hey guys i have a 97 dodge ram 1500, and a little while back i hit a decent sized dirt mound. now the steering wheel is sideways while the truck is going stright, and there is a pertty bad clicking noise when its turned all the way to the right. i took it to a machanic tonight, and they gave my a 725$ estimate. the said 400 in ball joints 250 for a tracking bar and an alignment now i was under the impression i only needed an alignment. i'm new to dodge trucks most of my experience is in audis so i'm wonderin if i am being worked or what?

any help would be greatly appreciated

thanks

 

Depending on the labor rate, that sounds about right. How many ball joints? Is this a Dodge dealer? My shop charges $100 an hour, so it wouldn't take long to spend $700.

 

well i'm not disputing the prices but does all this need to be replaced, its a brake shop, he said like 4 ball joints

 

Sure, ball joints wear out and the track bars on our trucks are junk. You could probably get away with an alignment to get the wheel back to straight, but it is not going to solve the front end problems. The truck is older and it probably needs some repairs. You could always get a 2nd opinion.

 

jack the front end of your truck up. grab the top and bottom of the tires and wiggle. if it wiggles you need ball joints. your steering is off, so you definately need an alignment.