“Do I really look that stupid to you?”
Going to the mechanic can be intimidating, especially when you don’t know much about cars. You’re relying on someone else to tell you what’s wrong, what needs fixing, and how much it’s going to cost.
It’s even worse when you’re a woman. Car repair is a predominantly male field, and you often hear stories from women who say their mechanic talked down to them or tried to swindle them. That’s why many women don’t want to go to the mechanic, especially alone.
This woman’s recent experience only reinforces that.
In TikTok video, content creator Bailey (@baiii.529) shared why a recent trip to the mechanic left her feeling like she was being taken advantage of.
“He rly tried to scam me,” the text overlay reads.
In the video Bailey explains that her car started shaking whenever she reached about 70 mph on the highway. She wasn’t sure whether she needed a tire rotation, balance, or alignment, so she decided to stop by a shop.
When she described the issue, an employee immediately asked whether the shaking happened at higher speeds and he recommended balancing the tires.
He also inspected them and suggested she replace her two front tires sometime soon because they were showing signs of wear; her rear tires, however, were fine. But the employee said they wouldn’t rotate the tires because they preferred keeping the more worn ones in front and the better ones in back, so she just had them balanced and waited for them to finish up the work.
But things suddenly changed when another employee, whom she assumed was a manager, came over.
He told her she needed to replace all four tires and get an alignment.
“I genuinely thought that he was joking,” she says.
She questioned why she needed four new tires when she’d just replaced two of them in February. But the employee apparently didn’t believe her.
“I don’t think you did,” she recalls him saying.
He then claimed her rear tires were in terrible condition and that only one of her front tires was good. Still he recommended replacing all four.
That was the exact opposite of what the first employee had told her.
“Do I really look that stupid to you? Is it the fake lashes that make me look that dumb and gullible?” Bailey recalls thinking.
Rather than argue or agree to additional services, she decided to pay for the balance and leave.
“Guess what? My car’s not shaking anymore. The problem is fixed,” she says.
“How are you gonna sit here and tell me the literal exact opposite of what your employee just told me a minute ago?” she asks. “You’re gonna be the one that’s trying to scam people and get, like, their money and do your little hustle. Yeah. I don’t think so.”
A shaking car isn’t something you want to ignore. Here are some possible reasons behind it, according to Meineke:
The location of the vibration matters, too. Pay attention to whether you feel the shaking through the steering wheel or throughout the entire vehicle.
It’s also worth noting when the problem happens, whether you’re braking, turning, accelerating, or idling. That information can help a mechanic narrow down the cause.
If the shaking comes with strange noises, burning smells, or dashboard warning lights, Meineke recommends getting the vehicle checked right away.
Tire balancing and wheel alignment are often mentioned together, but they’re not the same service, and needing one doesn’t automatically mean you need the other. According to Firestone Complete Auto Care, tire balancing corrects uneven weight distribution in the tire and wheel assembly.
During the service, a technician puts the assembly on a machine that spins it to identify imbalances. They then add small metal weights to even things out. Some signs you may need your tires balanced include vibrations in the steering wheel, floor, or seats and uneven tire wear.
Interestingly, where you feel the vibration may help identify the problem. Firestone says shaking in the steering wheel often points to the front tires, while vibrations in the seats may indicate an imbalance in the rear.
Wheel alignment, on the other hand, involves adjusting the steering and suspension to make sure the wheels are positioned correctly.
Signs you may need an alignment include the vehicle pulling to one side, a crooked steering wheel when driving straight, tires wearing unevenly or prematurely, and squealing tires.
Hitting a pothole or curb can throw your alignment off.
Both services can help prevent premature tire wear, but they address different problems.
Firestone says technicians generally recommend balancing tires every 5,000 to 6,000 miles, or according to the manufacturer’s schedule. It also recommends checking alignment every 6,000 miles or twice a year.
Motor1 reached out to Bailey via TikTok and Instagram direct message for comment. We’ll be sure to update this if she responds.
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