“The issue I was having was…”
Drivers have grown increasingly distrustful of auto repair shops over the past few decades. There’s a widespread concern that mechanics will “trick” customers. Either they’ll overcharge you, perform a service you don’t need, or treat you differently because of your gender.
The skepticism is widespread. In a 2024 Consumer Affairs survey of 1,000 drivers over 18, 78 percent of respondents said they don’t trust all mechanics but have encountered trustworthy ones.
At the same time, car repair has also gotten more expensive, reportedly driven by factors such as Trump-era tariffs for auto parts, a shortage of qualified auto mechanics, and the increasing complexity of cars. All this has contributed to a growing trend of drivers opting to DIY repairs whenever possible, even with little experience.
Recently, one such newbie, TikTok creator KJ (@kjazmyne), decided to share the process of a DIY car repair job. Her clip got over 21,700 views and over 200 comments.
KJ filmed herself under the open hood of her vehicle, explaining what she’s doing. “One thing about me, I feel like I can do anything,” she begins. She explains she had already taken her car to AutoZone for a diagnostic scan, but instead of taking it to a mechanic afterward, she decided to take matters into her own hands.
“When I googled what was wrong with my car based on the little AutoZone number, I said, ‘yeah, I could do that,’” she says. “Beginner-friendly.”
She puts on a pair of protective glasses with her gloves on as she gets started. “I have to replace this,” she says, pointing to the EVAP purge assembly. She disconnects the electric connector and vapor lines, removes the old EVAP purge assembly, and picks it up, showing it to the camera.
“Okay, so this is the old one,” she says. “I’m about to inspect it to see if it’s even [expletive] up.”
It appears to have been damaged, as she proceeds to replace the part off-camera. “Alright, so she’s backed in, everything clicks,” she says. “I’ve been pulling to make sure it’s not loose all the way in there.”
She gets inside the car and explains why the part needs to be replaced. “The issue I was having was rough idling,” she says. She adds that it happened whenever she stopped for red lights or even when she started her car in the morning.
“So let’s see,” she says as she turns on the engine. The car runs quietly, with no rough idle. She smiles, jokingly saying, “I’m a mechanic. If y’all [expletive] need help, and you tired of these [expletive] trying to [expletive] you while fixing your car, call me.”
As KJ said, replacing an EVAP purge valve is generally considered a beginner-friendly task that most car owners can do themselves. There are plenty of tutorials online covering the process for most vehicle makes and models.
According to Do It Yourself, it requires a few tools and only six steps. The site recommends keeping a close eye on the location of each vacuum line so you don’t install them backward.
In the comments, viewers cheered her on and gave her additional car-repairing advice for the future.
“Just a word of advice, finish the video before working on the car,” one commenter wrote. “I can’t tell u how many times I started something before finishing the video. A lot of unnecessary trips to AutoZone.”
“Be careful, it’s addictive and the next thing you know you’ll be buying tools at Harbor Freight and watching how to improve your car’s performance and getting mad because work is in the way,” another joked. “Good job.”
“Yay! I replaced my radiator by myself in September after a mechanic quoted me $1,400,” shared a third. “I’m 98.99% convinced I can fix anything on my car now!”
Motor1 has reached out to KJ via TikTok messages and comments, and we’ll update this piece if we hear back.
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– The Motor1.com Team