Should a retail air filter purchase require taking a couple of minutes to pop open the box and inspect the actual contents before making a payment? That may seem like a paranoid and irrational move in most cases, but a Michigan mechanic scoping the aisles in a Walmart warned there are signs every driver should know to look for before buying from a mass-market outlet and installing one on their engine.
The TikTok from mechanic Blondie&herOBS (@blondieherobs) doesn’t take long to find filters for sale in a Walmart automotive aisle that very clearly shouldn't be headed for installation. One oil filter had visible debris on its rubber sealing gasket, and the boxed air filters looked dirty enough that the mechanic believed they had already been used in another vehicle.
“We were trying to look for an oil filter for his dad's truck and then one for his truck, and I just got to looking at the gaskets and stuff because I always check gaskets,” she said in the clip, which has been viewed more than 1,300 times. “You can clearly tell that somebody put it in a vehicle and then was like, oh, that's not the right filter, and then they just put it back on the shelf.”
Used Parts For Sale?
The shabby, used-looking air filters are the most obvious red flag in the clip, but the creator said she also makes a point of checking every oil filter before she gets to the register. Her main concern is the rubber gasket around the base, which is supposed to create a leak-free seal once it’s installed.
