Any place in Houston to get a "reasonably priced" oil change?

[jxsanche]

Hi All!!

Went to Momentum BMW down in 59 and the beltway to get an unscheduled oil change (I'm one of those that can't bear keeping the same oil for 15000 miles).

Anyhow, having read on many other threads that people get ripped off for about $100 or so I had made up my mind to pay that kind of money anyway.

To my surprise Momentum was asking over 300!!!!! (yes, "over three hundred bucks" is what the service advisor said).

Now that's just plain wrong. I've never peeled off a dealership so quickly as today.

Has anybody in Houston taken the car for an oil change where the rip off charges are more "reasonable"?

Many thanks,
Julian

[Dave 330i]

I'll do it for $100. :rofl: Which model do you have? It takes me about 15 minutes to change the oil/filter. Mobil 1 and OEM filter. I'm in the Clear Lake/Friendswood area.

[gokartmozart]

HI Jxsanche. Im in SW Houston (Sugar Land), and Momentum SW is my closest dealer.

Im not surprised by the price. If you want a reasonable OC, try German Texas Autohaus (Edloe, just north of the Richmond intersection). t-g-a.com for contact info. They will give a quote over the phone, I would guess. They are great in service and a godsend to us in the SW area when we need good, honest mech. work done.

I would also say that I would be pleased to assist you with showing you how very easy and quickly OCs can be with an oil extractor. Just get the filter and oil from dealer and swing by. I do all my non-free OCs. I will even torque the top of the oil canister accurately. Will dispose of old oil for a cold Guinness draught! :drink:

PS> Dave is cheap at $100. And he needs the money too! :D

[TLudwig]

HI Jxsanche. Im in SW Houston (Sugar Land), and Momentum SW is my closest dealer.

Im not surprised by the price. If you want a reasonable OC, try German Texas Autohaus (Edloe, just north of the Richmond intersection). t-g-a.com for contact info. They will give a quote over the phone, I would guess. They are great in service and a godsend to us in the SW area when we need good, honest mech. work done.

I would also say that I would be pleased to assist you with showing you how very easy and quickly OCs can be with an oil extractor. Just get the filter and oil from dealer and swing by. I do all my non-free OCs. I will even torque the top of the oil canister accurately. Will dispose of old oil for a cold Guinness draught! :drink:

PS> Dave is cheap at $100. And he needs the money too! :D

Lol. AIG options FTL!

[BMFive]

HI Jxsanche. Im in SW Houston (Sugar Land), and Momentum SW is my closest dealer.

Im not surprised by the price. If you want a reasonable OC, try German Texas Autohaus (Edloe, just north of the Richmond intersection). t-g-a.com for contact info. They will give a quote over the phone, I would guess. They are great in service and a godsend to us in the SW area when we need good, honest mech. work done.

I would also say that I would be pleased to assist you with showing you how very easy and quickly OCs can be with an oil extractor. Just get the filter and oil from dealer and swing by. I do all my non-free OCs. I will even torque the top of the oil canister accurately. Will dispose of old oil for a cold Guinness draught! :drink:

PS> Dave is cheap at $100. And he needs the money too! :D

I second TxGerman Autohaus. Thats where I've had my work done. Great place.

[gokartmozart]

Last week I sent my son over with the Z4 he has now and they not only charged us less than the estimate by 1/3, but when I called to give the cashier my CC details, she sent a bottle of wine with my son.

The service manager is a Porsche-freak, but most of their business is BMWs.

[Din]

i had my oil changed at BEAMER on richmond near fondern once. They charged 100$. Might want to check with them..

[Allzwell]

Wow - good thread. This is the first that I have heard of Tx German Autohaus. Will have to look them up as I only have 5k left before the freebies expire

[Dave 330i]

Last week I sent my son over with the Z4 he has now and they not only charged us less than the estimate by 1/3, but when I called to give the cashier my CC details, she sent a bottle of wine with my son.

The service manager is a Porsche-freak, but most of their business is BMWs.
I assume the estimate was a ballpark figure? I think most places charge more than what I considered fair. Sometimes, it's cheaper to sell the car as is than to pay the rediculous repair prices. Any shop that charges $300 for an oil change is highway robbery. At most, it's a 10-15 minute job for an experienced tech. The shops make more than doctors.

[ianthegreat]

I took mine to Domestic Auto Experts or something like that. I called to make sure they can do an oil chance on a 335i and manager says "Of course we can do that model." They also quoted me the lowest ($75, for Mobile 1) so I thought, what the hell lets do it.

I arrive, give them the car, and ask if I can watch. I don't want any mishaps. I watch guy pop the hood and literally run around for 20 minutes confused. I asked him what the problem was and he said he couldn't find the dipstick. I almost started laughing, not because of the question, but because of the response earlier the phone saying SURE WE WORK ON THAT MODEL. They had all the techs including the manager trying to figure out what to do.

Long story short, they didn't have a clue. I had to get on my laptop (luckily they had wireless internet) and figure exactly how much oil it needed.

Anyways, for me having to wait so long and them not having a clue, the manager took another $15 off the price and told me next time it would probably be over $120, confirming the fact he lied to me on the phone. ;o

Thought it was worth a post.

[Dave 330i]

I took mine to Domestic Auto Experts or something like that. I called to make sure they can do an oil chance on a 335i and manager says "Of course we can do that model." They also quoted me the lowest ($75, for Mobile 1) so I thought, what the hell lets do it.

I arrive, give them the car, and ask if I can watch. I don't want any mishaps. I watch guy pop the hood and literally run around for 20 minutes confused. I asked him what the problem was and he said he couldn't find the dipstick. I almost started laughing, not because of the question, but because of the response earlier the phone saying SURE WE WORK ON THAT MODEL. They had all the techs including the manager trying to figure out what to do.

Long story short, they didn't have a clue. I had to get on my laptop (luckily they had wireless internet) and figure exactly how much oil it needed.

Anyways, for me having to wait so long and them not having a clue, the manager took another $15 off the price and told me next time it would probably be over $120, confirming the fact he lied to me on the phone. ;o Thought it was worth a post.

:rofl: The name of the business says it all. Why don't you try WalMart next time?

[ianthegreat]

:rofl: The name of the business says it all. Why don't you try WalMart next time?

Should rename to Import Auto Retards.

[Tawni~]

First I have to say having been a BMW owner for more than ten years and in Texas for two...this place is a WEALTH of helpful information. I will try the place in Richmond at some point. Great photo up there with the skyline. (fwiw walmart won't touch a bmw and yes I went there in desperation cause I could watch) In DC I was charged as much as 179.00 for my BMW oil change and some ridiculous price for the oil in my jeep that was almost as much...the reasoning was it was a 4X4...needless to say I started changing my own again.

That said...what weight of oil should be used in Texas heat? I always use Mobil 1 for more than 20 years. Different places tell me different weights have heard everything from 0-15 and 30-40. I have a z3 M model roadster 1998.

Oh yeah and I won't let Momentum touch my car again. That was where it was sent when some idiot hit three cars and totalled them and messed up my rear bumper...the two weeks turned into four and had to return it three times. First time there were scratches in the paint and second time the trunk was soaked because they "forgot" to put the seal around the brake light on the trunk and third time to get back my hmm airpump that is in the back compartment...it was under someone's desk.

[Allzwell]

Momentum are the retards in town. My 7 was there for a month to replace rotors and pads. They did give me a swell Kia minivan to drive though.

[650 Ryder]

I don't know guys, Momentum's service as been great for me. I've been going there since 1999. I guess my experience is somewhat different since I have a tech I use exclusively on my whips. Now, if you want to talk badazz service, don't ever try to buy a car from these fools. There are 1 or 2 guys on the sales floor that are good, but the rest are hella questionable.......Phil

[Dave 330i]

I don't know guys, Momentum's service as been great for me. I've been going there since 1999. I guess my experience is somewhat different since I have a tech I use exclusively on my whips. Now, if you want to talk badazz service, don't ever try to buy a car from these fools. There are 1 or 2 guys on the sales floor that are good, but the rest are hella questionable.......Phil
How many sales guys do you deal with when you're buying a car?

[650 Ryder]

How many sales guys do you deal with when you're buying a car?

You try to deal with one at a time. I purchased 3 different vehicles from Momentum but found it difficulf to purchase anymore beyond that. The first guy turned out to be a jerk after my first purchase with him. The secound guy no longer worked there when it was time for number 3. Number 3 no longer worked there when it was time for number 4 and 5. I couldn't imagine buying another vehicle from them. They are of the thought...pay sticker or move out of the next buyers way. My opinion and my opinion only....BMW and Mini sales suck at Momentum. Funny thing happened yesterday, I was speaking with a ///M6 owner who had that same type of experience with them. Long story short, he flew to Arkansas to buy his car.......Phil

[Allzwell]

WOW .. I've had the opposite experience.
I bought a CPO 7 series and it was probably the smoothest transaction that I have ever had and the sales person is still there and has been very helpful since the sale. Now, "Service" let's see they're on the 4th Service Manager in 3 years!! I went up the line when they had my car for one month to change brakes and could not get the dealership GM to return my calls. Overall Momentum is Pitiful in my book

[gokartmozart]

I assume the estimate was a ballpark figure? I think most places charge more than what I considered fair.

Actually the estimate was from another European shop, which wanted to replace a good radiator, thus the lower amount and after a month all is still working well. :thumbup: TGA checked the radiator and found it fine, only a crack in the plastic overflow reservoir.

[uncle ken]

That said...what weight of oil should be used in Texas heat? I always use Mobil 1 for more than 20 years. Different places tell me different weights have heard everything from 0-15 and 30-40. I have a z3 M model roadster 1998.

Oil questions will get you a lot of different answers, it's like asking which is the best religion. That said, don't use 0-15. The thin stuff is designed for lower emissions as the catalytic converters warm up more rapidly, and also to enable easier starts in cold climates. My favorite is 10-40 in the south Texas heat. At least 10 if your car is a 1998.

Now I will get shot down. :-))

[gokartmozart]

Oil questions will get you a lot of different answers, it's like asking which is the best religion. That said, don't use 0-15. The thin stuff is designed for lower emissions as the catalytic converters warm up more rapidly, and also to enable easier starts in cold climates. My favorite is 10-40 in the south Texas heat. At least 10 if your car is a 1998.

Now I will get shot down. :-))


Yeah, a Pennzoil Platinum or Redline or Royal Purple brand 10W-40 should be fine. Best of all, keep up the 5k mile oil change, with a German filter, like Mann or Mahle, changed also.

Oh, BTW, saw your curb scrape on Hwy 90. Looks nasty... :cry: Hope the wheel, tire issues went fine for you. See ya! -David

[mlinkibikr]

Anyone had any experience with Eurocar-Werk in Bellaire?

I'm probably going to do the mid service oil changes myself, but thought that I might call them and just see what they get.

Dave.

[Dave 330i]

There are too many David and Dave festers in Houston. Since I'm the oldest, you guys need to change your names. :eek: