lube to have they're oil done yet be all aware they will try to upsale anything they can get there hands on. I suggest also to grab maintenances that would normally take time to do in a dealer and more pricy for exemple the full drive-line or gas filter installation since at a dealer you would have to pay an hours labor for 15 of drain and fill. all the rest is better off at a dealer or general mechanics. So to finish it off personnaly mr lub is a good place but the work ethics MUST be changed or the company will quite simply crash..

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bmer
Toronto, CA
Feb 26, 2013 11:43 pm EST

Has anyone sued these thieves successfully?..mr. Lube legal battles ongoing...but just wondering has anyone made them pay for their negligence?

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Duncan JF
, CA
Dec 17, 2012 3:31 pm EST
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I took my Jeep in to Jiffy Lube in Victoria on Douglas St. A guy called Kyle worked on my Jeep. He couldn't have been nicer. He told me what he thought needed to be done, he told me what things could wait. I asked him to check the battery, he put me in a new one. He apologized for any cost and guaranteed all parts and services. I highly recommend Kyle at this location. Cost came to $340.00.

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RandallR
Toronto, CA
Jul 10, 2012 6:34 am EDT

I have tried 2 Mr. Lubes and all your comments are accurate. I have been sold differential flushes - good for 100, 000km every 5, 000km stating it needed it or the risk was mine, and they put the comments on the bill as poof of required work, and one time they did NOT re-install the oil drain plug back in properly, and within 48 hours, I had oil all over my driveway and all they could say was: "PROVE IT WAS US". not a professional business.

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Ted in Vancouver
, CA
Jul 06, 2012 6:28 pm EDT
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Went in for an oil change: was told I needed a $69 cabin filter and $120 transmission fluid flush and replacement.
Other times I had been through the same routine I just caved and paid but this time I decided to do things on my own- the cabin filter costs me $15 and the transmission fluid was not burnt as I was told over and over; it was actually in perfect condition.
What I discovered was two visits ago I had the engine filter changed. I thought it odd that the didn't try to sell me a new one of those so I checked it out myself. What I found was the filter cover was not reinstalled properly after the last change and the filter was as good as new. Over the last three years my engine was using unfiltered air.
The technician did not check this or comment on it at this current visit. It was still not installed properly I know because I looked at the filter housing wondering how to get at it prior to going in for the oil change.
When I refuse to be up-sold my technician got snotty, I discovered afterwards that he had dripped oil over the front and interior plastic parts of my car, had not lubricated the door hinges as he indicated on the receipt and left greasy black fingerprints on the hood.
Mr. lube is a great concept but it's run by corporate greed, the franchise owner claimed he could not control the cost of services and parts. That's too bad because when you go to bed with outlaws you're going to get buggered sooner or later, I wonder how long Mr. lube can last in this age of the Internet. You just can't keep on screwing people and expect to stay in business.
Good luck Mr. lube, a lot of people would like to see you turn it around including me, I like the concept but not the service or the fleecing.
Ted in Vancouver

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doublestorm2
Winnipeg, CA
Oct 21, 2011 5:47 pm EDT

I couldn't agree more with the majority of the posts here - and being "held hostage" does not seem to be an overstatement! The last time I was there (which WILL be my last time) I went in for a simple oil change - it was winter so I didn't want to freeze doing it myself. 2 weeks before, I had my vehicle in the shop for some other work and the mechanic told me that I needed a tranny flush, so I got it done while they were doing the other repairs. I KNOW it was done because I could see my vehicle through the window and was watching them do it. 2 weeks later I was told by the Mr Lube kid that my tranny fluid was horrible and desperately needed to be flushed and changed. I told him that it was just done, so he showed me the dipstick with grey-dark, old looking fluid on it. After I declined a couple more times to have it done and was finished with the oil change, I drove my truck just to the outside of the bays, pulled the dipstick out and checked it myself...it looked clean and brand new! I called the kid over to show him and he told me...get this..."tranny fluid can cycle through the transmission and have sections of clean oil, and sections of old, worn oil" NEVER AGAIN will I go there - I'd rather go to the dealership and pay premium prices for an oil change...it's cheaper in the long run!

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Disgruntled Customer 56
Ottawa, CA
Oct 04, 2011 2:53 pm EDT

How about being told that the FRONT Suspension on your GMC SAFARI does not have grease fittings !

But yet you have greased it yourself many times and know they really do EXSIST.

Also the air pressure check of HOT tires, IDIOT did not realize that the PRESSURE reading is not ACCURATE when the tires are hot, so he should not be BLEEDING off the so called TOO MUCH AIR

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jazzybest166
, CA
Sep 17, 2011 10:34 pm EDT

why would anyone go to this place for $50 - $80 oil change and sit there to hear a bunch of BS sales pitch for things you don't need. I read they make more $ from the sales pitch then oil change so I am sure are aggressive to little old ladies. when you can get it done from qualified local mechanic for $30 and he knows what he/she are doing.

As for synthetic oil - I think it is also a rip off.

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sunray9
Victoria, CA
Sep 03, 2011 8:00 pm EDT

I am a certified Red Seal technician. I have worked for Jaguar, LandRover, Mitsubishi, Ford, and Nissan/Infiniti. I find that places such as Mr Lube have business doing anything except oil changes and air filters. Their employees DO NOT have the experience to be recommending or offering the additional services they do at current. There is a massive difference between the experience and knowledge a technician offers versus the "mechanic" that some of these guys and gals claim to be.

On another note these places have no business saying they employ "techs." Technicians do not work at such places unless they are washed out. I am increasingly worried about the state of the trade if they are allowing lube "techs" to get their second year of apprenticeship credit without having ever taken an engine apart under supervision of a qualified technician. I also now am aware that junkyards are also apprenticing students and BC is rubber stamping the qualification after these individuals have never even put something back together.

Bottom line is you need to take you vehicle to someone who can produce their Red Seal card. Every technician has one. Your trust will be built from there. There are plenty terrible red seal techs as well and the customer must empower themselves to ask the right questions and if you feel that you are not getting your money's worth, then spend some extra money on a second opinion. Be sure that the second opinion comes from a reputable source.

As a tech with many years behind me I actually train techs and in many case, fix their work when they are stumped. This ability comes from many years of hard work on the job and off. I go to school every year as I have for the past 17 years. Lifelong learning is par for the course if you want to remain on the speartip of an industry that requires knowledge far beyond what you doctor needs to do his/her job. Human bodies don't change, cars do every year (or more often!).

Hope you all find service with someone you can truly trust!

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Overlubed
, CA
Sep 01, 2011 2:08 am EDT
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it's still happening. Toronto Steeles and Dufferin. High pressure sell. $90 cabin filter which lists for $37 and sells at a discount parts store for $8. I won't go back. I don't trust them. I can go to my dealer for these prices and have confidence. I won't submit to another non-stop sales pitch from them again!

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745Bossman
Toronto, CA
Jul 19, 2011 2:24 am EDT

Never any problems, always go for my oil change. Staff is friendly and helpful, maybe it's just your locations that are bad, don't generalize.

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745Bossman
Toronto, CA
Jul 19, 2011 2:23 am EDT

I always go to Mr.Lube for my oil change in Thornhill. Staff is very friendly and help me out with other suggestions for my car. No problems there, just quick and reliable service.

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Mauzer
Calgary, CA
Jul 01, 2011 12:51 am EDT

I recently moved to and was hired at a mr lube in calgary, i've been working on cars for many years and have never had to take a vehicle to a mechanic or lube shop, i've always just done what needed to be done, so i do know what i'm doing i just don't have the tickets. I'm not some snot nosed kid that doesn't know my ### from a hole in the ground. My experience so far is that the services are expensive yes but the work is done properly and as quickly as possible by people that have had proper training and have plenty of experience (75 cars a day will for x amount of days helps). So not everyone working there is some punk kid some of us are actually intelligent adults.
However, saying that, the big issue i have is that while it is against company policy to pressure customers and recommend services that are unnecessary, there is always a push to sell sell sell. If you don't they revoke your bonuses and commissions and yes there are commissions ($0.50 an airfilter, $4.50 for a trans flush ect...) If you don't sell lots the managers get on your case and start hassling you to make sales, so it makes it difficult to follow company policy and keep up sales. My opinion is that bonuses should be based on customer satisfaction and speed of service, and to a lesser extent sales. To sit there and say you'll be fired if you push unnecessary services and then say you'll lose pay or your job for not selling enough is the worst contradiction i have honestly ever come across.
Honestly, i'm new to the city and needed a job but i'm gonna keep on looking because the contradictory business practices do not sit well.
Mr. Lube is ok if you can't do your own work but be prepared to pay for the convenience of the services, and if you can do the work just don't bother going in and do it yourself.

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Freese
The big Smoke, CA
Jun 29, 2011 11:18 pm EDT

I went to Mr. Lube in Kanata Ontario, and the brainchild there mistook one of the bolts on the transmission bell housing as the drain plug. I heard the whole conversation between the techs and it was very scary. As a former fast lube guy whose done prolly thousands of oil changes I can say that this place hires the bottom of the barrel. To make matters worse when I complained to the owner that his techs cannot even distinguish a bolt from a drain plug, he was nothing but dismissive and un apologetic. Do not go here. Go to a proper mechanic and have a PROFESSIONAL work on your vehicle, not 17 year olds who only have "Mr. Lube training".

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Trisha wilson 22
Olney, US
May 15, 2011 8:22 pm EDT

Yeah they are very convent and fast. The only problem I have with them is that they were trying to sell me the most expensive oil change that 86.99 and after said no he kept coming in every 2 minutes asking if I was sure I didn't want the 86.99 oil change. That was ridiculous! I did like that they sold me on a product called 44k fuel treatment. Overall my experience was ok, but they really need to stop nagging the customers about buying the most expensive oil change.

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braun123
Oakville, CA
May 04, 2011 12:37 am EDT

I called to find out the price of an oil change for a 2010 Matrix and was quoted $42.99. Get the bill and .75 recycle fee, 1.99 shop fee and 6.00 filter fee were added. Why quote $42.99 plus tax if you are really charging 51.73 plus tax. I normally have to wait for my $30 oil change that comes to 33.89 with tax but was willing to pay the extra $13 plus tax for the convience. Final bill with tax was 58.45... over $25 extra is bull... I hate added made up fees...what is a 1.99 shop fee anyways? I'm surprised I didn't see a fee for their phone line of electric bill!

F mr lube the spread the word!

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TruthBeTold100
Burlington, CA
Apr 17, 2011 12:51 am EDT
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A friend of mine worked at Mr. Lube. He was constantly under pressure to sell, sell, sell! The top salesman in the shop where my friend worked was a cocaine user - imagine that, snorting coke at a lube shop in order to hit the numbers! This "top salesman" had an enitre routine that he used, very successfully I might add, on every customer. He was averaging close to $200 a car in extra sales. Mr. Lube has a pay structure where you get a monthly bonus based on your ability to sell extras (rad flushes, cabin air filters, timing belts etc. etc.) This guy was so good that Mr. Lube would send him to weaker locations in order to boost sales and teach the other employees "the art of selling". It got to the point where he would rip so many people off that customers stopped going to the location he was at - at that time Mr. Lube would send him to another location. Eventually, he had to do so much cocaine in order to keep up, that he wound-up killing himself in a motel room. I am absolutely serious about this claim. Upon further investigation I found out that several other of these workers were serious users as well. What kind of corporate culture is that place? Another employee, who took the title of being the "top salesman" after the other guy committed suicide, was a convicted felon. He, on the other hand, was a Heroine junkie and he was eventually fired for doing cash jobs on the side, while at Mr. Lube.
Whatever you do, don't go to Mr. Lube. The people who excel in that environment are literally drug addicts, theives and not to mention out and out con men. Go to your dealer and get your oil changed there, you will probably get it done for cheaper and it will be done by a professional.

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Check B4 Buying
Vancouver, CA
Apr 08, 2011 4:22 pm EDT

I'm glad to check this board before even attempting to visit Mr. Lube. Some of the postings are very troubling and store practices worth of a police investigation, since they appear to be fraud against consumers. I agree with Jack from Moncton that generalizations are not fair, but in this case the volume and variety of locations reported here seem to point to a troubled organization. This is worth of a W5 TV show at CTV to expose them!

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JackylMcNASTY
Moncton, CA
Apr 08, 2011 3:07 pm EDT

I worked at Mr. Lube when I was younger. I worked in multiple stores in Calgary as well as New Brunswick. It is clear that you will get different levels of service from different locations as you have employees and management with different levels of ability and attitude. Mr. Lube as a company does as well as it can to make sure everyone has the same level of skill but not everyone has the same skill level by nature.

This being said, you cannot call an entire company [censor] because you had a bad experience at one location or the other. It has been 15 years since I have worked in one of their stores and I continue to bring my cars there. I have a 2006 Honda Civic and a 2003 Nissan 350z which I completely trust in their care.

If you don't like the sales then don't go but you are missing out on a quick and convienent oil change and chances are you are not doing the services you need. If you question a service they are offering simply tell them to give you a report of what you need and you will check it out with the dealer to see if they are needed. Once the dealer confirms or denys you should then actually read the maintenance section of your manuals for yourself because in my experience the dealer doesn't know or doesn't care about maintenance. They are there for the big repairs and to do warranty work. If the services are due then you would be missing out if you didn't go back to Mr. Lube to get it done.

Regards,

Jack from Moncton
Former and future Mr. Lube Employee and true believer