According to Motor1, a Kentucky woman says a tire shop tried to swap out her newly installed Goodyear tires for cheaper Douglas ones after she came back to report a leaking valve stem. The woman, who goes by Christina online, shared the incident in a TikTok video posted under the username @christinadv333.
Christina had booked an appointment for four new Goodyear tires. When she called ahead to confirm the appointment, the shop initially told her there was no record of it, though staff later admitted the mistake was on their end and fit her in anyway.
The tires were installed without issue, but trouble started after she got home and found one of her front tires flat. When she returned to the shop to report the leaking valve stem, staff told her they would be pulling all four new tires and replacing them with Douglas tires instead.
Shop staff cited a size mismatch that did not hold up
Christina said that when she went back to report the flat tire, the woman at the counter told her, “Oh yeah, we’re gonna replace all 4 tires. Um, we’ve got these Douglas tires we’re gonna put on.” When Christina asked why, since she had only come in about a valve stem, the explanation shifted to a sizing issue. Staff told her the tires installed that morning were 16-inch when they should have been 15-inch.
Christina said she pushed back and pointed to her paperwork. “No, no, I, I have the receipt. It was – they were 15-inch tires,” she said. According to Christina, staff insisted the correct tires were the Douglas ones, priced at $65 each, and that her current tires would be swapped out for them.
Christina said she went out to check the tires herself and confirmed they were the correct size. She said the staff member still maintained the tires were the wrong size. Christina responded, “No ma’am, I don’t, I don’t want Douglas tires. I want the Goodyears.”
The flat tire has a straightforward explanation, according to industry guidance. Valve stems are typically replaced whenever a tire is removed from the wheel, because pulling the old stem through the rim hole during installation can damage it. In another car dispute, a couple said a shop’s handling of paperwork led to a prolonged fight over ownership of a family vehicle.
A technical article in Tire Review, written by an executive at valve stem maker Schrader, states that a used rubber stem “is almost always damaged during repair” and that “the stem usually cracks or rips as it is forced to fit through the valve hole.” The article recommends replacing valve stem service kits every time a tire is removed from the rim.
Several commenters on the video echoed that same point about the valve stems, and their comments drew some of the strongest engagement in the thread. User7035034165107 wrote, “First of all valve stems are replaced with each entire installation. They usually charge you for then when you buy the tires.” DKARBAN made a similar point more briefly: “they should have replaced the stems when they did the tires.”
Not every commenter took Christina’s side. One user, Sancheezy.12, was openly skeptical of the story itself, writing, “Story’s not even plausible. At some point, you all have to understand that she’s just making it up for view and engagement.”
That comment did not draw any likes. Another commenter, Tinman, placed some blame on Christina for not confirming the appointment ahead of time, writing, “I hate social media. this is what the world does. first if you knew you had an appointment at 8am you show up. you dont call day of and confirm.”
A number of commenters focused less on the shop’s mistake and more on which chain Christina should be using. Larry27 asked, “There’s plenty of places to get tires. Why do you keep going back to Walmart?” Williamstuples offered a shorter version of the same advice: “stop dealing with Walmart.”
Christina did not name the shop in her video. Douglas tires are sold as a budget option, and the brand’s website redirects to Walmart, where they are described as “affordable and dependable tires for everyday driving.” Douglas confirms on its website that its tires are made by Goodyear.
Disputes between customers and repair shops over parts and pricing have surfaced elsewhere too. In one case, a Louisiana woman said she later discovered her car’s engine parts were used to repair another customer’s vehicle.
Published: Aug 18, 2026 11:15 am