A dealership has taken to TikTok to recount the tale of a couple who recently bought a 2014 Mazda6 from their dealership with 177,000 miles on the clock. The Mazda suddenly started making scary, strange squeaking noises, but the dealership didn’t want its customers left frustrated.
Kenny Martin (@kennycompcars) of Competition Cars and Classics in Salem, Virginia, told TikTok users in a video that the couple had come in and bought the Mazda6 just before he got a phone call from them. It wasn’t a thank-you call, but a call where the couple said the car had an issue.
What happened next could have gone one of two ways. Martin and his team could have decided they didn’t want to fix the car and left the couple to fend for themselves.
But that isn’t what happened. Car dealers sometimes get a bad rep, often unfairly, and some customers can sometimes feel like they have been scammed. However, Martin decided that the best thing to do was to try to restore some faith in used car salespeople.
What Happened to the 2014 Mazda6?
@kennycompcars A used car dealership sells a car as-is and about 30 minutes later the customer sends the dealer a video of the car making very loud and scary noises!! What should the dealership do? What can the customer do? Watch and see how this true life problem with a used car purchase works out. #carmechanictiktokcontest #usedcars #cardealership #carsalesman #carsales ♬ original sound – Competition Cars and Classics
According to Martin, the couple had bought a 2014 Mazda6 just 30 minutes before they called the dealership back. “Yesterday I sold a 2014 Mazda6 with approximately 177,000 miles on it. Pretty decent car, and the car was sold as-is,” Martin said in his TikTok. It passed Virginia’s state inspection, and the couple also test-drove it before buying it.
The couple also took the car to the mechanic they regularly used for a pre-purchase inspection, where it “passed with flying colors,” Martin said. As it looked like a solid car, it was easy to see why the couple decided to buy it. But they were just as confused as Martin was that there had been a problem so soon after buying the car. But they soon sent in a video showing what had gone wrong with the car.
In the video, the Mazda6 was making a very loud squeaking sound as it drove past. The customer was at a loss as to what to do with the car. Martin could have said, “Nope, it’s your problem now; it was all fine when you bought it.” But that isn’t how this dealership owner treats his customers. Especially this couple, who were repeat customers, and he appreciated those who supported his business regularly.
Martin said that his dealership would pick the car up the next morning and find out what was going wrong. He suspected a brake caliper problem was causing the very loud squeaking sound. It turned out he was right in his theory. “It was only a brake dust shield bent and rubbing,” Martin said in a text overlay in the video. He was baffled by how the damage happened, but he made sure the dealership fixed it and returned it to the couple.
This Is a Great Display of Dealership Kindness
Martin and his team’s approach to the problem was pretty impressive. Not every customer has had this experience at a dealership, and many are frustrated with the process. Earlier this month, a woman took to TikTok to say that a Chevrolet dealership told her she owed them an extra $4,200 despite having bought and paid for a Tahoe SUV at an agreed price. This video, posted by Gladys (@leiscray), had over 600,000 views earlier this month.
In another video, a used car salesman had a strange experience after he got into a fight with a customer over a bad car smell. This video showed that the dealer had the unpleasant experience: a shouting match with the dad of a teenager who had bought the car. Thankfully, the situation with this Mazda was dealt with calmly.