2004 expy rear end overhaul

[indychuck]

Hello, I just had a rear pinion seal replaced in the rear end of my 2004 expy by a local business and 10 days later (approx. 100 short-trip miles), I hear this 'rumbling' noise coming from the area that was just worked on.

The mechanic said that I now need a new rear end and that'll be $2200.00. Well, needless to say, I didn't have them rebuild it.

I then took it to the big boys at Ford (without mentioning the recent work) and asked them to diagnose what the noise is I'm hearing coming from the rear end. They called me two hours after dropping it off and they asked if I've recently had the rear end worked on. I said, well as a matter of fact I have!!

Ford said I need a new rear end (for $2200) and that the re assembly of the pinion seal was done improperly. He said that the original pinion nut is still present and that it has been rounded off suggesting it was way over tightened.

The local business isn't playing nice and they say they aren't responsible. They're argument is that the rear end wasn't making noise or 'rumbling' when they did their test drive. They are saying that if they messed up the re assembly that they would've noticed the problem immediately.

I'm writing to ask how I argue their point? As I understand it, it would take time for the gears to start wearing and the metal shavings would start to accumulate over a period of driving the vehicle prior to the rear end starting to fail.

Bottom line is - they local shop that did the original work is not willing to accept that they screwed up and do not want to pay for the new rear end.

I just picked up the EXPY from Ford today and drove it down to the courthouse to file my small claims documentation.

How would you intelligently respond when they say that they would've noticed the symptoms immediately?

Thank you!!

 

[Berg]

i think you explained it pretty good.this navy man understood everything.i won der if the ford guy would go with you to the crappy shot and explain what was done wrong.

 

[rburch]

Over tightening the pinion nut for the preload is probably what happened since the nut was rounded off!

Somebody very inexperience did the work and the shop is trying to save there reputation.

 

[GAINMOB]

sue

 

[WCAWI]

Check your invoice from where it was fixed. See if the crush sleeve was replaced. It must be replaced if you change the pinion seal. If it wasnt, then the pre-load for the bearings would be too tight and will burn up the bearings or the nut could have been left too loose and that would also destroy the bearings.

 

[Clemson82]

A couple of things I would do if I was absolutely sure that the shop messed up my car.

First, is your local shop part of a chain of stores, or just a one store operation? If it's a local chain, contact the district manager or if possible the owner. Always try to escalate the situation to someone with a brain that may want to save a customer.

Second, did you pay with a credit card? If so, you may have some recourse. I had a similar situation happen last year, and I wrote to the credit card company explaining that I did not receive the service I paid for from a particular merchant. They refunded my money directly, and recovered the cost from the merchant. Just threatening to do this may be enough to get the merchant to play ball.

Finally, nothing works better than making a scene. Tell them you're going to park your truck across the street with a sign explaining what happened. If you decide to actually do it, be sure to use only the facts, don't embellish or make personal attacks. Something like "I took my truck here for repairs and now I have to pay the dealer $2200 to fix this shops mistakes".