im lazy so i find the easy ways to do stuff .. also the guys that want you to take it off dont realise that if you do that then you will have to hae an allignment for sure .. you cant take them off without messin with the allignment. unles you only pop the ball joint end on the tierod but then the grease boot usually gets messed up when doing that aswell..

 

so i really dont need to bring it to a place? if i were to bring it to a mechanic would they do the same thing? or do they got a machine to check it or do they take the tire off? because im sure they wouldnt do a bunch of extra work for no reason, especially since you got to do a re alignment every time you mess with that stuff.

i was just going to bring it to a place to get it checked out and what problems i have are,but if they are only going to jack it up and wiggle the tire then i can do that ..

i just wanted them to tell me my problem, leave, and then i was going to have a friend help me put on a new tierod or whatever i bad.. then go back for just an alignment

 

1. Yes it's that easy, well they can or some do use a Dial Indicator to measure the play in bearings. However if it's bad you will feel it. Not sayin a shop will screw you, but I find a lot of the time they don't wanna mess with something, or for this or that reason, and then they make you buy a part you really don't need just because they want the job to be easier for them. Not to mention they make more money. One thing I ALWAYS tell a shop is I want to have ALL parts back that are removed to check them and they usually don't want to because they want you to believe everything they tell you. I ALWAYS wanna see the why and how comes.

2. One way to find out is to tell them you want to actually see the problem before they fix it. You can always have it checked out at a local shop but be up front with them and tell them you would like to do the work but you need a second opinion and let them charge you a small fee for their time, besides, if you can't fix it or you are uncomfortable with the problems they show you then you can just have them fix it for you.

 

thanks thats a great answer, really.

it seems like most places i go to try to rip me off with something, because im young "21yrs" and dont know to much about cars so when they tell me something and i dont understand they think they can just keep going on about what else i need. so i think its a good idea to say what you just said, i just thought it would be kinda rude or something to ask them to show me the problem before they fix it, i didnt think people did that but i guess they do, and the part about asking for the part they took off, i think i remember asking that acouple years ago at some place and they said something i forgot but i never got it, the guy said he replaced my computer or something i remember it cost me alot..

and before i brought it to this break place to get my breaks checked out, my car was fine, the breaks were just alittle touchy so i wanted to get them checked, they said they looked fine but my tierod was bad, i thought that was weird, now a month later my back break is leaking and my tierod is bad.. im not blaming that on them, i just think its strange how this stuff started happening i dont drive crazy or had hit anything besides some speed bumps..

my breaks are leaking from within the drum too on the back passenger side... man so many problems i need to get them all fixed ASAP, i got no time too iv been driving like this for weeks, im going over my friends house tonight and jacking my car up and see if i can find any play in the tire. the play would be on the side of the bad tire correct?

 

Yes the play will be on the bad tire side. Keep the other side on the ground with full weight and really put your shoulder into it. Remember to have the wheel your testing off the ground by about 1/2 or 1 inch and you can place a crow bar between the tire and the ground for the added pressure and wiggle looking at all places on the inside for rocking or abnormal movement.

As for the rear wheel, if it's break fluid it's probably the wheel cylinder. To get it off the drum smack real hard with a big hammer right between the lug bolts, then work it off. Also put the lug nuts on first to make sure you don't mess up the threads if you smack em by accident.


It's always like that, I take it in for something and get it back with something else. Can't explain that because when I fix something I usually 95% of the time have no other problems but taking it in I get about 90% with issues.....Just sayin

 

just my opinion, but any honest mechanic will explain and show you the problems. its what i do i never ever just tell someone "hey this is bad,or this needs to be fixed " i always show them so they can see that im not tryin to rip them off , even though they might not have the slightest clue what im telling or showing them it makes me feel better. and anyone that doesnt do that is in my book SKETCHY..

 

Well said, and that's why your shop is a good one.

 

no more shop.. its just me and my garage and spare time now .. too much headaches running a shop im only 30 and gots grey hair 0.o.. so now i just do it on the side when im bored or need some extra cash

 

ok guys well i jacked the tire up and had no play at all. my friend looked at it and said my sway links need replacing becuase the bushings are totally worn.

now im sure thats not the main problem, i need to get this fixed ASAP my tire is starting to really ware down.

he looked at the tierods and they looked ok as well, what about the struts or the shocks, can they cause that? thats what i read in another thread. what the struts or the shocks cause the worn sway link bushings

 

lol when i really needed someone no one answered, just changed my struts and sway links, that what was the problem