Update 5:37pm CT, May 22: A previous version of this story stated the mechanic was riding in an Uber. The TikToker told the Daily Dot that he was actually riding in a Lyft, despite calling it an Uber in his TikTok video.
A Lyft passenger heard a sound so terrifying that he inspected the car when the trip was over. After looking inside, he realized it was virtually an Lyft with no brakes.
His TikTok video explaining the incident has reached 70,000 views as of publication and sparked a conversation on passenger safety.
User @peter_d_rich, who identifies himself as a professional mechanic, recounted how it all went down.
During his trip, he heard a sound he describes as “as a cast iron skillet with 1,000 pounds of concrete…being dragged across asphalt at 40 mph.”
@peter_d_rich Uber driver had zero brakes on her car. #uberdriver #uber #mechanic #safetyfirst #crash #LaurelRoad4Nurses #tercel ♬ original sound – peter_d_rich
So, he told the driver he was a mechanic and asked if her brakes were ok. From his experience, he said, it sounded like pad or the “meat” of the brakes was gone.
But, the driver said that couldn’t be the case. She claimed had “regenerative braking,” which she allegedly explained as: “the stoppy stuff just comes back.” According to Auto Express, regenerative braking is a common system in modern cars that utilizes the normally wasted energy from braking to recharge a car’s battery.
The TikToker then says he informed the driver that she had misinterpreted the term. He offered to look at the car himself once they arrived at his house.
During his inspection, he says not only was the car suffering brutal internal damage, but he couldn’t find the brake pad at all. He notes that he wasn’t sure how the car was even able to stop on the road.
“She had let her brakes run down so far that she now was through the backing plate,” he says in the video. “I don’t know how this thing stopped at all.”
Afterwards, the TikToker offered to repair the Lyft with no brakes on the spot in his driveway for $60. She declined, which @peter_d_rich says he understood. The situation was odd—it’s not often an Lyft passenger offers to fix your car in their driveway.
But, he emphasized that she needed to take her car to shop immediately, ideally that same day. When she left, the creator says he felt unsure if she took his message to heart. He noted in a comment that he reported the driver to Lyft.
TikTok users were furious at the possibility of an Lyft with no brakes and discussed the risk that passengers in that car might be facing.
“I think brake, steering, and fluid inspection should be a basic requirement to get drive a vehicle,” one user wrote.
“Not only would I had called Uber. But I would’ve called the nonemergency police line too,” another added.
The Daily Dot reached out to Lyft via email for comment.
Update 5:37pm CT, May 22: Peter Richards, who goes by username @peter_d_rich, spoke to the Daily Dot about the incident and clarified that the ride-sharing app he used at the time was Lyft.
He felt compelled to share his story to warn others. “It was such a crazy story that unfortunately, happens all too often. People don’t take care seriously and it’s a real problem,” he told the Daily Dot. Richards said he reported the incident to Lyft, but got a “corporate speak” response and had not heard any updates.
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