Jul 3, 2026
Jihan Johnston-McGlotten pulled into a Take 5 Oil Change location in Douglas County, Georgia, for routine maintenance. She left, and then her 2019 Jeep Grand Cherokee didn’t drive much farther.
The engine damage that followed was severe, and mechanics described a piece of a towel found inside the engine. “What they pulled out of my car looks like something from a sci-fi movie,” Johnston-McGlotten told WSB-TV Atlanta. The engine was left sitting in the backseat of her car.
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She believes the damage began when an oil pan wasn’t properly replaced during her oil change. When she sought compensation from the company, she said the response left her stunned: “The manager told me that I forfeited the warranty that is on the contract of an oil change because I did not bring (the vehicle) back to them.”
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Her case is the second to emerge from the same Douglas County Take 5 location within a month. Regina Lee said her 2023 BMW X3’s engine was destroyed at the same shop after oil drain plugs weren’t reinstalled correctly. “I just want them to take full accountability for their mistakes, that’s all,” Lee told the station.
The owner of the Thornton Road location, Shehzaan Chunara, emailed Lee saying he “look(ed) forward to settling the mess our mistake has put you in” — but also declined to increase the amount he would contribute toward a replacement engine.
In a separate email to Channel 2’s consumer investigator Justin Gray, Chunara wrote: “Taking care of a guest that has a genuine concern or complaint is absolutely our responsibility, but there is a line between that and those that want to try and game the system.”
Chunara did not immediately respond to Moneywise’s request for comment.
A pattern that goes beyond one location
What’s happening in Douglas County isn’t an anomaly. A 2024 investigation by Action News Jax found multiple lawsuits against Take 5 in Texas, Florida and other states alleging similar engine destruction — including a case where a driver’s Dodge Charger engine was destroyed after oil was drained but never replaced. A driver’s Volvo was out of commission for more than six months. Another needed a $13,000 engine replacement.
The same investigation found a City of Jacksonville Office of Inspector General report documenting 45 complaints from police officers attributing vehicle problems to Take 5’s work over a two-year period. As of that investigation, Take 5 held an F rating with the Better Business Bureau, which had logged more than 700 complaints in three years.
Take 5 issued a statement at the time: “Our oil changes conform to vehicle manufacturers’ warranties and help ensure long engine life. Our services are backed by a 30-day or 1,000-mile warranty, subject to customers adhering to warranty conditions. Even in instances where warranties have expired or are voided by a customer, we make every effort to achieve a satisfactory outcome.”
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The franchise structure problem
Consumer advisor Clark Howard said the challenge for customers at national chains like Take 5 is structural. When something goes wrong, they’re not negotiating with a corporation — they’re dealing with whoever owns that particular location.
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“You’re dependent on that individual store and that store owner to do right by you,” Howard told WSB-TV Atlanta. “And the big company is like, we wash our hands.”
It’s a problem not unique to Take 5. A class-action lawsuit filed in February against Valvoline alleges the chain used the wrong oil viscosity in customer vehicles across around 1,900 locations nationwide — putting wrong oil in cars that required a different specification, with potential engine damage implications.
What consumers can do
Howard’s broader advice: Consider developing a relationship with a trusted local mechanic rather than cycling through quick-service chains. “I like to save money. I’m cheap, but to me, if I do things scattershot with my automobile, that’s actually really expensive,” he said.
If you do use a quick-service chain and something goes wrong, attorneys who handle these cases advise documenting everything immediately — photographs, receipts, an independent mechanic’s inspection — and seeking legal counsel if the company disputes liability.
The strongest cases, they note, are those where problems appear immediately after service and a timeline clearly points to the oil change as the cause.
For Johnston-McGlotten, the immediate toll is constant while she waits for resolution: “It’s a big burden. I’m not able to go to work. I have no car. I’ve been Ubering,” she said.
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With a writing and editing career spanning over 15 years, Emma creates and refines content across a broad spectrum of industries, including personal finance, lifestyle, travel, health & wellness, real estate, beauty & fitness and B2B/SaaS/tech.
