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‘I Drove Like 5 Miles Down the Road:’ Woman Goes to Jiffy Lube For an Oil Change. Then Her Check Engine Light Comes On

"I don’t want to say Jiffy Lube caused this."

Woman goes to Jiffy Lube for an oil change. Then her check engine light comes on

Photo by: noneedtocreep & Sundry Photography

Alexandra Samuels

By: Alexandra Samuels

Dec 3, 2025 at 6:00am ET

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A woman says she had a stressful experience at Jiffy Lube following an oil change. Everything seemed fine—it wasn’t.

Jess Apple (@noneedtocreep) says of her appointment, "They were so fast."

The trouble began shortly after she left. "I drove like 5 miles down the road, and my check engine light came on," she says. She pulled over safely, but the problems didn’t stop there.

"Another light came on. Now I’m sitting here with my hood up," Apple adds.

Apple called Jiffy Lube to explain, and an employee offered to come check her car. "So I’m waiting for the Jiffy Lube guy," she says in her clip, which has racked up more than 51,100 views as of this writing. "I wasn’t expecting that."

What Happened Next?

In a follow-up video, Apple says the employee was "super nice" and examined her car, noting that the engine was getting "choked out" and not getting enough air. He suspected the issue was with the catalytic converter, she says.

Apple drove her car to her child’s school after the employee said it was safe, while her husband arrived with an OBD reader to diagnose the problem.

"I don’t want to say Jiffy Lube caused this," she says, "but it is very odd. What do you think?"

Later, Apple says she got a call from Jiffy Lube offering to recheck her car, but her husband ended up fixing it. She says his diagnostic reader could tell that her car was "misfiring on cylinder two," a problem that required buying new spark plugs.

In her final clip, she test-drives the car and says everything seemed fine.

"I don’t think Jiffy Lube actually did anything to my car," she says, explaining the issue was a worn spark plug. "I think the spark plug was needing a replacement, and changing the oil called that to attention in my motor. Seems fine so far."

So…What Was Wrong With Her Car After Jiffy Lube?

Apple says she eventually learned the issue had nothing to do with her oil change. Her car was experiencing a misfire on cylinder two, which means the fuel and air in that part of the engine aren’t burning as they should. A misfire typically manifests as a flashing check engine light or an engine that shakes or idles roughly.

According to AutoZone, a worn spark plug is one of the most common reasons for this kind of misfire, though several other problems can trigger the same warning. That’s likely why the Jiffy Lube employee offered to go through everything step by step once she brought the car back.

Figuring out what’s really wrong starts with simple checks. The spark plug in cylinder two needs to be inspected for wear or damage. Drivers can usually tell if it’s time for a new one by looking for obvious signs of aging or buildup. AutoZone recommends replacing spark plugs every 30,000 to 100,000 miles, depending on the vehicle, and suggests checking the owner’s manual for specific guidance. The good news is that changing spark plugs is something many people can do at home with the right tools.

However, if your car suddenly displays a check engine light and you’re unsure what’s causing it, letting a certified mechanic take over is the safer option. Driving with a misfire can cause more significant and expensive problems down the line.

Did They Find the True Cause of Her Car Problems?

People following Apple’s four-part saga weren’t entirely convinced that a fouled spark plug explained everything, even though her test drive seemed to go smoothly. Several argued that her car was likely dealing with something deeper.

"The spark plug was way fouled. There’s bigger issues in the engine," one viewer argued. "The spark plug will be toast again in a few days."

Another chimed in with an even stronger warning, replying, "Trust me, the spark plug replacement cures it for like 2-3 weeks if that. The problem is that there is severe carbon buildup on your piston rings…Please don’t miss out on potentially getting your engine replaced or rebuilt."

Others added their own maintenance tips.

"The 3.5 needs 4,000-mile oil changes & you need to over-maintain the engine," one viewer advised.

Still, some people insisted that they’d never trust Jiffy Lube regardless of what Apple concluded, pointing to their own experiences.

"I had that problem once after an oil change, and they left a rag in the air filter component," one person alleged.

"They seriously messed up our car before we left on vacation, and when we brought it to their attention, they couldn’t have cared less," another claimed.

What do you think?

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"One time they put too much oil in my car, and I had to turn around, come right back, it was surging crazy," a third asserted.

Motor1 has reached out to Apple via a direct message on TikTok and to Jiffy Lube via email. We’ll update this if either responds.

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