'You Will Never Guess What We Found:' Ford Salesman Gets Back Loaner Vehicle. Then He Looks Inside the Trunk

• Ford

A Ford dealership's routine loaner vehicle return turned into an unexpected cleanup nightmare that left both employees and potential customers scratching their heads. 

What started as a simple vehicle inspection ended up requiring a complete interior overhaul. Some say the drivers are not to blame, instead chalking it up to a critter like a squirrel or mice.

Why Is This New 2025 Heritage Bronco Sport Filled With Corn?

In a viral video with more than 90,000 views, car salesman Tom (@saleswithtom) shared the weird stuff left in a loaner car. 

Tom explained that the dealership sometimes allows specific new vehicles to be used as loaners, and on this occasion, it loaned out a 2025 Heritage Bronco Sport to a customer for a few days.

"You will never guess what we found inside this car," Tom said.

The initial return seemed routine enough. Tom explained that after getting the Bronco Sport back, the staff noticed corn kernels and other debris inside the vehicle. They cleaned it up, detailed it, and prepared it for sale, assuming the surface cleaning had addressed the issue.

But the extent of the corn kernel issue only became clear after potential customers took the vehicle for a test drive. 

"We hear rattling coming from the back seat and from what sounds like touching metal, like, almost like plastic on metal," they told Tom.

Upon closer inspection, the dealership team discovered the corn kernels had infiltrated far deeper than initially thought. 

"There are bumps underneath the carpet, like little tiny bumps," Tom explains, describing how the corn had worked its way into every crevice of the vehicle's interior.

The situation escalated quickly when they pulled up the back seat, revealing corn kernels "all over the vehicle, all underneath the vehicle, and especially the little cracks where things are bolted and then you can get underneath the carpet."

Unsurprisingly, the test-drive customers decided against buying the car. 

"I don't blame them," Tom said.

Gallery: 2023 Ford Bronco Heritage Edition and Bronco Sport Heritage Edition

Were They Able to Get the Corn Out?

The cleanup process proved far more extensive than anyone anticipated. The dealership had to involve both its service and body shop departments to address the corn contamination. 

"It turns out that the corn has wedged itself so far underneath the carpet at this point that we have to take out the entire interior, remove the carpet, remove the corn, and then re-put everything back in the vehicle," Tom explains.

"This is a first for me and I'm sure many other people," he said.

Is the Customer Responsible for the Damage?

When customers borrow loaner vehicles from dealerships, they typically sign agreements outlining their responsibilities for any damage that occurs during their use, the Grife Law Firm explained. 

Most dealership policies hold customers financially liable for repairs beyond normal wear and tear. The financial implications can be substantial, including the cost of repairing the damage (which can be considerable depending on the extent of the damage) and your insurance going up once the claim is filed. 

Insurance coverage can become complex when loaner vehicles are involved, as both the customer's personal auto insurance and the dealership's coverage may need to coordinate. 

For situations involving unusual contamination like this corn incident, responsibility may depend on whether the dealership can prove the customer was negligent in their care of the vehicle.

Commenters React

“Who'd you loan the car to. Send them a bill and refuse service and loaners until they pay it,” a top comment read.

“When you found the corn the first time you didn’t pay attention to detail and clean it all out and look at all over and do 100% inspection on it. That’s on you,” a second person pointed out.

“It's harvest season. he needed his truck to do truck things,” a third wrote.

“I’ve seen a squirrel make a home in a vehicle and fill it with corn, nuts, acorns, you name it,” another commenter shared.

Motor1 reached out to Tom for comment via TikTok direct message and comment. This story will be updated should he respond.