Shell Rotella T bottle tampered with?

[Bug Out]

I bought a gallon bottle of Rotella T oil today from Wal-Mart in Surprise,Az for my ONAN generator. As i opened the top of the bottle, the black cap tore away from the lock ring, but there was no silver foil seal on the neck.



There was 2 marks on top of the neck, but i discounted it and used the oil. ( I have two gallons left over)



For Poops and giggles, I googled it and found others from other boards having found similar bottles at other stores also.



The theory is that some "employees" are swapping good oil for low grade and selling it or the Wal Mart auto shop is involved and selling Rotella and its really bulk from the hose in the lube bay.



Its all speculation, but i plan on sampling the oil here in Phoenix to see if theres more too it.



Has anyone here had the same thing happen or know of anyone?



I sent a e-mail to Shell to see what they say. I have not contacted Wal Mart as I dont want to hear the , "well have another bottle" stuff. If someone is swapping oil, a lot of diesels could be having problems out there.



Anybody have any insight ????? How can you get the twist top off without breaking the lock ring etc etcc????



Thanks for any help/info you have.





Ed





-- email address removed --

 

[Gary - K7GLD]

Reminds me of a stay down in Cancun, where there were lots of racks of bottled water at different locations - and if you looked closely, you could see that EVERY bottle had the seal ring separated from the cap - looked like they were collecting emptied bottles and refilling them - with who knows what...

 

[GaryOwen]

Rotella T no longer has the foil seal. I usually buy the oil by the case and it is obvious the cardboard has not be opened. Usually buy at Walmart, but have bought at auto parts stores as well. Never any indication of tampering.



It looks to me like the caps possibly could be removed without breaking the ring around the cap if one was careful. Possibly could use heat on cap. I am always careful to examine each case and bottle, because I have heard stories of switched oil also.

 

[Ram4Sam]

Make sure it is not used oil. I have heard stories that dirtbags here in So Cal will buy oil by the gallon to change their oil. Dump the new stuff in the engine, put the the drained oil back into the containers, clean them up and return them to the Walmart, with an "Oops, bought the wrong oil!"They get their money back and Walmart puts the oil back on the shelf, unaware of the contents.



Sam

 

[fox]

I have seen people repackage old light bulbs, return them as not needed!!

I've seen antifreeze done the same as you suspect too.

 

[DaveHess]

Is integrity a thing of the past??? Whatever happened to doing the right thing even when NO ONE is looking. I work at Lowes part-time and people will return stuff that is obviously abused. And Lowes will take it back! I don't get it. I don't return anything to any store unless I have retained my receipt AND it is the original unopened container. If I open something and try to use it and it is incorrect, that's not the stores or manufacturers fault, but all mine for not doing my homework first!

 

[MikeH]

Bought a 2. 5 gallon jug of Rotella at Sam's. Same thing-no foil seal. Was hesitant, but used it anyway. Guess the comment by Gary Owen about Rotella not using foil seals anymore is correct.

MikeH.

 

[steved]

Bought a 2. 5 gallon jug of Rotella at Sam's. Same thing-no foil seal. Was hesitant, but used it anyway. Guess the comment by Gary Owen about Rotella not using foil seals anymore is correct.

MikeH.

The 2. 5 gallon jugs never had seals... just have a cardboard "seal" in the lid.



I buy my oil from an independent or by the 5-gallon bucket since it is obvious if they were tampered with.



I have not only heard about, but witnessed first hand, the used oil on the shelf at Walmart... happened at our local one, and the bottles weren't even clean! Although some oils are darker than others, you can tell fresh oil from used oil (especially Rotella) by the clarity and smell.



The last time I bought 5w40 Rotella, it had not only a locking cap but a foil seal. That was about 4 weeks ago... and the CJ-4 formulation.

 

[AndrewKing]

Hmmm... . Actually I heard Shell puts the cheap stuff in right from the factory... . Saves retailers the hassle of changing the oil out themselves and risking getting caught because of minimum wage workers not removing the lids carefully enough..... Good help is truly hard to find! ;-)

Andrew

PS - FWIW the last batch of Rotella I used didn't seem to put out that familiar smell for the first bunch of miles... . I will be looking at my oil more closely too!

 

[Bug Out]

Rotella foil caps

The last time i changed oil in my CTD( april 09) all 3 gallons had the foil seal.



I'll post the oil results as soon as I get them.

 

[hammersley]

2.5 gallon JUGS ?????

The 2. 5 gallon jugs never had seals... just have a cardboard "seal" in the lid.



I buy my oil from an independent or by the 5-gallon bucket since it is obvious if they were tampered with.



I have not only heard about, but witnessed first hand, the used oil on the shelf at Walmart... happened at our local one, and the bottles weren't even clean! Although some oils are darker than others, you can tell fresh oil from used oil (especially Rotella) by the clarity and smell.



The last time I bought 5w40 Rotella, it had not only a locking cap but a foil seal. That was about 4 weeks ago... and the CJ-4 formulation.

Never saw any that size... ... .