Filed under: Maintenance, Etc.
Classic prank: Preying on the naive auto owner
In high school my best friend and I convinced his sister that the sphincter valve on her car was broken and leaking blinker fluid all over the driveway. She freaked and offered us money to drive it up to their family mechanic and have it fixed. We took the money and blew it on Golden Tee. We know, we know, it's a horrible prank, but it's such a classic. One of the blokes on our development team responsible for our new galleries and improved search functionality (zup, Celly!) tipped us off to this year-old recording of a radio show prank in which a poor, naive young lady gets it good from some morning show hosts. She believed and agreed to pay $2,400 for the pleasure of fixing her leaky headlights, switching her tires that were accidentally installed on the wrong sides, installing two transmissions that were missing from the vehicle and ruining her gas mileage, among a few other fictitious, high-priced repairs.
We're sure you all have some great stories to tell in which you duped some unsuspecting friend or family member into believing something hilariously false about his or her car. Feel free to share in the comments.
[Source: Scogginsnoggin]
_opt_thumbnail.jpg)
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
apt34 7:31PM (1/19/2007)
wow, that's actually pretty sad to listen to
Are you sure that is a legitimate recording?
Reply
kris burbidge 7:36PM (1/19/2007)
Golden Tee!!! Classic!! I'll take ya'll on anytime. Good site.
Reply
smooth sailin 7:37PM (1/19/2007)
My car only makes right turns so I usually arrive at my destination from the opposite direction.
Reply
Mike 7:39PM (1/19/2007)
A friend and I (the auto-savvy guys) were replacing the ignition wires of another friends (not auto-savvy) 1965 Buick Skylark. For our time and effort, we had the owner go out to rent a "sky hook" so that we could better access the engine. He went to 6 different rental shops and auto parts stores throughout our small town of Santa Barbara, CA, and finally gave up. When he returned, he found his Skylark running beautifully and his two buddies laughing to tears!
Reply
Dana 8:13PM (1/19/2007)
That's at least 3 years old
Reply
Edmond Dantes 8:16PM (1/19/2007)
Here is a link to an undercover report about Jiffy Lube ripping off their customers.
http://www.consumerist.com/consumer/jiffy-lube/jiffy-lube-scam-revealed-again-197023.php
Reply
Typesbad 9:07PM (1/19/2007)
The sad truth is if you switched the subject to computers, I'd be just as ignorant. The only difference is I expect all computer problems to be fixed with a free download.
Reply
David J. 9:43PM (1/19/2007)
Yes. This recording is very, very old. At least three years indeed.
And I recall it was a april fools prank by from some radio station.
Reply
epp_b 10:01PM (1/19/2007)
People that dumb almost deserve to be ripped off.
Reply
Jugomugo 10:54PM (1/19/2007)
I remember convincing a friend (and surprisingly not a Honda owner) that a giant wing on the back of a car would make it faster.
Reply
Joe 12:54AM (1/20/2007)
Just tonight a guy came into my shop and said his friend told him he should ask for a 'Fluid Rotation.' We played it off as a joke, but after the oil change and stuff he asked if we had had the time to rotate the fluids. We said with his mileage he wasn't due for that yet.
Reply
Vinson Kelley 1:40AM (1/20/2007)
I once heard an ad on the radio from an auto repair shop stating that their prices were "more than reasonable." I'm sure they were.
Reply
Nelson 3:33AM (1/20/2007)
My Dad had been a mechanic for years, he once told me a story where a guy came in and asked him to check his plug wires, he thought they were leaking........
Reply
Danny 4:26AM (1/20/2007)
i've heard that radio skit... but the chick doesn't really fall for it... she does play along or seem convinced but in the end she says that she needs to ask her dad.
Reply
Rich S. 5:59AM (1/20/2007)
My brother and I suggested that my mom add "change air in tires" to a list of things do be done during service. Questioning her about it later, she said the service guy seemed puzzled and said that if she really wanted the air changed, he would do it. I think she caught on, but we had a good laugh over it.
Reply
R Wiggler 7:10AM (1/20/2007)
My uncle sold my old Ford Escort for me. It was a good car but had power steering problems. We told my mother that to fix the steering, we stuffed bananas into the steering assembly for lubrication. We then said that we sold it to an old lady. The solution should work until the bananas give out then who knows? Then there is the problem with fruit flies in the interior of the car, etc. We had her so upset about the old lady.
Reply
M. M. Hall 7:43AM (1/20/2007)
There was a time many years ago when butyl rubber was used in inner tubes. Exchanging the air periodically was required.
Reply
Manager Guy 7:43AM (1/20/2007)
As a tire salesman, I would joke about changing the "summer air" to "winter air" in customer's tires. I also would say that white lettering would make their car go faster. I wold also have to test drive Corvettes, etc. to make sure the balancing took to the tires. In the end I never cheated anyone tho......
Reply
randy 8:28AM (1/20/2007)
My best buddy in high school (late 70s) had a '72 Super Beetle that we got around everywhere in. One time he told me of a prank he pulled when driving his mom in it one day. Looking at the air vent lever in front of her, she asked what it was for. He told her it was the 'auxillary horn switch'...and told her to try it...of course he had his thumb on the horn on the wheel, and apparently was able to hit the horn a couple of times at those moments she flicked the lever. He had her going for a while...
Reply
Loophead 8:41AM (1/20/2007)
My all time favorite of which I wish I could take credit. My brother inlaw after following a friend on a long trip informed her that she was low on "blinker fluid" and should have it checked out immediatley. He went on to explain that if the was pulled over by the police and found to be low on blinker fluid that her car would be impounded due operating faulty machinery on a public road. The girl without hesitation asked all her friends who agreed with my brother inlaw. She then asked her father, who to this day still laughs about the question.
Whenever I see someone at the mall or parking lot that I have been behind that has failed to use thier blinkers I take the time to inform them that they are critically low on "blinker fluid". I would so love to be at the auto shop when these ladies come in to ask about the "blinker fuild".
Reply