Driver rages over ‘giant puddle’ under car after oil change at Walmart – dealership charged $1500 to fix chain’s mistake

A DRIVER sought legal advice online when their truck needed to be towed after a Walmart oil change – repairs cost $1,500.

A $25 oil change quickly turned into an expensive repair.

Getty

Getty

Getty

Nora Escalante, a Toyota truck owner, took her truck to her local Walmart for a quick, convenient, and cheap oil change.

According to Walmart’s website, an oil change for her truck would be close to $65 if she chose synthetic oil, but could be as low as $24.88 for five quarts of conventional oil.

She dropped off her truck and did some shopping.

As she drove home, she quickly noticed something wasn’t quite right.

“My truck was jerking when I pushed the gas . The next day I drove to work and I called Walmart and they told me to bring it in,” she posted in a Facebook group of people seeking free legal advice .

The community has over 434,000 members and features posts from around the world.

Escalante wrote that she’d driven the truck to work but attempted to take it back to Walmart when her shift ended.

“When I tried to drive to Walmart after work my truck would just not move,” she continued.

“I towed it to Walmart and they told me the cap for the transmission oil was off but that it wasn’t their fault because they don’t touch that part of the truck while doing the oil change.”

Not sure what her next move should be, she took the truck home and examined the charges more closely.

“I checked the receipt of what Walmart had done and it said they checked transmission fluid level, differential fluid check, and transfer case fluid check along with the oil change and other routine checks they do,” she continued.

“They said they couldn’t help fix it and that it was not anything they did and not their fault.”

Feeling defeated, she paid to have the truck towed to a local dealership for a diagnosis.

That’s when they told her a simple mistake caused extensive damage.

“Toyota ran a diagnostic test and determined the oil was two times over what it should be, the transmission was drained of fluid and the drain plug was missing completely,” she said.

“They’re charging us $1,500 to do all the oil changes and transmission oil and after that, they can check if the transmission has further damage.”

Before this incident, she wrote that her 2017 Toyota truck only had 66,000 miles and was incredibly reliable.

In addition, she tried contacting the Walmart that changed her oil but they haven’t responded.

What can happen if an engine is overfilled?

A consumer advocacy company warns overfilling an engine with oil can cause extensive damage if not fixed immediately.

An engine is carefully engineered to handle a specific amount of oil to keep important parts lubricated and clean. If there’s too little oil, moving metal parts aren’t lubricated, and the engine becomes vulnerable to seizing. If there’s too much oil, several issues can occur.

Keen drivers will be able to notice something’s off as an overfilled engine tends to make strange noises and run very poorly. If your car struggles to stay running, smokes, runs rough, or jerky, be sure to pull over and check the oil. If there’s too much oil on the dipstick, have it towed to a repair shop.

J.D. Power says the main issues that can happen are:

1. Engine foaming. Too much oil can cause air pockets and foam, which makes it a less effective lubricant. Foam can cause an engine to run poorly.
2. Increased block pressure. Too much pressure in the engine block puts stress on gaskets and seals, causing leaks that wouldn’t be there otherwise.
3. Spark plug damage. Depending on how overfilled, excess oil can reach the spark plugs and cause damage, making the engine run poorly or not start.
4. Engine damage. All these issues can cause extensive damage to the engine if not fixed immediately.
5. In extreme cases, engine failure can occur.

Source: JD Power

Therefore, she asked the community whether or not she should consult a lawyer.

There were eight comments on the post, and most of them felt she had a case.

One reader recalled an experience with the department store’s oil change service.

“My sister-in-law took her truck to Walmart and drove one block before the engine blew up. There was no oil in the engine,” wrote a reader.

“She threatened a lawsuit, so Walmart agreed to replace the engine. Walmart tried to put a used engine in and had a mechanic check it. She agreed to a NEW engine, not used. So she made Walmart put in a new engine.”

Many urged her to call the corporate office to get answers.

The U.S. Sun has reached out to Walmart for comment.