Woman says Take 5 oil change business left her engine in the backseat

A Douglas County woman's car engine is sitting in her backseat.She says a bad oil change destroyed it.It happened at the Take 5 on Thornton Road.That's the same place consumer investigator Justin Gray was earlier this month for the same kind of complaint.And Justin is live there now with some new developments.

Yeah, George, we know the national brands, the brands like take five here, but if something goes wrong, it's not that recognizable brand there.Corporate office you're going to be dealing with.It's the local owner, the local franchise owner who you'll be fighting with over that money.What's in your backseat?

My engine, part of my car.

It doesn't take a mechanic to now see that Gian Johnston McLaughlin's 2019 Jeep Grand Cherokee is undriveable.

What they pulled out of my car looks like something from a sci -fi movie.

You can see the engine damage in these pictures and the piece of a towel mechanics found inside.Justin McLaughlin believes the damage started here at the Take 5 location on Thornton Road when she says an oil pan wasn't properly replaced during a routine oil change.

The manager told me that I forfeited the warranty that is on the contract of a oil change because I did not bring it back to them.

Earlier this month we introduced you to Regina Lee.The engine in her 2023 BMW X3 was destroyed after a Take 5 oil change at the same Douglas County location when the oil drain plugs were not properly reinstalled.

I just want them to take full accountability for their mistakes, that's all.

Even when you go with a big -name brand like Take 5, our Channel 2 Consumer Advisor Clark Howard says you actually will be dealing with the local franchise owner if things go wrong.

You're dependent on that individual store and that store owner to do right by you and the big company is like we wash our hands of it.

Since our last story, the owner of this Take 5 location emailed Regina Lee, quote, I look forward to settling the mess our mistake has put you in.But he also refused to increase the amount he would pay toward a new engine, telling Lee,he, quote, wasn't thrilled to do so when you decided it would be a smart move to go to the media and tarnish our business's reputation.That owner also emailed me that, quote, taking care of a guest that has a genuine concern or complaint is absolutely our responsibility.But there is a line between that and those that want to try and game the system.Johnston McLaughlin just needs transportation.

It's a big burden.I'm not able to go to work.I have no car.I've been Ubering.

The vice president of the Chinara Group that owns this location had told me he'd do an interview, but when I tried to set that up, he did not respond.Now, Clark says instead of going to these national chains, what he recommends is you develop a relationship with a local mechanic.That'll cost more probably for an everyday oil change, but then you have that relationship, that trust established, if something bigger goes wrong with your car.Reporting live in Douglas County, Justin Gray, Channel 2 Action News.