‘The landlord special’: Mechanic shares $50 ‘car dealer trick’ for when your wheel well is rusty. But not everyone’s onboard

Auto Parts City (@autopartscity) is a Gurnee, Illinois-based business that regularly uploads posts about car-related work that goes on at its business. Its account is filled with clips detailing car fixes, along with showing off its inventory of junked vehicles in its expansive lot. Moreover, it's filled with vignettes that give viewers a glimpse of the daily work that goes on in the shop.

In a recent video, the TikToker showed off several cars they had on hand. One of them included a white pickup with a rusted wheel well and how he dealt with it. In a clip that's accrued over 54,000 views, he says that this trick is a common "hack" dealerships will often implement.

Cover up

The video begins with a recording of a pickup truck. There's visible rust lining the rear driver's side wheel well right above the tire. Next, the TikToker's voice can be heard narrating throughout the clip. "Let me show you guys the $50 car dealer trick," he says, referencing the rust on the car's body.

The camera then pans to a part that's wrapped in plastic on the floor. It appears to be a black liner that looks like it's supposed to be affixed to the well. Following this, the clip immediately transitions to a close-up of a drill securing the part to the vehicle's wheel well. Afterward, a nearly identical sequence shows the auto expert placing another wheel well cover on another portion of the car.

Thereafter, the TikToker explains the "trick" in question. "The $50 hack that car dealers don't want you to know about."

Furthermore, the video then cuts to footage of a red Chevrolet S10 pickup truck inside an auto body shop.

"Hey guys, look what we have in the shop today. It's a Chevy S10 and let me know if you see anything abnormal under here," the TikToker says, As he talks about the car, he walks around it and begins recording its open hood, taking a gander at its engine bay. After a quick cut to the car peeling out of the shop, the TikToker then cuts to another part of the video.

More car shop business

"All right, let's go find something else," he states before the video jumps to him walking out in a lot behind the shop. "I was told we got in a late model Chevy Silverado. Let's go check it out."

It's not a Silverado but rather a GMC Sierra, which is a similar offering from General Motors. "This is a 2021 GMC Sierra," he says. After panning out and showing off the car, viewers can see it's horrendously damaged. It looks like the kind one would see on a map for a Gears of War video game.

The vehicle appears to have been engulfed in flames to the point where it's been destroyed beyond repair. However, the TikToker is still going to see what he can salvage from the car in order to sell some of its parts. "Let's see what kind of parts we're gonna sell off of this thing. I doubt the tailgate, not the bed. Probably not the wheel. Not the door. Not the door," he says, pointing out various parts of the vehicle as he walks around it.

He laughs as the damage gets progressively worse. "Not the fender," he adds. Next, his clip cuts to a close-up of an extremely rusted portion of the car, pointing to a specific area. "That's where the VIN tag was supposed to be."

Afterward, he shows off how poorly in shape the car's motor is in. "I don't really know what engine was in this one. Look at how the windshield melted on top of the engine."

Following his assessment, the TikToker said that the car contained no salvageable parts. "In reality, there's nothing to do with this truck except throw it into the crusher. Maybe, just maybe, some crazy person would actually buy that tailgate."

Wheel well damage

The opening car in the TikToker's video presents a "hack" he says some car salespeople use in order to mask particular points of damage on a vehicle. In this instance, it's the wheel well. While on the surface, rust on a wheel well might look like merely a cosmetic blight, CarParts.com says this isn't necessarily the case.

The outlet delineated several ways rust on a car owner's wheel well can ultimately impede their driving experience. Since rust becomes brittle over time, this can cause portions of the car to flake and break off when on the road. Consequently, these shards can damage one's tire. Furthermore, this rust can ultimately spread to other parts of the car, such as the chassis or suspension. Rust ultimately weakens metal and can make these critical driving components more susceptible to failure or breakage.

In the website's piece, commuters are urged to recoat their wheel wells "with undercoating spray." This is one way to prevent rust from ever forming. Additionally, folks can opt for wheel well lines, such as the one displayed in Auto Parts City's video. However, there are some folks who aren't fans of this car accessory, like a commenter in this Reddit post.

Well worth it?

One user asked the site's r/f150 sub what their opinion on wheel well liners was. While several folks said they enjoyed the aesthetic of wheel well liners, they conceded they weren't sure about the protection they offered. However, another advised the F-150 driver to steer clear of the well liners, stating they're "moisture and salt" magnets. Another redditor echoed this disapproval, adding that they can also "trap, dirt, salt, and moisture."

A third user envisioned how this could ultimately cause more harm than good to a vehicle, also calling mud flaps into question as well. With all of this gunk collecting on these accessories, they speculate it will just "sit there and rot out the fender."

@autopartscity V8 Chevy S10, F150 Fender Flare Trick & Burnt GMC Sierra AT4 #chevys10 #gmcsierra #f150 #fenderflares #engineswap #firedamage #autorecycling #junkyard #autopartscity ♬ original sound - AutoPartsCity

TikTokers respond

Folks who replied to Auto Parts City's video had plenty to say about the vehicles he showed off. One person thought that the red S10's engine work clearly turned it into an enhanced driving machine. "That little S10 would be rowdy!"

It was a sentiment echoed by someone else, who penned: "S10 built the way they should have been built. Or at least made it an option."

But there were others who were shocked by the wheel well rust cover-up job. "You can at least spray the rust over the wheel wells," they penned.

Another said that they, too, have simply covered rusted wheel wells with liners. "Guilty done it before."

Whereas others just had jokes about the condition of the GMC Sierra the TikToker showed off in the clip. "The deals at Auto Parts city are on FIRE. Smoking hot deal on that GMC. You are melting the competition," one penned.

The Daily Dot has reached out to Auto Parts City via TikTok comment for further information.

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The post ‘The landlord special’: Mechanic shares $50 ‘car dealer trick’ for when your wheel well is rusty. But not everyone’s onboard appeared first on The Daily Dot.