On my last trip tp Costco I was in the car section and noticed that they had, if I recall correctly, 5l Chevron 'fully synthetic' oil for around the £10 mark (plus VAT). Although I'm not in the market for any oil I recalled previous threads here about the virtues, ingredients and costs of various oils and I couldn't help wondering if this was a very good deal or not.
Similarly, they had 5l of a well known alloy wheel cleaner (can't recall the name just now) for about £6.
Given the wide variation in the price of auto bits & pieces I'd be interested to hear whether these offers are any good.
I must say that everything I've bought for my car at Costco to date has been of excellent quality and far cheaper than I could find anywhere else.
|
|
Just got a feeling that the wheel cleaner may have been WonderWheels.
|
Wonder Wheels is fantastic stuff. Paint it on and the dirt literally runs off.
Very nasty stuff though. Avoid contact with the skin at all costs. It hurts!
--
Adam
|
I tried the chevron stuff from costco in two cars (911 & audi tdi) nothing like as good as mobile 1, or even the quality semi-synthetics imho. Engines ran less smoothly - I know thats subjective - but they did. Makro do castrol at very good prices from time to time, better bet I think.
I did some trawling round and apparently in the usa they can call it fully synthetic although it isnt the same as the mobile 1 type stuff. Synthetic as in processed rather than synthetic as in mobile 1.
The wonder wheels is a diff story, I got two bottles in a pack a couple of years ago and Im still only half way through the 1st (dont wash the cars as often as some though.)
|
The wonderwheels is also an excellent aluminium brightener.
You can use it on a cloth and rub it into the aluminium to remove grey/white/black surface. It's best if you degrease it first as the wonderwheels won't cut through grease. I used it on various castings. You need to rinse with soapy water afterwards to neutralise it.
|
|
Well, whilst I'm not going to be buying any oil (I still leave all that to the garage), I might well get some of the WW as it's so well recommended. Although the alloys on my car are about 20 months months old and still looking as good as new, the day'll come when they'll need a proper clean.
|
|
|
|
I recently got Costco Membership and bought a Bosch Silver car battery for my PUG (higher output). Although the Costco I went to (Ilford) didn't have much in terms of car products (I was hoping to scour their shelves for quality oil) I only really found the car battery to be excellent value (opposed to £60 I had been quoted) and was tempted to buy a can of the Wonder Wheels stuff in the 5L containers. In the end I didn't buy any as I didn't need it - but have added it to my list for future purchase...and I too wasn't convinced by the Chevron oil.
I am very happy with the battery though :)
-----
Im not plain stupid, just a special kind of stoopid.
|
I find a worn out toothbrush, suitably filed down to enter between the spokes , plus the cheapest most abrasive toothpaste I can find, cleans my wheels perfectly - costs very little, and is non acidic (!) so it is very envirnomentally freiendly.
Beats WW anyday.
The Costco fully synthetic probably is not but court cases allow anything to be called synthetic...
madf
|
The Chevron oil is actually in 4L bottles. I use it in my car, but can't tell any difference as its the only oil I have used in it. I plan to use mineral Castrol at the next change, but that is a different weight so wouldn't really be a proper comparison.
I have never seen Costco synthetic and would be suprised if there was one as Costco use the "Kirkland" label for their own-brand stuff.
I have seen the wonder wheels, but rather use the Kirkland brand cleaner/degreaser (in the household cleaner section)as that will clean wheels and can be used on lots of others things too. I have some diluted in a spray bottle and will sometimes spray the paintwork on my car before putting it through the carwash if its particularly cruddy or covered with dead bugs.
|
Someone's got their wires crossed here - I think Madf just meant the oil sold by Costco which was being referred to (i.e. Chevron), not oil actually branded 'Costco'.
As you say, Kirkland is their 'own' brand and all of the stuff I've bought with that name has been excellent.
|
|
|
|
Yep - agree about the batteries. Some months ago I got a high output Bosch battery for Mrs V's car for £30 incl. VAT. Costco don't tend to have a vast range of anything but periodically have product lines which are very good but short lived so it pays to go regularly.
I found the car mats to be very good indeed - £16 for a set of 4 IIRC and better quality than I've found elsewhere. Also they do an excellent telescopic brush cleaning kit for about £15 with various accessories. I use mine regularly and it makes cleaning the MPV much easier than using a sponge.
|
|
|
|
