Nurse Chevrolet Cadillac in Whitby, ON,
has opened a new Envirolube quick oil-
change facility that is designed not just to compete with the independents but to provide a superior service for customers.
Beyond just expanded operating hours – 7AM-to-9PM, Monday-through- Thursday; 7AM-to-6PM, Friday; 8AM-to-5PM Saturday – the facility offers a complete service, including interior cleaning and a car wash, in 29 minutes or less. No appointment is needed and it all costs just $49 for a basic oil change. (More for premium or synthetic oils.)
Dealer principal Mary Nurse, says the goal of
the operation is to respect both the environment
and the time of her customers.
Key to the environmental aspect is the Envirolube system – essentially a two-vehicle-long pit, formed from a gel-
coated composite material – that does not absorb any spilled oil or vehicle drippings. The Nurse installation, which features Wakefield (Castrol) lubricants, is the first of its kind in Canada.
“All the elements that fall down there go into a sump system,” says Jason Steele of Integrated Lube Services, the system’s provider. Grated walkways in the pit prevent workers from standing in waste and tracking it outside, and waste that does accumulate below the grate is automatically pumped into a remote waste tank.
There’s much more to the operation than just an oil-change, however. It begins with electronic scanning of the vehicle’s VIN when it enters the shop. Then floor mats are removed and cleaned in an automatic mat washer while the interior is vacuumed.
The vehicle is then driven onto a Hunter 400 suspension/brake testing pad that determine if there is any suspension misalignment or braking problem. At that point, a printout is generated for the customer and, if there are problems that need further attention the vehicle can be diverted into the service shop for further assessment.
If no problems are found, it goes straight ahead into the lube bay. When the oil change and related services are complete, it doubles back through an automatic car wash and is returned to the customer – who has been waiting in a clean, bright, dedicated waiting room complete with coffee service and newspapers.
While the facility has been
operational since mid-January, it was officially opened at a press event on February 5.
