Operators Choose Easiest, Most Difficult Vehicles to Service
Continued

MOST DIFFICULT VEHICLES TO SERVICE
1. Toyota Tundra/Sequoia
2. Volkswagen Passat
3. Volkswagen Touareg
4. Mini Cooper
5. Volkswagen Jetta/New Beetle
6. Hummer H3
7. Lexus RX

Curious as we are, we wanted to know what types of vehicles most often make that list. Not surprisingly, exotic makes top the list, but the specific vehicle most often noted was, for the second year in a row, the Volkswagen Eurovan.

Other vehicles often refused service at some lube shops include the Mini Cooper, Volkswagen Passat, Audi A8 and Smart fortwo.

Brands: Easy, Difficult and Won’t Touch
When it comes to the overall brands most often identified as easy or difficult to service, it should come as no surprise that those brands with vehicles commonly identified as easy or difficult to service should lead the pack. Which is why in the “easy to service” category, Chevrolet and Honda tied for overall brand most identified with this distinction. Other brands noted as easy to service were Dodge, Toyota and Ford.

On the flip side, with three of the seven vehicles most commonly identified as most difficult to service, as well as the vehicle most commonly refused service, it should come as no surprise that Volkswagen leads the pack when it comes to manufacturing difficult-to-service vehicles. Other brands noted as difficult to service were Toyota (due mainly to the difficulty in servicing the Tundra/Sequoia), Audi, Mercedes-Benz and Lexus (ditto the RX SUVs).

Further, Volkswagen is also the brand most commonly identified with vehicles that are refused service at some lube shops, followed by Porsche, Mercedes-Benz, Audi and BMW.

For the most part, the operators who decline to service these vehicles tell us they do so based on the expense and difficulty in finding parts and filters to maintain these vehicles. (And is it just coincidence that all five makes are German?) It’s no surprise that vehicles are becoming more and more complex, making them more and more difficult to service. Cartridge oil filters, skid plates, underbody aerodynamic skirts, “boxed” air filters and oil filters wedged into difficult locations are all on the increase, meaning lube shops will find more and more vehicles falling into the “difficult” service category.

Of course, the silver lining to that gray cloud is that fewer and fewer drivers will attempt such complex oil changes, a situation that could drive more customers into fast lube bays.

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