In a Lubricants World interview, the president of Jiffy Lube International takes on the issue of extended drain intervals.
Mark Graham is president of Jiffy Lube International, the foremost fast lube chain owned by Pennzoil-Quaker State (PQS), the number one engine oil marketer and now owned by Shell Oil. He is also the chairman of the board for the Automotive Aftermarket Industry Association (AAIA), the premier representative for the automotive aftermarket. In a September 2001 Lubricants World interview, Graham took on the issue of extended drain intervals, revealing exactly why he opposes them.
When asked what issues the AAIA is currently dealing with, Graham replied, “There is a significant issue out there that affects anybody that utilizes lubricants, and that is extended drains. The fact that consumers today have been creating a larger spread in between their oil changes has had a significant effect on anybody in the oil change business. Everything that we can do to bring the oil change interval back into a logistical time-frame, the better off we are.”
Graham goes on to explain that OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) have “confused” the issue by telling people that 6,000 to 7,500-mile intervals are fine as long as they are not “severe service” drivers. In his opinion, consumers are confused over what makes a “severe service” driver. He also claims that “past a certain mileage [between oil changes], emissions increase, gas mileage decreases and your engine suffers.”
Being the president of a company which thrives on consumers frequently changing their oil, Graham makes no mention of higher quality synthetic lubricants or high end oil filters, which allow longer drain intervals to be attained. In case there is any doubt as to why Graham believes extended drains are such a problem, he tells us. “At (PQS) we use a number internally that if we [shorten the drain interval] by 100 miles [for each car serviced], it would mean an additional $20 million in revenue for the company.” Proclaims Graham. “The revenue benefits are equally significant for everybody else. That’s a lot of money. Jiffy Lube also estimates that if we increased one car a day [per shop] in our system, that’s $33 million in revenue. This is another economic that travels across to anybody that does oil changes.
“Looking at all this from another angle, if we could move our customers to get one more oil change per year, it’s worth $294 million for the oil change alone, and $441 million in revenue, when you include the ancillary products and services customers typically buy along with the oil change.”
It doesn’t get more blatant than this. Graham openly admits that the bottom line is profits. The shorter the drain interval, the more money Jiffy Lube and Pennzoil-Quaker State make.
“We need to educate consumers on reducing the extended drain, and then we [Jiffy Lube] certainly want to out-market our competitors,” says Graham. “But before we do that, we have to get into the heads of the consumers that a 5,000- or 6,000-, 7,000-mile oil change is not OK, and we need to tell them why. And we need to get them to understand that normal vs. severe really means.”
All consumers would have to do is read the words printed straight from Graham’s own mouth to learn why an extended drain interval “is not OK.” It is not OK because he perceives extended drains take money away from Pennzoil-Quaker State and Jiffy Lube.
AMSOIL is dedicated to providing the very best synthetic motor oil on the market. Due to careful selection of superior quality synthetic base stocks and additives, AMSOIL motor oils dramatically outperform competing conventional and synthetic motor oils, and they may be used for drain intervals of up to 35,000 miles, even under “severe service” conditions.
In addition, fast lube businesses need not fear extended drain intervals. In fact, by adopting the AMSOIL Synthetic XL Mile Oil Change Program, they can increase their profits, while seeing customers less. AMSOIL Synthetic XL Motor Oils are premium products that command premium prices. Consumers expect to pay more for premium products, and the retail profit margins allow oil change specialists to charge more.
In addition, busy quick lubes that are currently working at capacity can potentially service twice as many customers since they only need to see them half as often to make the same or greater profit.
The chart below shows the estimated profits to AMSOIL Synthetic XL Motor Oil change accounts.
In a Lubricants World interview, the president of Jiffy Lube International takes on the issue of extended drain intervals.
