My 5-yr old company issued car Avanza, always gets complimented for looking and performing like a new one. The reason for such is because it has always been maintained by its dealer Toyota Pasongtamo branch. Being a chemist , I am quite meticulous and usually discuss issues I encounter with the unit with my service advisor thus the car is really in good shape.
Now 5 years after, the unit was sold to me and because it’s now mine, I have to schedule the preventive maintenance by myself unlike before wherein it is taken care by the company.
This time I decided to have it maintained by another service provider. I have asked around and my friends recommended a certain shop near our place whereas our company driver recommend Shell service center. Be reminded though that if your car is new and under warranty it is best to have the preventive maintenance done by the dealer.
My experience as a marketing professional wherein I create products and determine its price kicked-in and I felt that I have to canvass the service fee first before I choose the provider. Most of the service providers I’ve enquired with uses Shell Engine Oil, so I thought why not go direct to the supplier and avail of the service there.
I decided to have my car’s PMS done at Shell Station in Molino Boulevard, Bacoor, Cavite. This branch is a franchise and has 3 branches within the area, one being near our subdivision and this is where I’ve enquired and they recommended Molino Boulevard branch (the station near my place has no service center).
I was amazed that for change oil with 14-pt check up, it only cost me Php1,699 using a semi-synthetic oil. I wanted synthetic however they are out of stock so I opted for the semi instead. If I had the change oil and check-up in one of the service centres near my place using the same oil I could have been charged Php4,000+.
Still these fees are way way below what my dealer charge which is around Php8,000+. I will breakdown the cost of the maintenance below for your reference.
A day before I had the service, I was advised to go as early as 7am because this station is very busy, they’ve got a lot of customers! Which is true at 7:30am there are cars already availing of the service, glad I came first!
This is the station, looking from the inside, unfortunately I wasn’t able to take photo of the service bay, but I must say it’s squeaky-clean!
The lounge area is also inside the convenience store, it is small yet very cool and there is a TV provided to entertain you while waiting.
What surprised me is that this branch offers free snacks and I must say it is filling, you can choose from the meals on this menus card. You can choose from coffee or water for beverage and for meals either you pick Siopao, Pizza, Siomai, hotdog sandwich or mister donuts! Isn’t that great? I must commend this branch for taking the extra mile to wow their customer.
I even like their fabric flower on the table, such a refreshing thing in an early morning errand.
I know by now you are curious on the rates so I decide to take a photo of the product menu, this is the rate of change oil depending on your choice of oil and size of vehicle.
To give you a better picture I’ve broken down my expenses below which actually is a package worth Php1,699 inclusive of: 3 liters semi-synthetic engine oil, oil filter, flushing, labor and the standard 14-pt performance check.
I also had the tires rotated and the fan belt replaced as it needs replacement, the fan belt is quite expensive, anyhow it’s better spending more on maintenance rather than waste my monies on huge repair due to lack of maintenance.
Below are the service fee just in case you would need it.
The service lasted for an hour including the replacement of the fan belt.
After which I passed by an electrical shop because the car charger malfunctioned. The electrician had it checked apparently the fuse is busted, so he showed and thought me how to check all electrical fuses, where to get the reserve and how to replace the busted part. It was actually easy and I can do it myself next time. I paid Php 150 for the labour and the brief tutorial hahaha 😊
So in general I was satisfied with Shell’s service and am also delighted with the electrical tutorial. The lesson here is that being a female driver doesn’t exempt us from not learning the basics of car maintenance. On my part I do have knowledge on car maintenance because of my previous work and also am interested on stuffs like these. I hope the information I share are helpful and beneficial.
Thank you for reading and cheers!
Arlyn
Niceties Of Life 