An elderly friend has a 2013 Mazda CX9, 162,000 miles, runs great. He takes care of it.
A whole set of new tires was purchased a month ago from the local Wheel Works franchise, along with a road hazard policy.
He took his car to Wheel Works to have a roofing nail removed from his left rear tire. They said the nail, although in the tread, was too close to the sidewall to patch. Since he had a road hazard policy, they pro-rated the tire and sold him a new one at the pro-rated price. This all seemed reasonable.
But, they also wanted to sell him an oil change, which he didn't need at the time. (I change his oil when needed.)
Here's why I'm writing...
They also told him that they checked the acidity of his cooling fluid, and said it was so acetic that it should be changed or it would eat away at the seals/gaskets in the cooling system. The cost would be $168. He refused and asked me what I thought.
I don't have an opinion, but I've never changed cooling fluid even in much older cars. Should he change the cooling fluid? Should I believe this?
(An aside...his check engine light went on two days ago. I ran a diagnostic, which showed he needs to replace the O2 sensor. Funny that Wheel Works never said a word about this.)
Thanks.