Rebuilding front end in dads old work truck... (WARNING, excessive cursing)

[6 Nebraska IDIs]

Well, since my moms 94 has been down all year she's been driving a mixture of my vehicles and my dads. After we took his old work truck in to a truck alignment shop to find out "everything" that needed replaced on the front end to tighten it back up to driving condition for her, they told us it needed new ball joints, all axle universals, new axle seals (which really werent fun at all), tie rod ends and drag link. So we replaced all of that, and just got it back in to get it aligned and they didnt do **** to it! I went back two hours later and it was sitting outside, nothing done to it. So I go in to find out what the deal is and they pull out this list of **** that needs done to it again. ***!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
So the guy continues to tell me it sits WAY to low in the front (***, it sits like any other F250) says there's only like 1/2-3/4" clearance between the axle and the snubbers. And then continues to say, it needs new springs, new spring eye bushings (dont they come with new springs?) all of them, another new drag link (***!!!!!!!!!!!), new camber shims (which is fine, because they normally need changed when aligned anyway), new center pivot bushings, and new axle drop links (***?).
*** prett much sums it up!
It totaled up to over $1300.
It took all the restraint I had to keep from grabbing that guy by the collar, pulling him over the counter and beating the **** out of him right there in front of all his buddies. This only because he was almost laughing the whole time he was reading the list of ****.

My biggest issue with this is, why didnt they tell us we had all this other **** wrong with it the first time we took it in. Thats what we paid them the $75 the first time for. Now they charged us another $75 because I left with the list and didnt have them do the work.

I swear to God there is no more honest decent living human beings on this planet anymore.

 

[BigRigTech]

Yep, this is why I never let anyone work on my truck.....If I take it in for an alignment I stand there and watch them do it or I take it to somebody else who will let me watch.....If your gonna touch my truck or my wife you better expect me to see it........Sounds like BS to me, I highly doubt you need all that. Throw some new springs in it if it really needs them and then take it somewhere else.

 

[4x4TruckinGirl]

Wow, thats some BS there... there really aren't many honest individuals anymore.... oh well.

 

[h2odrx]

take it somewhere else.

Fast!!!!

 

[Russ]

Just playing devils advocate here. A lot of shops are hurting for work so they really look for things that are questionable. I'd find a new shop. I took my wife's car in for sate inspection, and they failed it because one tire had a higher speed rating than the others,(she had a blow out and that was all the tire shop had at the time). The ****** is that the "wrong" tire had a HIGHER speed rating than what the car called for. Lets just say THAT shop will never see another dime of my money. I would look for someplace else.

 

[6 Nebraska IDIs]

I dont know where else to take my vehicles, this was the last honest shop in town. All the rest are bigger crooks than these guys, or dont know what the hell they are doing.
To be honest it sits higher than the other F250's we have. So I dont know where they are getting that the springs are weak, this my biggest beef with the list, bushings maybe, but I dont see these springs being weak. Pivot bushing, okay probably with over 300k on it. Drag link, maybe since we used a used one we had sitting here, I dont know.
I just dont know what to do here, the truck isnt worth putting much more money into.

 

[h2odrx]

What did you ask them to do? Rebuild the front end or align the truck, sometimes it is all in how you ask?

 

[6 Nebraska IDIs]

We brought it in to have them align the truck, thats what I asked them to do. Instead they estimated a whole repair job.

 

[h2odrx]

See that is messed up. You said the first time you took it to them they told you stuff had to be replaced? Did you ask them then to just align it? If so and they told you stuff had to be replaced and you said I'll fix it. Then you take it back and say please align it. They then tell you it needs more stuff fixed. I'd ask can you not put an alignment on it? Then you may have to still try a different shop. Just tell them you replaced alot of stuff on the front end and need them to look at it and see if they can align it?

Sometimes it is all in how you ask. kind of like in Star Wars when Ob1 says "these aren't the droids you are looking for"

 

[MUDKICKR]

ok dont flame me here but what kind of alignment machine do they have? where i work are alignmant machine requires us to remove the frt tires, bolt alignment brackets to your hubs and set them on bearing plates, then we put your trk down and the weight of your trk rests on them, (your tires make no differance on our alignment machine since there off) now we take a measurement from there and turn the wheels to full lock one way, then the other way. so if there machine is like ours if they see any play at all the alignment would be out, also if someone shakes the tires up and down, left to right they can find ball joint wear and tie rod wear both if all are bad you really cant see leafspring wear. now with everything tight (new ball joints and tie rod ends) they might be able to find leafspring wear, but if it was me i wouldnt pay the second bill, id show them the first bill, and say, you charged me this much to check it out the first time and told me this is what was bad, in writing, now you find more stuff wrong and want to charge me again, no that wont fly, not my fault i asked for a service and it was incomplete, i want my trk and i wont pay a dime since your shop did an incomplete job the first time diagnosis my trk.

 

[ttman4]

Well I don't know bout rest you guys, but I've nearly decided that running with no wheel weights is best of the best!!!
Been screwing round all year with local tire/frontend shop & seems things kept getting worse. Not to speak of how they got attitudie & sarcastic about me "being a difficult & hard to please customer with a soft butt!!"
Tire balance....leave with #'s & #'s weights & ruffer ride, carry back & seems that they can't balance their Butt again! Start making sarcastic remarks about Hi-miler rig etc....
Front end allignment....same kind of crapp!!! Carry back, carry back, carry back.
& everything is all new bushings etc under front

Late Dec I carried back "one last time" just before Carol & I left for Tx.....they got kinda snotty & "gave" me another "Free" roadforce balance job since I was being so unreasonably hostile & sh***y......left there with about 5 gal bucket of wheel weights on (5 gal/ 6 tires is little less than a gal of lead per tire, isn't it ) & bouncing & shimming & beating my guts out over 65mph!!!

Also got another "Free" alignment since I was so hostile!!!...& they even gave me another alignment printout to carry with me....I guess to prove something.
(personally I'm convienced their machines are off bigtime, or their printer only prints good stuff)

Well, by now, except for pulling to rt, I bout got the alignment worked out myself! Me & my wernches here & there on roadside....toend was approx 5/8"+ narrower in front of tires then rear, etc, etc, etc.

I left LasVegas & finally started pulling weights off, tire at time...More weights I pulled, smoother she rides!!!!
Time I made Gallup, NM I don't got no-mo wheel weights & she rides nearly as smooth as she ever has her whole life!!!!
If I could finish figuring out how to fix rest of this slight rt pull before I head back to Or, I'd be happy.

Just my 2cents

BTW....don't want to hurt anybodys feelings, but it's nice, sunny, warm, beer drinking weather down here....'ya know, they kind 'ya really enjoy....the "Life Is Good" kind......flip-flopps, shorts, cool-rays.......

 

[6 Nebraska IDIs]

BTW....don't want to hurt anybodys feelings, but it's nice, sunny, warm, beer drinking weather down here....'ya know, they kind 'ya really enjoy....the "Life Is Good" kind......flip-flopps, shorts, cool-rays.......

DAMN YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Dirtleg]

BTW....don't want to hurt anybodys feelings, but it's nice, sunny, warm, beer drinking weather down here....'ya know, they kind 'ya really enjoy....the "Life Is Good" kind......flip-flopps, shorts, cool-rays.......

I will have to agree. The weather is fine in Houston today. A slight chill early this morning but nothing unpleasant.

And about the wheel weights I'm onboard with what you are saying. I have lifetime free rotation and balance on my tires. Last time I took it in they did a poor job and used the wrong type of wheel weights. (I have aluminum rims they used steel rim weights) It rode terrible after the balancing and within a few miles I heard a loud "Bang" from the left front. At first I thought they had overtightened a stud and it popped. When I got where I was going I looked for anything that might be wrong. Nothing. Over the next few days I kept hearing these same noises at random times from the 4 corners of the truck. It was the wheel weights flying off. Remarkably it just started riding smoother and smoother. Now it rides great and almost all the weights have ejected themselves.

Nebraska, find an independant shop where the owner still turns wrenches. He/she will care what the customers think about their service. $75 for alignment is too much. I paid $48 4 months ago. When I first took the truck in they put it on the rack and noticed I had 2 bad ball joints and a bad tie rod. No charge. I fixed all of that (D60 no fun) and took it back. When I took it back they aligned it. Charged me $48 but the steering wasn't centered. I asked them to center it (it was centered and tracked great with the bad ball joints, go figure) and I'll be damned if the guy didn't spend an hour trying. Still not right but close. Determined that most likely bad panhard bar bushings or leaf spring bushings as it seemed that he would adjust it but then it would readjust itself slightly during the road test. No additional charge.

Just an example but I made it to prove the point that there are still honest mechanics. Also this guy, due in part to his honesty, is slammed busy always so appointment only. I wish I had bought my tires from him but I was in Texas when I had to purchase them.

 

[MUDKICKR]

ttman4 i know how to fix your slight rt pulling problem, let out some air in your left tire. That will fix the pulling problem and is the cheapest and easiest way to do it

 

[h2odrx]

do any shops balance the tires on the trucks? someone told me about this one time said it makes a big difference?