A woman’s routine trip to the Toyota dealership ended on a sour note after a mechanic put the wrong transmission fluid in her car.
Leilani Boring (@leilanii_02) admitted that she knows little about her Toyota and the type of care it needs. But when she was made aware that she needed new transmission fluid, she said she went to the dealership to get it repaired.
But things went bad after a Toyota worker called Boring to let her know her car was allegedly ready. (Spoiler: It wasn’t exactly… right.) As of Thursday, Boring’s video documenting her predicament had amassed more than 120,200 views.
What happened to the driver’s Toyota?
In her video, Boring said she dropped off her Toyota at the dealership to get her transmission fluid changed.
“I’m just a girl,” she said. “I don’t know what they do.”
When she was readying to pick up her car, though, she said she received another call from the dealership alerting her that they had made an error. A Toyota worker said that they used the “wrong transmission fluid” and were in the process of getting it “fixed up,” she recalled.
“I don’t know much about cars, but transmission seems very pricey to be making mistakes on,” Boring said.
What’s worse, Boring said she asked the Toyota workers whether putting in the wrong fluid would cause transmission issues down the line, and they were unable to say no. Instead, she said the workers told her that her car might experience issues in the long run but would be fine until then.
Shockingly, this news didn’t mollify Boring.
“Should I be worried, y’all?” the content creator asked viewers.
What happens if you get the wrong transmission fluid in your car?
According to Valvoline, having the wrong transmission fluid in your car can lead to issues such as slipping gears, rough shifting, overheating, and potentially transmission failure.
These problems won’t happen immediately, if ever. In the short term, having the wrong fluid in your car can lead to strange noises or difficulty shifting gears.
If you notice that the wrong fluid was put in your car, experts recommend taking it to a mechanic immediately so he or she can drain and replace it. This will help minimize damage, but, as Boring found out, it could still impact the car in the long run.
In a 2018 Quora thread, one expert said that your car’s issues may increase if the old fluid isn’t removed. “So it’s best to do the job again: Remove the wrong and replace it with the correct fluid ASAP,” the user wrote. “Transmissions are very expensive to repair or replace.”
He’s not wrong. A Toyota dealership based out of Los Angeles said that transmission replacements may cost up to $3,500.
@leilanii_02 is my car gonna blow up 🙃 #fy #transmission #transmissionfluid ♬ original sound – Leilani
Viewers encourage driver to take action
In the comments section of Boring’s video, several users said she should try to get Toyota to admit to their mistake in writing.
“The transmission is what shifts the gears in the car’s engine, without it you can’t move at all,” one woman said. “Ask them for written proof of the mistake ASAP before it goes out. They will 100% deny responsibility.”
“Ask for a detailed receipt just in case,” another echoed.
“Make them write it out and sign it if issues pop up relating to it in the future,” a third viewer advised. “Then they are liable and have to pay for it, if not just, like, threaten to sue them.”
Others said that mistakes like this are why they don’t trust most car mechanics.
“Which Toyota did you go to so I don’t,” one viewer asked.
“For real though! I went in for an oil change. Dude was unscrewing my air filter,” another shared.
“I just watch YouTube videos & do it myself lol,” a third user said.
Some attempted to see the bright side of the situation—that is the mechanic actually admitted to their mistake.
“At least they told you,” one user wrote.
“You’re good sounds like they realized before they even started the vehicle,” another added.
The Daily Dot has reached out to Boring via TikTok comment and to Toyota through email.
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