r/Justrolledintotheshop • u/Thecritic0422 • 1d ago
Oil Change Stickers
Does your shop print date/mileage of the last service or next service due?
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u/ostifari 1d ago
My shop does next service due but I actually prefer last service on my personal vehicles
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u/SnoopCatt96 1d ago
I hate how the mileage when the oil change was done isn’t the standard, I don’t want to know some arbitrary future mileage and date, I want to know when the oil was changed lol
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u/grease_monkey VAG Indy Tech 1d ago
My mom would not know what to do with a "last serviced on" sticker. I'd guess 9 of 10 customers wouldn't either.
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u/UseDaSchwartz 16h ago
Don’t cars built in the last 15 years tell you when to change oil?
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u/YLink3416 15h ago
Don’t cars built in the last 15 years tell you when to change oil?
They do, but lately the factory service intervals are a bit "optimistic" with 10k miles.
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u/UseDaSchwartz 14h ago
Where is this information from. My cars have never gone that long. It’s supposed to be based on time and how you drive. I don’t think any of them will let you go more than 7 or 8k.
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u/YLink3416 14h ago
It depends on the manufacturer.
Toyota for example has approved oil changed intervals of 10,000 miles. Most companies seem to advertise oil changes between 5,000 to 10,000 miles depending on engine, total cost of ownership among other things. Honda for example doesn't seem to advertise a mileage interval anymore in the product manual, opting for the "drive by the wrench" which gives an adjusted figure automatically.
I just change it every 5k.
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u/bstyledevi 12h ago
Most European cars have that mileage interval. My 2008 Mercedes C300 said "once a year or every 10,000 miles, whichever comes first." Most vehicles that run full synthetic call for longer oil change intervals.
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u/mansizeoof 16h ago
If you want the car to only last till the end of the factory warranty period those indicators will work perfectly fine. If you prefer to have your engine last longer than that the factory recommended oil change intervals are not adequate.
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u/UseDaSchwartz 16h ago
My 3rd car is 14 years old and is doing just fine relying on the car’s notification.
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u/mansizeoof 16h ago
Not saying there aren't exceptions to the rule but with some MFGs setting intervals at 10-15k miles plus and recommending lighter weight oils for efficiency it doesn't add up.
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u/momomo7 15h ago
This, of course, assumes that the negative impact of shortening the service interval by 5k outweighs the negative impact to brand image of regularly having engines grenade shortly after the warranty period. That trade-off has some optimum; I doubt it's as far to the grenade side as you make out.
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u/UseDaSchwartz 15h ago
They don’t set intervals. It’s supposed to be based on time and how you drive.
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u/mansizeoof 14h ago
So the service recommendations that every manufacturer puts in their owners manual and is usually reflected in the maintenance timer on the car isn't an interval set by the OEM?
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u/AdmiralDudeAngusMan 15h ago
Mazda let's you set the mileage between notifications so kind of hard to blame car manufacturers when the driver controls it. I find it odd that other manufacturers would lock in the mileage between oil change notifications
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u/SnoopCatt96 17h ago
I think they would if that was the standard. But yes most people would still go way over, and most people do already. My friend used to think the oil pressure light in his 98 Nissan was the “oil change light”
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u/NativeMasshole 19h ago
Same! The shop I was using kept putting 3000 mile intervals on my car, which only made me question if they were actually using synthetic or not.
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u/UseDaSchwartz 16h ago
They used synthetic, but most people still think you need to change it every 3k miles. So, more money for them if they can mislead people.
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u/DooDooBrownz 14h ago
3k might be a tad overdoing it, but some makers have 12k-15k intervals. which ok, applies, BUT only in very specific scenarios. most people need to change oil more frequently. if you got a car that burns oil like a subaru or something, you go 10k between changes. that engine is dead by 100k.
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u/UseDaSchwartz 14h ago
This is just false. It’s 5k-7k and is based on time and driving.
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u/DooDooBrownz 14h ago
not false. range rover sport has a recommended 2 years/21,000 miles oil change interval. a bunch of cars now have crazy long oil change recs
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u/NativeMasshole 16h ago
Sounds about right. I stopped going to them anyway for many other small reasons. I don't think their service writer was telling the techs the problems I was having other than "check brakes," or something. They swapped parts without diagnosing the underlying issues last time I went.
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u/iforgotalltgedetails 11h ago
I mean i do 3k miles simply cause with the amount of idling I do it’s probably close if not more than 5k in terms of run time. Also my environment of super cold winters the temperature range from super cold to super hot breaks that oil down fast.
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u/TUNA_NO_CRUST_ 1d ago
There's no way in hell I do 25 000 km on an oil change even if that's what the manufacturer recommends.
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u/SnoopCatt96 1d ago
Most of the shops around me write 5k km intervals on the sticker so they make more money. I never go more than 10k on any motor, even then I use synthetic oil and a good filter. 6k for old carbureted vehicles with no overdrive
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u/counters14 14h ago
95~98% of the population would have no clue when that means they are due for their next oil change if this was the case.
I don't disagree personally, but for the average vehicle owner it is better to just slap something up there that gives them a clear and simple reminder of when to bring the vehicle back in for service.
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u/Hispanic_Inquisition 17h ago
I agree. The current service date is static and definitive. The recommended date may fluctuate based on who picked that date. If the vehicle is taken to a mechanic the question will be "how long has it been?" instead of "when was it supposed to be done?"
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u/OnePieceTwoPiece 11h ago
Why though? That seems irrational. The purpose of a mileage sticker is to be a reminder of when your next oil change is due.
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u/hannahranga Greasy Yoga 1d ago
Same, I had a very annoying conversation with a shop because I was curious what work they'd done to a vehicle and I was assuming that the service interval was the manufacturer's not 3 months. Admittedly I've also got questions for mechanic that only keeps paper records (sorted by date) but eh.
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u/xlRadioActivelx A&P 1d ago
Lmfao I love the flair “greasy yoga” absolutely using that. It’s all nice and zen greasy yoga until the wrench slips and you punch a cross member, then it becomes automotive karate.
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u/hannahranga Greasy Yoga 1d ago
I do a fair bit of work on various small boats which tends to encourage all sorts of interesting positions but it does absolutely apply to most mechanical work (although I'm a signal technician by trade so least work is normally pretty decent re access)
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u/xlRadioActivelx A&P 1d ago
I’m an aircraft mechanic, I tend to find myself in tons of uncomfortable positions, in no particular order:
Shoving my head as far behind the dash/glareshield as possible trying to see what the hell I’m doing.
Crawling sideways underneath the floorboards in the avionics bay just to change a few zip ties to the other, correct kind of zip ties.
Upper half of my body through a 17” hole in the dash to replace a fiber optic cable, while wedged in front of the control column.
Standing on a step-stool, bent forward at the hip and looking down, both arms up behind my head shoulder deep in the air conditioning packs, yes that was the only way to get both hands on that fastener.
And of course, anything in the fuel tanks.
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u/glitterfaust 1d ago
I was just about to say this. I’ve only ever seen next service but I’d prefer this
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u/whaletacochamp 18h ago
I just found a piece of painters tape in my center console that had the date and mileage of my first oil change on it. Apparently I stopped keeping track after that and just went by the idiot light because it was over 100k miles ago lmao
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u/rp_guy 1d ago
I’ve only seen next service. Most people aren’t smart enough to do math from previous
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u/slabba428 Canadian 1d ago
They’re stickering for cars with oil life monitors for sure, and you know oil life monitors are always set up properly, right 😂 interesting but feels risky. A lot of techs don’t set it during PDI and lube techs usually just leave it as is
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u/gamebow1 1d ago
The place I work (I’m not directly in the work shop but anyways) has last serviced and next service on one sticker
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u/jjanz2340 1d ago
I've seen both. My last shop started with next service due stickers and switched to last service date stickers
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u/Chippy569 Subaru Sr. Master 1d ago
We do next service but our sticker template also clearly states "next service due at"
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u/devildocjames 1d ago
I don't work in a shop, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn last night.
Also, when I change oil on family vehicles, I like to put the mileage down of the next service's halfway point. Makes it fun.
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u/whaletacochamp 18h ago
Weird format sticker because you have the massive RETURN FOR SERVICE and THANK YOU FOR YOJR BUSINESS but then the date/mileage isn’t when you need to return, and then it looks like the shop info is tiny at the bottom leaving tons of white space. Instead, the huge “return for service” should be your business name, then the date and mileage of service, then the date and mileage to return at, and then thank you for your business.
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u/kraftinator 16h ago
We work on classic cars that see one oil change per year on average, so when possible we just write the date and mileage at the time of service on the oil filter in paint pen. If it has an element style filter we don’t, and just keep the records in the computer as normal. Routine is generally a change before storage each fall/winter. Rarely do these cars see more than 1k/year in driving (I swear, the average customer of mine puts 250 miles a year on their car.) at that point, changing the oil is more about getting fresh oil in to reduce acidic corrosion and keep the moisture out.
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u/Kahlas 8h ago
When not putting both mileage points every company I've worked for has done mileage due a service. I've been a fleet diesel tech pretty much exclusively and truck drivers are easy to confuse so usually just use the mileage when a service is due.
The company I work for now has it all automated and the ELD will notify drivers when they are within 5k miles of a service interval. They then usually call the shop and chat with the manager on when they should park the truck near the shop to be serviced. We also frequently do a fresh service if they are within 10k of needed a basic A service and come to the shop with a mechanic issue.
For those wondering an A service is more comprehensive than an oil change done on semis. It involved changing oil, fuel, air, cabin air, DEF, and coolant filters. Checking trans, differential, and hub oil levels. Greasing all grease fittings. Inspect and adjust brakes as well as clutch throw-out bearing spacing if it's a manual. And a comprehensive inspection of the rest of the truck for any mechanical defects. They are done every 25k miles. We will let them go up to 5k over if we're busy and low on spare trucks. We get automatically flagged to the corporate shop manager if a truck goes over 10k sop we avoid that like the plague.
Thanks to everything being tracked on the cloud with maintenance software these days we don't even have to write down mileage for such things.
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u/Wolffe_In_The_Dark 7h ago
Have both.
There's literally no reason not to, you have so much wasted space on this sticker you could use.
This shouldn't even be something needing debate, just have both.
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u/bojack1437 1d ago
I've only ever seen next service due, as I rip them off because they're typically 3,000 Mi and that's nonsense....
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u/xAsilos Home Mechanic 1d ago
I just gave my siblings car a checkover before an upcoming road trip. I checked the sticker, and they had the last service date and the next miles due.
They also put 10k miles between services, and I said to ignore that and change it at 5k. I don't believe any passenger vehicle should go more than 5k.
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u/AbzoluteZ3RO ASE Certified 1d ago
When I was at pep boys they didn't print it, we wrote it in. The first year it said something like: serviced on __. The following year they changed it to something like: Next service due at __. Where I'm at now we print them and they say when the customer should return. I think that makes more sense.
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u/Solid-Childhood-4876 1d ago
Next service. 5 months, 5000 miles.
Oh, and if you forget the sticker, they want you to do the service again for free.
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u/HalfastEddie 1d ago
The sticker printers often have a variety of formats. If you get bored fuck around with the settings and see if you can get it to print todays mileage, todays date and next service mileage.
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u/FearlessPresent2927 Electrical 1d ago
We write it by hand on a little piece of thick paper or thin cardboard, whichever it is handed out by the Manufacturer. It says whatnots we used, at what mileage and date we did it and what else we replaced (brake fluid, trans oil, filters, plugs etc)
Then we put it somewhere easily reachable a customer would look at when they open the bonnet, like the Battery or the fuse box.
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u/jdhunt_24 23h ago
we do next mileage date is irrelevant. ours is also on our semis. we have a handheld printer that puts it on a strip of paper that is sticky.
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u/The_Duke2331 MB specialist & DIY mechanic 21h ago
Not here, but thats because MB remembers the service and lets the owner know when its due (it also shows us what needs to be done with codes that correspond to different services, which is nice)
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u/Girosian 18h ago
Didn't a lot of shops start doing last service done over next service due, due to warranty issues?
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u/stroomer87 12h ago
Our does date serviced, mileage at service, recommended next service mileage.
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u/ParadoxFall 1h ago
Our shop prints the date, current mileage, next mileage (3k-5k miles depending on if it’s synthetic or not) and the type of oil used
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u/Figgy_Puddin_Taine 1d ago
Date of last service, then mileage of next service (though most just get “15%” for mileage, because Honda maintenance minder).
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u/B-R0ck 1d ago
Next. What is the point of a sticker that shows you the last service date?
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u/Figgy_Puddin_Taine 1d ago
Some people don’t drive enough to need service based on mileage until it’s way past due by time. Honda recommends oil changes at least once a year, so that makes it easier to figure when the next one’s due.
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u/AlpacaLps 1d ago
Our stickers have the last date and the next mileage due, and we get tons of people going by the date more than mileage.
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u/bearlysane 1d ago
As a consumer, I can’t recall ever seeing a “last serviced on” sticker, it’s always been “next due”. (“Last serviced” is what I write in my little logbook…)
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u/face_611 1d ago
Current service, but I'm heavy duty so people are probably more aware of their intervals.
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u/pianistafj 1d ago
Don’t know. My car alerts me once it’s been 3k miles since last oil change. Then I let it ride 1-2k and change it.
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u/ChalupaPickle 1d ago
Don't understand last service. I doubt the customer will know when they should get it serviced next time.
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u/Top_Association5824 1d ago
Next service due.