Learned my lesson about brake fluid at a shop in Tacoma

Old guy at Fisher's Auto in Tacoma watched me pour DOT 3 into a car that called for DOT 4 and just shook his head. Now I double check every single cap before I pour anything, what's the worst mistake you've seen from someone just being in a rush?

3 comments

3 Comments

verawhite28d ago

Grabbed a jug of washer fluid thinking it was coolant one time, felt real smart.

oscar74328d ago

Did anyone else ever mix up the red and blue bottles in a dark garage, or was that just me? I grabbed a bottle of something thinking it was antifreeze one freezing morning, only to realize it was a half-empty bottle of windshield de-icer fluid I'd forgotten about. @verawhite, your story reminded me of that because I stood there looking at the bottle like a total goof, wondering why it smelled like alcohol. Ended up pouring it in anyway out of desperation because my radiator was steaming, and then spent all winter worrying my car would blow up. It didn't, but I still felt like a certified genius for that move.

rodriguez.felix26d ago

My buddy Mike actually did something similar last year. He grabbed a jug of what he thought was coolant from his shelf, poured half of it in, and then realized the bottle said "summer windshield fluid" right on the label. He just shrugged and drove it like that for months, and somehow the car still runs fine (though I still give him crap about it).