okay... what did i break??

[410Fortune]

take the tire off and look
get pictures if you can, without the tires, of the beam, shock, radius arm, ball joints, and tie rods

 

[MiZZ]

take the tire off and look
get pictures if you can, without the tires, of the beam, shock, radius arm, ball joints, and tie rods

yea i've checked everything without the tire on, I will get some pictures up for you guys of those particular areas, hopefully maybe you can see something that i'm missing! -Mike

 

[mikeinri]

Hey Mike,

Here is the best advice I can give you. I have similar mechanical and troubleshooting ability levels as you (from what I can tell). I can fix just about anything once I know what to look for.

I can also say that I've had my share of "invisible" front end issues. What I normally do is take the vehicle to a shop, let them diagnose/estimate the job, ask them to show me exactly what is wrong and what parts need to be replaced (while it's in the heated garage and on the lift), thank them and leave.

Of course, unless you're very friendly with them (give them lots of business over the years), they'll try all day long to sell you the repair. Sometimes they charge a nominal fee ($25.00). Just get out of there without letting them do the work and it shouldn't cost you much, and if they do charge you for the diagnostics, it's a great investment and valuable lesson. You could try being flat-out honest and tell them that after you fix it yourself, you'll bring it to them for the alignment business.

If they really push it, you can tell them you're just looking for a few estimates (blame the insurance company or whatever, it was technically a collision).

Then you can decide if it's a job that you even WANT to tackle. Don't know your personal situation, but sometimes, if it's a $100-200 job, that's more than worth it to me to let someone else deal with it in the middle of the winter.

Hey, with all the extra hours you're working, hopefully you'll have some extra cash to pay for it (and of course, even less time to fix it).

Good luck, keep us posted!

Mike

 

[MiZZ]

sounds like a good idea, I was considering that but i though they'd give me a list of BS repairs so i wouldn't actually know what really needs to be replaced.. but having them personally show me whats wrong is a good idea.. however most shops around me have you drop the car off and they get to look at it whenever it fits in, in-between customers repairs and all.

yep i'm exactly like you LOL once ya show me whats broken, It's not a problem for me to figure out how to fix it. but FINDING the problem is sometimes more of an issue than the actual repair lol.

Definetly working alot of hours and im sorry for the delay in pictures and info!! but with a boat loan payment due every month sometimes even more hours are needed LOL. (march is offically the last payment/installment though! ) anyways, going to pick up the parts explorer tomorrow.... I know this is not the classifieds, but a heads up if anyone needs any parts... or even 92 4.0 perfect running motor/tranny (needs clutch)/tcase, front/rear axle/parts etc. will ship smaller/lighter parts but big/heavy parts will have to be picked up PM me

back on topic... I'm going to see if maybe i can see whats bent, or out of place tomorrow when i get the parts truck here to compair it to. because physically on my truck everything seems solid and in place..(besides the mentioned). so if no luck then otherwise I guess the mechanic quote is my next best choice.... All i know is IF i take it to a mechanic, it's not leaving my site! (I know theres many honest auto-techs out there, but pretty much every shop i've tried around me is the money hungry, willing to break what isn't broken for the extra dollar mechanic type...) LOL but we'll see what happens....

-Mike

 

[mikeinri]

I just looked and realized you're in RI!!! I lived in RI most of my life (just moved last year), so all the places I've gone to do this have been in RI (or nearby in MA). What part of RI are you in?

If it's still there (lots of construction when they moved Home Depot), Firestone on Rt. 6 in Seekonk, MA is good. They may give you some BS that it's unsafe to drive and they're not allowed to let you leave, but that was 10 years ago when they tried that with me...

There's a tire shop on Rt. 6 in Johnston, on the west side of 295 (can't recall the name of it, but it's about 1.5 miles past 295, on the left side). Might be called Tire Pros.

There's a Midas (or Meinekee) also on Rt. 6 in Johnston, just east of Town Hall, sort of across from McDonald's and BJ's. They were surprisingly honest with me for an exhaust leak (was just a flange, they could have raked me over the coals for a whole system).

About 20 years ago I lived in Newport, and there was a Speedy, Midas, etc. in Middletown that was pretty good about this. They were the only ones who have ever charged me for this. It's across the street from the Christmas Tree Shop (may be down the road a bit, that's the only reference I can think of).

I've had some work done at a few Pep Boys (Seekonk, East Providence, Warwick), but usually I've know what was needed and wanted them to do the work. They've been pretty bad about the whole "just leave it here" deal.

Wherever you go, the real key is taking the time and telling them you need to stay with the car, don't let them give you any BS that they're too busy. I find that if you get to a place just before they open in the morning, you usually beat the mayhem.

Good luck!

Mike

 

[MiZZ]

alright guys, I got a couple of pictures for yas... also I took a couple pictures on how the alighnment/wheel position is... these pictures are the best I could do, Hope these help someone help me diagnose my problem, It's been a week since the curb incident and I really need my ex back on the road!!


passanger side...

driver side (wheel is turned left, to give better view. I used a friends camera phone to snap these because it's better quality than mine, so I didn't have a chance to take the wheel/tires off. Hope these are good enough to figure out whats up! or at least what to focus on and what to elminate... I was under there for about 2 hours today moving and examining the radius arms, ball joints, tie rod/tie rod end. etc etc and i just cannon seem to find whats wrong.

anyways, a couple of the driver side...

I took more of the front end but i guess they didn't send to my email?!!
anyways, heres a couple from the front, and side of the truck... showing just how wacked out the wheels are sitting... I retract my previous statement about the wheels being straight, now that i got a good look at it in the daylight.. they definetly aren't, I'm thinking i was maybe suffering from BLINDNESS lol.

they sit so horribly out of place, the passanger AND driverside tires... I don't even know what to begin to assume is broken/bent.

heres the pics... I took the pictures with the driverside wheel facing/tracking straight.. you can see how the passanger side wheel pokes out as if it wants to turn left while the whole trucks going straight and the chamber and wheel position is WAY off on both of them. (I believe the seriously affected tire is the driverside and it's just throwing the whole alighnment and position of the wheel/axle. but i may be wrong and it could be intrirely the pass side, or both...)

front

pass side.

driver side.

please help, any suggestions about what it may be appreciated! I just need to know what to fix, and i'll do it!! I don't even want to drive it to a mechanic just for a quote on what it needs because at this point i'm afraid the wheels going to fall off while driving it :thumbdwn: lol.

thanks,

-Mike

 

[MiZZ]

Also, Not really related to the topic but I picked up the parts explorer today I mentioned a few post ago... However, Once seeing the truck in person and getting a chance to go over it... I'm not really sure if i want to tare it apart for parts and send it to the junkyard when i'm done.. it's a really nice looking truck in great shape! inside and out, pretty much perfect! aside from a few cosmetics here and there. even has a sunroof, which i wiish i had! LOL 1992 sport 5spd, about 150k clutch is dead so I had to have it towed home (wont go in or out of any gear) motor runs great, It has a exhaust leak right before the muffler, thats about the only problems.. got a very good deal on it so i couldn't say no.... plus all 4 tires are brand new 235s so they'll definetly be going on my explorer!

But i'm definetly willing to take what i need off of it, if it'll help fix my ex!

 

[JDraper]

I want to see a pix of where the driver's side radius arm meets the frame, and one of the whole radius arm mounting bracket. Looking at the last pix of the suspension you posted, it almost looks like the driver's side wheel is pushed back. The angle of the sway bar end link looks funny. I'm wondering if you bent the radius arm mounting bracket....

Also..measure the distance from front hub center to rear hub center (when the wheels are straight) on both sides. They should be equal....

 

[MiZZ]

I want to see a pix of where the driver's side radius arm meets the frame, and one of the whole radius arm mounting bracket. Looking at the last pix of the suspension you posted, it almost looks like the driver's side wheel is pushed back. The angle of the sway bar end link looks funny. I'm wondering if you bent the radius arm mounting bracket....

Also..measure the distance from front hub center to rear hub center (when the wheels are straight) on both sides. They should be equal....

well honestly I don't even have to measure it to tell you that the driverside wheel is definetly pushed back a little!! also the tire rubs pretty good on the inner fender when fully turned left.

if you check out these pics i posted a few days ago on page 1 you can see how the driverside wheel is pushed back and is definetly not centered how it should be.

It's now getting dark so I will get you some more pictures tomorrow in the daylight of the radius arms and brackets, it's just these are located in such an area that it's hard to get a picture with a camera phone even in the daylight.. I'm very close to buying a nice digital cam with a flash and all so getting good and well lit pictures is no longer an issue. but after the parts truck and all a camera will have to wait! but i will take the tires off and get up in there good and try and get some good pictures for yas... thanks again not sure what i'd do without this site in this situation!!! so rest assured any and all help is greatly appreciated! thanks, Mike

 

[MiZZ]

I will snap some pictures tomorrow hopefully if I have enough time before dark, sorry for the delay as uaual!! lol. -Mike

 

[ExploringNC]

I havn't read the entire post so I don't know what all has been discused. I did something similar offroading, hit a concrete pipe dead center on passenger wheel. Next day after getting some of the mud off I found I had split my steering Rack. I thought I had really messed things up but it turned out nothing was bent and all I needed was a new Steering Rack and a lower ball joint. As you can see in the pic the tire is turned to the right a little(steering wheel was actually turned to the left) and I found the center cap smashed flat. Not sure if 1st gen have a Rack and Pinion or not but you may want to check your steering linkage.

 

[vroomzoomboom]

hate to tell you, but you may also have frame damage. look under your truck, and pay VERY close attention to see if there is any bends, or cracking of the factory paint on the frame, or even very small metal spots.

 

[MiZZ]

I havn't read the entire post so I don't know what all has been discused. I did something similar offroading, hit a concrete pipe dead center on passenger wheel. Next day after getting some of the mud off I found I had split my steering Rack. I thought I had really messed things up but it turned out nothing was bent and all I needed was a new Steering Rack and a lower ball joint. As you can see in the pic the tire is turned to the right a little(steering wheel was actually turned to the left) and I found the center cap smashed flat. Not sure if 1st gen have a Rack and Pinion or not but you may want to check your steering linkage.

That sounds exactly like my problem... with the steering wheel and wheel/tire position WAY off and all. this is possiblely my problem, or at least part of it... what exactly should i check?

(it's never something easy! lol) anyways nice EX I love to see a rig all mudded up..

I'm pretty sure my left tire clipped the little pole i was speaking about before, I have no for sure proof because as soon as i slid up on the curb i backed right off and changed my flat tire. I'm 95% sure my driverside tire took a good hit on the inner portion of it while the tires where turned left.. i went and further looked at the fence post but the fence has since been put up so even if the post was bent, it was probably fixed when they put the chain link fence up.

just wanted to include that, if it helps anything... it was only a fence post but it was based in concrete so pretty strong still, I'm thinking this is what probably helped push the driverside wheel so far back... i'm sure the curb inpact didn't help either though. the pole should have scrapped the fender but i believe my wheel was turned so far left that the pole iddn't have to get too close to the body, but still gave the wheel a good hit.


I was bored at work today and used MS paint to better illistrate what I mean and whats happening here. give me a second to post them.

 

[MiZZ]

this first picture is to better explain my whole steering wheel alignment and wheel/tire position/tracking issue.

this second one, is a 2 part picture.. the small picture up top, is how it looks when looking at the truck from the front. this was to show how the chamber of the tires are. vs. how it would normally look.

The second, more colorful part of the pic (lol) on the bottom is an illistration of the whole curb and fence post part of it, and where i believe the post to have hit on the inner portion of the wheel/tire. (pictures are not to scale or exacts but you get the idea)

haha... I have access to a computer at work but it doesn't have the internet so MS paint seemed to pass the time.. I got a little too into it on the second one HAHA i was bored!. hope these help something!! if not, it was still fun making em while i was supposed to be working, haha

thanks,

-Mike

 

[MiZZ]

jdraper, how you said the angle of the sway bar end link looks off... I investigated it on my 'parts' explorer, and you're right... on the parts explorer the end link is only about an inch away from the coil spring.. on my daily ex (the green one, with the front end prob) the end link seems to be a good 2-2.5" off.. (just a ballpark range, I didn't measure...yet), just took a quick look at it and it's definetly differant and way off even to the eye between the 2 trucks.

if that helps. also i seem to be leaking power steering fluid now, not alot, but theres a good half dollar size spot under the truck now and the fluid is a little low... it NEVER EVER leaked anything before, so i know this is new.. going to try and track the leak down tomorrow and put a quick end to it!!

working on those pics for ya as well, sorry as usual for the delay LOL..

thanks,

-Mike

 

[MiZZ]

hate to tell you, but you may also have frame damage. look under your truck, and pay VERY close attention to see if there is any bends, or cracking of the factory paint on the frame, or even very small metal spots.

ouch why ya gotta go and say all that for and get me all worried?!?! lol... Hopefully this isn't the case, it would be a shame if it has frame damage over a curb incident... my truck is in really great shape and I'd love to keep it for a while so hopefully it's not this severe, I would have filed an accident report and went thru my insurance if i knew it might have been this bad.....

Hope not....

-Mike

 

[vroomzoomboom]

ouch why ya gotta go and say all that for and get me all worried?!?! lol... Hopefully this isn't the case, it would be a shame if it has frame damage over a curb incident... my truck is in really great shape and I'd love to keep it for a while so hopefully it's not this severe, I would have filed an accident report and went thru my insurance if i knew it might have been this bad.....

Hope not....

-Mike

well this is the worst case. a even better way is to look at the way all your body parts line up. if the front of your truck looks like it has shifted of to one side or the other, or your fender gaps are not even to the door, or hood seems alittle off, then you will know for sure that you have tweaked the frame a bit