Washington woman has to return her malfunctioning Toyota to the dealership again: ‘We thought that might happen’

TikTok creator Shelby (@shleby.mxo) says Toyota of Puyallup in Washington made good on her first complaint, only to send her back on the road with a car whose warning lights returned a week later.

How Did Toyota of Puyallup Disappoint This Customer?

Shelby's earlier grievance—aired in a prior TikTok and, per her account, an email to Toyota corporate—apparently got the dealership's attention. The day before her July 29 appointment, she says, a manager called.

“I saw your review, and I'm really sorry that that happened to you,” she reports him saying. “We wanna make it right.”

They did, at least on paper. Per Shelby's account, the dealership ordered the part preemptively, comped the service, and set her up with what she calls a “super cute” loaner.

“They did do right by me,” she says.

Then the dashboard lit up again, a week after she got her car back. Shelby, who commutes roughly 40 miles across three freeways at odd hours, says she called out of work rather than risk the drive. The same service advisor, she says, “was super accommodating” and set her up with another loaner while the car went back in.

Now, we should do some backstory.

Backstory

The previous TikTok post had a caption explaining the original issue.

“On June 8th, I brought my car to the Puyallup Toyota dealership service department about an engine maintenance code, I was told that my AC valve needed replaced and that it was not in stock but would be ordered, and she would call me when the part came in,” she wrote.

Then, she says she found out on July 22nd that no parts were “actually [ever] ordered.”

She explained that she “reached out to this specific department multiple times throughout the now 6 weeks since my initial visit” and that her “car is barely functioning, all safety features are malfunctioning, and about 5 more codes are being thrown.”

Flash Forward

But back in the present, the goodwill went away when they admitted a problem.

According to Shelby, the advisor told her they had suspected this second failure could happen—with coils, she thinks, though she readily admits she's not “mechanic literate”—and now she'd likely be paying for the fix herself.

“If you knew that this was a possibility that could happen, then why wouldn't you disclose that to me before?” she asks. “I would have gone to one of those places and just had it replaced.”

She stops short of calling foul.

“I don't wanna be a complainer because they really did, like, do right by me from the first time, but this, like, feels not good either,” she concludes.

Let's see what the people had to say.

‘Toyota of Puyallup is Horrible'

One viewer countered her argument: “If they would have done right by you, it would have been fixed,” they wrote.

Another person commended her for her calmness in the situation, writing, “Great review really! You pointed out your frustrations yet you pointed out what they did right. Thank you for such a mellow well thought review of their dealership.”

Service Departments: The Trust Deficit

Shelby's whiplash tracks with what national data has long shown. A 2026 Consumer Affairs report found that over three out of four U.S. drivers (78%) do not trust auto repair shops, with unnecessary services and overcharging topping the list of grievances.

“It is critical that drivers find an honest repair shop that they can trust with their vehicle,” said Greg Brannon, AAA's director of Automotive Engineering, in an older report.

Shops that keep customers know why. Bridgeport, Connecticut, mechanic Rob Maier, quoted by longtime auto journalist Jim Motavalli in Car Talk, put the calculus plainly: “Repeat business is everything.”

The dealership's opening gesture toward Shelby fits Maier's words. The second visit is the test of whether the goodwill sticks.

Subplot News reached out to Shelby via TikTok direct message and comment, and to Toyota of Puyallup via email. We will update this story if they respond.

@shelby.mxo @Toyota of puyallup update! 3:30min video, it's a little long but I hope you stay! @Toyota Of Puyallup ♬ original sound – Shelby

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