A Kia driver asks a mechanic to inspect his brakes. After the inspection, the mechanic is in shock at just how many issues he found.
Texas mechanic and TikTok user John Brian (@johnbrian210) shared the surprising condition of a Kia brought in for a brake inspection. The video has amassed more than 3.9 million views since he posted on Sep. 16.
In the video, Brian found more issues than he was expecting, including:
- Missing lug nuts: Not having the lug nuts can cause a car wheel to become loose, lead to wobbling, and even cause separation from the car, which can make you lose control of the vehicle (which is extremely dangerous).
- Missing brake caliper: This is an essential part of the brake system and is what helps to slow the wheels down for braking. You should not drive a vehicle with missing or damaged brake calipers.
- Duct tape to hide problems: The driver didn’t want to see that his engine light was on, so instead of fixing it, he took a “see nothing, do nothing” approach.
- No oil on the dipstick: This indicates that the engine is critically low on oil and needs an immediate fill.
- Bad tires: “I’m really surprised they haven’t exploded,” Brian said, showing all the wear and small holes on the tires.
“Looks like a few things got replaced, but it’s going to need more work,” Brian said. “…I’m not sure if they want to fix it.”
“The longer you watch, the worst it gets. And to think they are ending safety inspections,” Brian added in the caption.
Texas ends car safety inspections
Starting on Jan. 1, 2025 (aka just a few weeks from now), Texas will no longer require cars to pass a safety inspection. But the $7.50 fee associated with it still stands, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety.
Seventeen of Texas’ 254 counties will still require emissions tests.
When the bill was signed in 2023, Republican supporters claimed that inspections were “a waste of time for Texas citizens and a money-making Ponzi scheme used by some shady dealerships to upsell consumers with unnecessary repairs.”
“Texans are responsible, fiercely independent, and I trust them to keep their cars and trucks safe while on the road,” Republican Rep. Cody Harris of Palestine, Texas, told ABC 13 in Houston.
They hope this will make it easier for Texans who live in rural areas with limited access to an inspection sites.
Auto shop owner Mike Yu told Houston Public Media that while the inspections were about 10% of his business, what he was really worried about was people not driving around with illegal window tinting and unidentified broken taillights.
“When you start doing that, it really does degrade a lot of the cars on the road for safety, and that’s what’s going to end up worrying me later down the line,” Yu said. “It’s just going to be the wild west eventually,” Yu said.
Do car safety inspections make roads safer?
It’s unclear whether periodic car inspections make the roads safer.
That’s because we don’t have enough data on the matter to say for certain, according to a University of Granada study.
Data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration states that only 2% percent of accidents nationwide come from mechanical failure.
In fact, the majority of accidents are caused by driver errors, AutoWeek reported.
Commenters react
“Car is mechanically totaled. Repairs are gonna cost more than the value of the car,” a top comment read.
“It might be easier to try and figure out what’s NOT broken,” a person said.
“Customer: ‘No, no, just fix the brakes,’” another wrote.
“Amazes me everyday. Without anybody talking to each other we just assume that everybody else’s car is OK on the road. And somehow we go out on the road and make it home when there’s cars like this,” a commenter pondered.
@johnbrian210 The longer you watch , the worst it gets. And to think they are ending safety inspections. #customerstates #kia #customer #fail #justrolledin #mechanic #mechaniclife #mechanicsoftiktok #automotive #autoshop #autorepair #brakes #tire #automotivetechnician #foryou #fyp #fy #viral ♬ original sound – JohnBrian
The Daily Dot reached out to Brian for comment via TikTok direct message and comment.
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