Mechanic left with dilemma after fixing customer's starter issue in just 2 minutes
Published on Sep 30, 2025 at 6:54 AM (UTC+4)
by Claire Reid
Last updated on Sep 30, 2025 at 9:26 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Kate Bain
This New Jersey mechanic was left with a moral conundrum after he was able to fix a customer’s starter issue in just two minutes.
For most of us, when something goes wrong with our vehicle, a mechanic is the first port of call – especially if the problem seems pretty major.
However, occasionally, an issue that motorists think is huge and expensive to fix turns out to be a lot more straightforward.
Which was what recently happened to one man in New Jersey, leaving his mechanic in an awkward spot.
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Mechanic’s moral conundrum
Every so often, you’ll hear a story of a mechanic who takes a car that appears to have a serious problem, but it’s actually remedied with a simple fix.
Like this one, who got a Chevy Tahoe up and running again after the dealership had attempted two engine swaps to no avail.
A similar situation arose recently when New Jersey mechanic and TikTok user JDL Mobile Repair LLC was called out to a job.
He said the owner of the car insisted that he needed his starter replaced.
So, he got the starter and headed out to the job where he asked the owner to pay up front.
“The problem is, before I can collect the payment, he hands me the keys, like, you know, do you mind checking it real quick?” the mechanic explained.
After trying to start the car, it soon became clear to the mechanic that the starter wasn’t the problem.
Due to the noise the car made, he realized it was simply a flat battery and was able to give it a jump start to get it back running again.
“So now the moral dilemma is, do I charge what, technically, I am owed?” he asked.
“Technically, by signature and on the paperwork, it is what I’m technically owed. The part and the labor for the job that we had agreed upon. Or do I do what is truly right? What feels right in here, and just charge him for a jump start?”
What did the mechanic do?
The mechanic eventually decided to just charge him for the jump start, but he also gave the motorist some top advice.
He said that in the future, he should pay to have a diagnostic run before attempting to guess what’s wrong with his car.
The man could have ended up seriously out of pocket for a part he didn’t need, and running a diagnostic would have ensured that didn’t happen.
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Claire Reid is a journalist who hails from the UK but is now living in New Zealand. She began her career after graduating with a degree in Journalism from Liverpool John Moore’s University and has more than a decade of experience, writing for both local newspapers and national news sites. Claire covers a wide variety of topics, with a special focus on cars, technology, planes, cryptocurrency, and luxury.
