A minivan driver was left in a sour mood after purchasing tires through a service center. TikTok user and Chrysler Pacifica driver Sarah Lane (@_jetsetbrunette_) said she endured a “tire repair nightmare” in a video she shared on the application. The incident left her scratching her head. She wondered why a service center would sell her a set of new road-rubber, only to inform her they couldn’t actually put them on her vehicle.

Lane’s video begins with footage of her speaking into the camera as she drives her car. Although she’s smiling, the story she shares delineates a frustrating customer service experience she had. “I gotta tell you something. Last week, I took my vehicle to a service center to get the tires changed. I ordered the tires through them, had everything set up because I had to go photograph a wedding the next day for that weekend.”

@_jetsetbrunette_ Tire repair nightmare #repairshop #carrepair #carmaintenance #mechanicsoftiktok ♬ original sound – Sarah Lane

Chrysler Pacifica: Too Wide for Lift

Following this, the TikToker describes how her plans were dashed. And it wasn’t because she did anything wrong on her end. But rather, the mechanic‘s facilities weren’t sufficient enough to accommodate the width of her car. “This was gonna be a Friday. Drive my vehicle to the shop that was 45 minutes away from me. And I get there only for them to get my vehicle. And 10 minutes later [they] call me and say my vehicle is too wide for their lift.”

Lane seemed baffled by this admission from the shop employee. Especially considering she isn’t driving a bespoke, custom, commercial unit. But rather a top-selling minivan in the United States, a Chrysler Pacifica. Per Mopar Insiders, in 2024 alone, the brand moved over 107,000 units of this particular model car. “My van, which is a 2023 Chrysler Pacifica is too wide for their lift,” she exclaimed.

“What kind of auto center has a lift that does not hoist a standard size van? Riddle me that,” she asks, shooting a befuddled look into the camera.

Commenters Sound Off

One person who replied to her video stated that minivans like the Pacifica can indeed be too big for some car lifts. However, they speculated that employees at the shop could’ve easily swapped out the tires. They just weren’t in the mood to individually jack up each side of the car to perform the swap. “To be fair those Pacificas are very wide and sometimes barely fit on the lifts at our shops. But turning away service is absolutely crazy. A normal floor jack would work if they weren’t lazy,” they replied.

Another person echoed the aforementioned sentiment, too, indicating that service techs could’ve simply jacked the car up. “Floor jacks are a thing. Lift the front put it in stands one jack under the back lift change tires set it down done. Sounds like there’s either information missing or they didn’t want to do it,” they shared.

Someone else also wondered why the shop just didn’t use floor jacks. “Ohhh that would drive me up the wall! Aren’t there floor jacks they could have used?” they said.

However, there was one TikTok user who believed that they were just attempting to get out of swapping her tires entirely. “There’s no way that van won’t fit on their lift,” they replied.

Tire-Swapping Options — Dealer Service Centers Get Hate

One needn’t search too far and wide through the annals of the internet to find dealership mechanic slander. Folks in one Reddit thread argued that oftentimes, inexperienced mechanics are found in shops. Others on the app shared their own anecdotes about jobs that were poorly performed, overly expensive, or not done at all.

Furthermore, this Edmunds piece titled “Confessions from the Dealership Service Department” shares more insight. The author says that “dealerships don’t profit on extensive operations” when it comes to repairs. There’s also a generally held belief that dealer service centers aren’t incentivized to actually keep older vehicles on the road. This is due to more labor and time intensive repairs cutting into their profits/ability to service as many customers as possible.

Also, some speculate that service centers coordinate with new/used car sales teams. I.e., why fix an older car that’s a hopeless case when you could get yourself in a new one and sign on the dotted line for a multi-year car note? And when it comes to certain car services, like tire swaps and rotations, some auto enthusiasts caution against ever going to a dealer.

Conversely, other car owners have shared some of their favorite chain locations to have tires swapped. America’s Tire (Discount Tire) has received love online. As a Reddit user in another post wrote that they “always [have] a pleasant experience” there. Additionally, they said that they like how employees don’t push add-on services like warranties on its customers. And that when they have purchased warranties, claiming them is a relatively straightforward process.

Costco Auto centers have also received high marks from consumers, too, even for EV owners.

MotorBiscuit has reached out to Sarah for more information on the tire swap shenanigans she experienced.