Ever since Jiffy Lube put over 7 quarts of oil in my 940 I've avoided the "El Cheapo" places where the help really doesn't appear to care about their work.

The best thing about the dealer is that he will use Volvo/MANN oil filters. There are only 3 oil filters out there that I would use on my car. The Volvo oil filter, Mobil 1's oil filter, and the Purolator Pure One oil filter all do a good job of filtering oil. MANN is the name of the company that makes the Volvo oil filters, so Mann and Volvo filters are the same thing. Some companies have a huge advertising budget, but make very poor oil filters.

I usually take mine to the dealer since he’s close to where I work. I have also gone to “Billy-Bob's Oil Shack” and other places, but I always bring an oil filter and crush washer with me when I go there. They never give me a break for bringing my own oil filter, but my peace of mind is worth it. You can buy oil filters and crush washers from the dealer or buy a few at a time from IPD or one of the other mail order companies.

If you are interested in working on your car, oil changes are a great place to start.

Final thought: No matter where I go, I always ask for and use Synthetic oil if it is available. (usually a few bucks more for synthetic) Turbo engines prefer the synthetic....but that’s another story.

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Nathan Valles, Black 855R, Tint

The best is to do it yourself. Failing that, if your tire change place has good reputation and you feel good about them, then you can probably trust them. Never, ever, ever go to one of those el cheapo places. They hire fools at min wage, with no brains, that will likely over tighten drain plug and oil filter and underfill crankcase.

I was hard pressed for time once and took a car to one of those places and I couldn't take off the oil filter even with an oil filter wrench - I had to put a hole in the filter and insert a small bar to get leverage (FYI oil filters should be 'hand tight' and not need any tool to remove). The drain plug was also too tight and was damaged and a problem from then on. Or my friend had the problem they didn't tighten the drain plug and he lost oil on the parkway.

If possible get some 'crush' washers from a dealer to give your oil changer. On Volvos that is one thing that should be changed when drain plug removed. It is made of soft material and lets you tighten the drain plug without damage to the plug or oil pan.