Random Thought Thread

Must be a Pawnee chicken...

pawnee-sharitarish-bird-king.jpg
 
Moorik said:
Oh man, literally several times a day I hear this from customers in our shop:

“Ooooh, this is 10 here?! I saw it online for 5.”

Honestly, I don’t even try to be cheap with my prices.

But seriously — how do people not smell something fishy when they hear a price that’s literally HALF for the exact same item?

10–20% difference? Sure, I can understand that.

But twice cheaper or even more? Dude… that’s Chinese knock-off garbage or some AliExpress (china) drop-shipping scam, come on.
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…or… one dealer is sticking it to me with no lube (for engine lube 😂).

Toyota regularly has a chainwide 25% off Toyota Parts Sale, BUT the pre-discount prices are NOT the same at different Toyota dealers.

I’ve taken to ordering from Fred Anderson Toyota in NC, because they generally have the best total price (free shipping with $75+, and somehow, they always add other discounts, so the total winds up MORE than 25% off. Don’t ask me how that works. It’s happened with every order so far).

Mentioned it before, but I now have a stash of the full synthetic 0w16 Toyota oil (UOAs and VOAs confirm it’s actually one of the best 0w16 formulations available. Funny thing, the ‘complementary Toyota oil changes at the dealer don’t use it. They use whatever cheaper bulk 0w16 oil they can source), and the filters. Prices shipped to my door came to $4.xx/qt and $2.xx per filter from Fred Anderson 😮.

*** I asked my local dealership how much THEY sold the Toyota 0w16 for. They said $8.xx/qt. They wouldn’t even price match the $6.xx everyday price Fred Anderson had it on their website for. OK, thanks. I’m going to order it from the place that ships it to my door for nearly half price.

With the Rhino Ramps Max, and the Valvomax quick drain valve, I can actually do my own oil changes faster than the Quick Change drive-in oil change places, while saving a bunch of money, knowing that it’s done right, and using the top oil available, with OEM filters from a Toyota dealership, so I don’t have to worry about knockoffs.

***noticed a weird typo. Edited to correct; various Used Oil Analysis and Virgin Oil Analysis have shown that the Toyota 0w16 oil is actually one of the best 0w16 oils available (still unsure which claim is correct; some say it’s made by Idemitsu. Some say that it’s a proprietary blend, but made/blended for Toyota by Mobil1).
 
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bluemax_1 said:
…or… one dealer is sticking it to me with no lube (for engine lube 😂).

Toyota regularly has a chainwide 25% off Toyota Parts Sale, BUT the pre-discount prices are NOT the same at different Toyota dealers.

I’ve taken to ordering from Fred Anderson Toyota in NC, because they generally have the best total price (free shipping with $75+, and somehow, they always add other discounts, so the total winds up MORE than 25% off. Don’t ask me how that works. It’s happened with every order so far).

Mentioned it before, but I now have a stash of the full synthetic 0w16 Toyota oil (UOAs and VOAs confirm it’s not be of the best 0w16 formulations available. Funny thing, the ‘complementary Toyota oil changes at the dealer don’t use it. They use whatever cheaper bulk 0w16 oil they can source), and the filters. Prices shipped to my door came to $4.xx/qt and $2.xx per filter from Fred Anderson 😮.

With the Rhino Ramps Max, and the Valvomax quick drain valve, I can actually do my own oil changes faster than the Quick Change drive-in oil change places, while saving a bunch of money, knowing that it’s done right, and using the top oil available, with OEM filters from a Toyota dealership, so I don’t have to worry about knockoffs.
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I’ve got 0W-30 oil in right now too.
Damn, where did all those oils go that felt like they were just pumped straight out of the ground — pitch-black, thick and heavy?

I don’t know why, but I really don’t like all these trendy low-viscosity oils. 0W-16, 0W-30… they’re yellowish, almost like olive oil. I much preferred the brutal, old-school ones that looked like the nasty sludge the orcs were born from in Lord of the Rings.

Oh right… ecology, huh? 😏
 
Moorik said:
I’ve got 0W-30 oil in right now too.
Damn, where did all those oils go that felt like they were just pumped straight out of the ground — pitch-black, thick and heavy?

I don’t know why, but I really don’t like all these trendy low-viscosity oils. 0W-16, 0W-30… they’re yellowish, almost like olive oil. I much preferred the brutal, old-school ones that looked like the nasty sludge the orcs were born from in Lord of the Rings.

Oh right… ecology, huh? 😏
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Considering that there are a lot of Toyotas running around with 300,000+ to 500,000+ miles on 0w16, they seem to have some idea of what they’re doing.

I’ve put 190,000 on mine, and the engine still purrs like a kitten, and has zero oil consumption. Dipstick level stays consistent through the 5,000 mile OCIs I run. Never needed to add oil between OCIs.

I figure at $22-$25 per oil change, doing it myself, vs the $1xx the dealership charges, AND the fact that I’ve timed myself (yeah, I’m that nerdy), and can do the oil change in 20 minutes from grabbing the ramps, to putting away the tools (I use a Milwaukee M12 ratchet to zip off the 4 10mm screws (I still have the socket 😮😂) that hold the splash shield in place. The Valvomax drain valve needs no tools) and pouring the drained oil into the 5 gallon used oil Hedpack vs making an appointment and eating up at least an hour at the dealer, I’m waaayyyyyy ahead.
 
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