Speedco

[Gary.Jones]

I have been told by their workers that first thing in the morning is the best time to go and their slowest time of the day. I think my local shop in Shreveport right beside I-20 opens at 7 or 8 and that is when I try to be there. Has worked well for past 2 oil / lube visits.

Gary

[UncleJamie]

Had mine serviced at the Houston I-10 location night before last. Rolled up about 6 pm and there were two empty bays. (Lucked out) They had me pull in the exit since our engines are in the rear and their bays are set up for 18 wheelers with engines in the front. Changed oil / lubed chassis took a little over an hour. They checked all fluids and had me listen to the click of the torque wrench as they tightened the oil drain plug, then showed me verification of full on the dipstick. Overall I was impressed. Total cost after tax was 307.

[JohnBoyToo]

I too had a bad experience at the I-20 Dallas location...

I think I got there too late in the day (3PM) and they didn't feel like working...
4 empty bays and they made me wait on the one small box truck to leave, then when I got in there, they looked around like a bunch of dopes asking me where the dipstick and filter was !?!

I chose to listen to their hints of incompetence and left...

[Gary.Jones]

The locations I have visited have been nothing but highly professional. The only complaint that I have ever had is that occassionally they dont have all the filters that I need on this coach, but I always carry spares and can provide them if needed in that case. They appear to be quite careful, and very strict about me observing them do certain things (torque the oil filter bolt) and verify oil level when done. Have no complaints at all, and for half the cost of major truck repair centers, I will be happy to continue to patronize.

Gary

[Matt D]

Gary, our first service was at the Shreveport location, right st opening and they were great.

-Matt

[EVsCoach]

Personally, IMHO, I prefer Cummins as they also ensure any updates or other special needs can/are attended to, i.e. campaigns, ECM calibrations etc. plus lube.

[Victory Blue]

Originally Posted by EVsCoach

Personally, IMHO, I prefer Cummins as they also ensure any updates or other special needs can/are attended to, i.e. campaigns, ECM calibrations etc. plus lube.

I have a hard copy quote for an oil and filter change from Cummins Midsouth here in Memphis. $810. Of that number $529 is labor; 3.5 hours.

The Cummins folks were very nice, but they actually said "you probably don't want to have your oil changed here; we're several hundred dollars more than other places you can go". I asked for the quote so I'd have a real number to compare to other places. Their number is a "we don't want to do that kind of work" number.

I'll be going to Speedco in Effingham, IL in April on the way to Homecoming.

[brobox]

Originally Posted by EVsCoach

Personally, IMHO, I prefer Cummins as they also ensure any updates or other special needs can/are attended to, i.e. campaigns, ECM calibrations etc. plus lube.

Updates are no charge during the 5 year warranty. No need to pay $650. + for that service.

When I took mine to Cummins in Ocala, at no charge, they also checked for any Spartan Campaigns. I was told that can only be done at a Cummins Coach Care. I thought that was good information. Being it was a Coach Care, it was 4 PM they invited me to plug in and spend the night.

[Gary.Jones]

On the rank order list of desirable places to have the coach worked on for Cummins/Spartan stuff, number one on that list is a Cummins Coach Care facility. If it is truly a CoachCare facility, then they have evening power and usually ability to stay over (although strangely when I had my first radiator replaced at the Houston Coach Care facility..... they let Dee and me stay in the coach 3 days or so during the week, but when it got to Friday they told us we could not stay over during the weekend.... we nicely talked to the manager about why it made little sense to us that if we were trustworthy to be in their yard 3 nights during the week all night, that we would not be trustworthy to be there over the weekend, and the look on his face indicated that he had never thought that one through fully before. Anyhow, we were very happy with what they did. Hourly charge was pretty steep (maybe $150 but I wasn't paying for it) and it was nice to have the people most involved doing the work. Also, they were one of the few places that kept the coach connected to 50A service the entire time it was in one of their service bays......

If it doesnt say "CoachCare" on the building, it isn't. One more thing, I think these centers used to be privately owned franchises of Cummins, but I was told that Cummins Corporate was buying out all of their CoachCare facilities nationwide and they would all be corporate owned..... not sure if that is true, but that is what we were told when we were last there.

Gary

[docj]

Originally Posted by vsheetz

It can vary widely. I usually have been mid day in a Saturday. About one hour wait average I would say.

Are you parked while waiting or in a "Conga line" like at Blue Beacon? I assume there would be nothing preventing me from running my generator while waiting?

[Steve Ownby]

Originally Posted by docj

Are you parked while waiting or in a "Conga line" like at Blue Beacon? I assume there would be nothing preventing me from running my generator while waiting?

When you arrive at Speedco, park out of the way & go inside to tell the office what service you need, what engine you have and brand of oil & filters. I believe their standard are Baldwin & Shell Rotella 15/40. They usually have Fleetguard and I believe Cat branded.

At most locations they will have you pull into the exit for service since they are set up for front engine trucks.

I like to arrive just before opening and it's quick in & out. Last time I over nighted at a Flying J at the same exit. I'm guessing that you could over night in the Speedco lot if you arrive after close.

[brobox]

Originally Posted by Steve Ownby

I'm guessing that you could over night in the Speedco lot if you arrive after close.

I have a good friend that is an owner/operator of his own truck. That is just what he does. Pulls in around midnight, nice and quiet and he is in and out while having his wake up coffee.

[vito.a]

I think Speedco is the greatest! They have always been very professional. I'm a hands on type and they invite me into the pit and show me everything and explain what they are doing. There charges are always reasonable. I just wish we had a location here in southern California.