Rep Power: 217

So yesterday, I finally got around to changing the tie rod ends on my girlfriend's car. Did the usual prep stuff. Loads of PB Blaster. I get under the car to start working and I notice something is....odd about the cotter pin. Turns out it isn't even a cotter pin! It's a goddamn nail! I spent about 15 minutes messing with this goddamn thing. I ended up breaking the head and pushing it out. Same deal with the other side. So now for the fun part. I pop the tie rod ends out from the knuckle and guess what? There is tape! Yes, tape, being used to hold the boots together! There was grease everywhere. Apparently the guy who changed the axles must have ripped the boots and didn't say anything . What made matters worse was that Advance Auto was literally 5 minutes away and he could have easily just drove there and bought some pins. Now I know I'm somewhat of a shadetree mechanic right now, but if I do a job, I want to make sure it's to the best of my abilities so I don't have any complaints. I know that the regulars here don't really need to deal with this, but if you're new to cars and you have someone work on yours, just double check their work.

 
Rep Power: 291

Woooow, lmao
how much is a damn hose clamp?
like .50 cents?

The suspension is the last thing I want to cheap out on...

A NAIL? REALLY??

 
Rep Power: 352

Did they atleast use ductape?

 
Rep Power: 217

They used this crappy electrical tape. It obviously didn't work because all the boot grease was sloshed all over the wheel well. Lol. There was enough to keep the joint lubricated, but seriously, he could have said something to her. That's just stupid IMO.

 
Rep Power: 811

yeah i always get a shock from reading how most people mod their car. its really scary sometimes.

 
Rep Power: 211

Wooow.. Haha, geez. This is the kind of stuff that makes me want to just go through the process of learning how to do it myself. The garage downtown has a huge window so you can see the mechanic working on your car while you wait. Thats about the only kind of shop I would go to..but wow, a nail and electrical tape, wth... It's amazing how some people don't realize that cars can kill people, you just don't mess around with that kind of stuff. It's like smoking near a propane refueling station.. it's just plain stupidity.

 
Rep Power: 0

LOL, I actually I did something much worse on my own car a while back. I had to replace both left and right lower control arms on my 2004 neon but one of the two 19 mm bolts holding the arms was really rusted and broke off on me, after trying anything and everything for like a week to take them off (dodge quality there ).
So I went to Homedepot and purchased two 3/4 “ bolts, thinking that somehow they would fit and forced the im there. I ended up crossthreading them and therefore not being able to tighten them all the way. So the car would make this clunking noise whenever I go over a bump, make a turn, break or accelerate.
Don’t bash me, that was when I was young and stupid LOL
Best part is that I got rid of the car and got myself a civic

 
Rep Power: 256

i hope you properly fixed it before you sold it to somebody.

 
Rep Power: 313

Scary **** there... why use duct tape? Electrical tape matches the color of the boot LoL... I made a mistake the other day and overtorqued my castle nut for my lower ball joint by 10 ft/lbs and compressed the balljoint a bit... That being said.. I'm changing the balljoint out again even though EVERYONE says its fine. It bothers me that much. You just wanna know you did **** right so the car lasts as long as it can. You start doing stupid **** with suspension and you can have a catastrophic failure which can lead to injury or death. Not only of you but of others around you. That's why you don't play around with that. A blown engine costs money but is replaceable, a stupid suspension mod and a lost life because of it is not

 
Rep Power: 217

I agree 1000%. You never go easy with anything dealing with suspension, brakes, or steering systems. I always ensure everything is good to go before I fire the car up. Buying a torque wrench has made me really OCD, which in this case, is actually a good thing.

 
Rep Power: 228

good thing for your girl!