Are REAL mechanics a thing of the past....

[R.Taylor]

I'm beyond ******. On Friday I dropped off my truck at the highly rated mechanic who's right next to my business. Pressed for time with Christmas related crap, shopping and preparation.... I did not have the time to do my ball joints so I figured I have them do it. I just did new tires so I needed an alignment.... But with a bad drivers side lower ball joint it's not going to align right. So I drop off the truck with the $800 box of Carli ball joint and a set of front pads. I told them to follow the ball joint directions to the T and to turn my front rotors and install the pads. Picked the truck up at the end of the day.... Another $800..... $450 in labor and $350 for a passenger side wheel bearing assembly. Upon driving home I keep getting a loud popping sound from both left and right ball joints.... The same sound the bad one was making! The next morning I get under the truck and take a look. The problem is..... They skipped the part of the directions that clearly say to check for clearance on the lower ball joint to make sure it does not contact the steering knuckle on full left/right turns. Both lowers rub on the knuckles because they did not grind the excess material off as stated in the directions.

But this is what go me madder than mad can get.......

All 4 bolts which are supposed to be torqued to 150ftlbs that hold the wheel bearing / hub assembly to the knuckle were all backed out 1/16" to 1/4". It's like they started them by hand but didn't follow through with tightening them. I jacked up the truck and tightened down 2 opposing bolts.... I could feel the bolt shoulder make contact with the backside of the flange and then as I tightened them down I could feel it pulling the bearing back into the axle. I left the other 2 bolts as they were so they could see where they F'd up. So now I am wondering if my wheel bearing / hub assembly is screwed since the entire bearing was hanging out 1/4" from being seated. That's a lot of weight on that bearing and race, Not being bolted in all the way... Slightly hanging out. I'm pretty sure I heard a noisy bearing when I was driving it... At first I thought it was tire noise but now I think the bearing is toast.

I called and got a hold of the shop owner.. Now it's back to the shop on Monday morning. I am going to make them pull it all apart, grind the knuckles and most likely replace that bearing assembly.... on their dime.

What really burns me is thinking about what could have gone wrong if I did not notice the hub bolts. Myself, Wife, Daughter and both dogs are going on vacation the day after Christmas... a 300 mile drive to our cabin in the Sierra's. I could just imagine the bolt working themselves out, letting the entire bearing move outwards.... Pushing the rotor outwards to drag against the new pads. I could guess a new rotor, pads and bearing at the minimum would be involved. Luckily the caliper would keep the axle from completely sliding out :--).

With being beyond pressed for time and still mountains of crap to do before Christmas.... I have to deal with this. Let's not forget I still need to get the alignment done at another shop..... on Monday as well!!!

Most mechanics I see these days are not mechanics but someone who can take something apart and put it back together. If your not under the car with them you better give it a good once over cause something may not be right.

 

[BIGNASTY]

.......... YEP!!! parts swappers are the new types coming out of schools. Use to be that they take a component off rebuild it and put it back on, Now its more convenient to SWAP THE PART. BTJMO

 

[GCroyle]

I can sympathize with your issue. I'm not a line tech, not ASE certified, I'm an enthusiast for doing my own repairs and knock on wood, doing pretty good. With that said here's my comments.

I think most folks here know I'm in the aftemarket clutch business and somedays part of the job involves looking at the dead clutch, autopsy time. Sometimes its pretty ugly. Specific example that just happened.

Tiburon V6 clutch. These use a DMF and a pull type cover with a rigid disc. Customer calls, clutch doesn't release. We go over in detail all of the possible concerns and all the while the shop is nope, that didn't happen we know what we're doing etc.

A bit about the car. I just installed one of these for training and my hands were still dirty while I'm talking to the guy. The disc is a rigid, no springs no damper and only slight subtle variation from side to side. I also never ever want to do another Tiburon V6, PITA. Was his disc marked for orientation? not really sure but no matter you should not assume, call.

They call back, talk to another one of our guys they pulled the trans and clutch found they installed the disc backwards. That would explain the no release.

I get another call the next day, yes I remember talking to you, uh huh, OK. Lets see you installed the disc backwards, but you then decided to FLIP it over and try again, right? and now it still doesn't release? Yes I see the problem.

When they installed the disc backwards as the cover pulled down against the disc, the force of bolting it up BENT the rigid drive plate, took a flat disc and DISHED it. Then you didn't get another, you just took the DISHED bent disc and flipped it over.

The bent dished disc was too "fat" and couldn't spin free in the released clutch. And BTW you CRACKED the rigid drive plate with the force of installing it backwards.

They did THREE trans installations to get it running. Please donate your tools to a worthy cause and find a new line of work.

This next issue isn't super common but we've seen it enough. Nissan front wheel drive pass cars and older Nissan P/U's. Customer installed new clutch and it makes one HECK of a squealing noise, noise never goes away while engine is running. Are you sitting down folks? Both of these common apps' allow you to install the release bearing drum roll please.............BACKWARDS...........placing the non rotating shell or case against the rotating diaphragm spring tips.

We've had a lot of discussions at work about bulletins that usually don't get read and I put this on the table. I bought an LED clip on work light. Multi paged multi lingual instructions on how to clip it and plug it in along with safety instructions. This summer I installed a well known brand of timing belt, tensioner, cam pulley and idler kit on my Daughter's Elantra. Do it wrong and you risk bent valves, little things like that. NOT ONE INSTRUCTION BULLETIN OR CAUTION OR WEBSITE for info. Just can't win I guess.

Just after I bought our '97 it needed tires and ball joints. For long forgotten reasons I insisted that the tire shop install brand Y ball joints. Tire shop states, we don't buy much from them you'd be better off buying them your self and we'll install them.

NO THANKS, YOU BUY brand Y THEN I'M PAYING YOU.

The logic was single source responsibility for the job. I paid you for the tires, ball joints, labor and alignment. No finger pointing that we just installed the parts that YOU SUPPLIED, no labor waivers etc.

Hope you get your truck all straightened out, good luck. Sometimes ya gotta vent a little bit.

Gary

 

[jelag]

Hi Gary... keep working and paying into social security... I need the money..

I did new ball joints and tie rod ends on my truck this past summer.. I went to several front end shops... and actually interviewed the shop owners.. in each case I couldn't find a guy I felt comfortable with.. I finally ordered an OTC ball joint press and did the work myself.. and than I took it into a good alignment shop I've used.. I had preset the toe, the thing you can easily change.. but had the wheel 1/3 turn off center... he checked all my work and checked my alignment..

My wife and I now travel 4 months a year in our 5er... and now more than ever are 1,000 miles from our home.. and at the mercy of those guys... I don't have an answer..

I'm now helping a neighbor who had his clutch changed... the pilot bearing is bad.. it either was filled with dirt upon assembly or hit with the input shaft at assembly.. of course the shop (6 months old) says its a bad bearing.. yea sure... So we're going to bore the flywheel and install a true pilot bearing (sealed ball bearing) BTW - putting the flywheel on a grinder we've found that the pressure plate surface is .015" off parallel from the surface of the crank... the guy who ground the flywheel had never checked the grinder or in fact had a clue how to check it....

I was taught to understand the theory of operation and than diagnosis the problem... but today the complex systems have turned all the guys into changing parts.. based on a menu driven system..