So a mobile mechanic started in on my van to replace the tie rods, idler arms, pitman arm and steering drag link.My drive is somewhat sloped and he had me back the van down the drive until the rear wheels rested in the low point drainage flow line of the drive. This put the very rear of the extended van about a foot into the actual roadway. I was cool with that because his panel truck was parallel parked at least 2’ onto the side of this neighborhood road blocking any traffic from my van.

He gets the old parts out and tells me one of the parts was wrong and takes off to get the right part. I line up some trash cans along the edge of the road like traffic cones and pull up a chair and sit with an old traffic flag I have. He calls and says no one has the part and it will be a week before it comes in the mail.

I tell him my van is partly in the road and he says there’s nothing he can do about that. Needless to say I wasn’t happy. The front of the van was on jack stands with the wheels off. I put another trash can in line so I have 4 of them lined up starting like 30’ from my van. Later that day (yesterday) I went out to get my mail and the 2 “most upstream” of the trash cans had been hit. My mechanic is not responding to my calls which is often the case.

Sorry it took so long to describe just to get to my question. My ball joints are still in place and were not being replaced but the base of the wheel with the lug bolts (tires are off) swing like doors left to right. If I put the wheels back on and get his jack stand out and line the wheels straight by hand do you think I could drive it forward away from the road a couple feet by driving a couple inches at a time and coming back out and kicking the tires straight?

 

That would likely work...... Just go VERY SLOW.

I am curious though, why it takes a WEEK to get the part????? Around here, for common parts like that, I can get them next day, at the latest.....

 

He’s a good mechanic and saiid something about the “control arm sleeves”- that usually in conjunction with the control arm themselves one piece is long and the other short but on my van that’s reversed (which is long and which is short) and that it was “a special order” because of that. And he actually said 5 days to a week but either is way too long.

I also realize he used a jack mid axle to put the 2 jack stands under the same axle. But I can jack only one side at a time to pull them out and don’t know if that will bust my axle.

Edit- I don’t know that it’s an actual axle but the stands are lined up between the front wheels.

 

Shouldn't be a problem, provided they aren't up too high..... Go gently, make sure the rear wheels are blocked, so the van CAN'T roll......

 

thanks very much

 

Check the local jails .... mechanic may need to be bailed out so they can finish the job.

 

Granted it was wrong to leave “my rear end” out a bit in the road but this guy has now done enough work for me that
I would probably bail him out if he were in jail. My road gets about 30 cars an hour at rush hour times and I wouldn’t have called it an emergency except someone had hit 2 of my “guard” trash cans.


it’s next to impossible to find anywhere near a decent mechanic in S. FL but with this guy I get good solid work at what I know are more than fair prices. He charges me retail for all parts and gives me the receipts.

He did come by today- slapped my wheels back on and instead of putting weight on the wheels he lowered the jack so the wheels barley touched the ground and I got the 2’ forward I needed rolling on the centered jack instead of the wheels.

Now if my van had been hit this would all have been a different story.

 

I don't like moving vehicles that way.... as if it slips off the jack, the jack goes into the oil pan. Just not a good scene.

 

Wow, I’m glad I didn’t know that at the time.

I’ve put off this front end work way too long because all the local shops scare me. Years ago I bought my own Moog lower ball joints and took them to a national franchise shop and had them installed. Or thought I did. The clunking stopped but not for long. I was a thousand miles away from the first shop to find out they has charged me over $500 to just grease up and tighten my old ball joints and kept my Moogs.

I don’t think I’d have believed the 2nd shop that told me what I thought were my fairly new ball joints were bad except they weren’t that tell tale Moog blue.

Anyway I think a good honest mechanic with their own shop would make a fortune in S. Fl. but I haven’t found one yet. The guy doing the work I need now has never given me a receipt and I know not to even ask about warranties. With this recent rear in the road and ride on a jack I realize how lucky I’ve been. I saw today I’ve got two upper control arms to go and with the sage advice from this forum hope for many mechanic free miles to go.

SDIT- Just in time too. Went from this post to Google the news- “25% tariffs announced on foreign car parts”.

 

Theoretically, your Dodge isn't 'foreign'.... But, it that applies to any parts made overseas, regardless of what it goes on, then just about EVERY car part is going to get more expensive very shortly, as very few are actually made here in the states any more.