Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Troubleshooting Help! Should my Ford dealer have done this??

I have just had my car in the local Ford dealership doing some work on my 98 E0 SVT.

I had the outer CV joint BOOT replaced. Not the whole joint (they said it wasn't bad) but just the boot.
Should the Ford dealer have re-aligned the front end of my car?? When I asked them, They told me "Oh well the tech said it didn't need an alignment" But now, my car seems to be pulling to the right a fair amount!

Please Help!! I need some leverage when going to the dealership to complain!!!!

Thanks in advance,
Jason

Pulling a CV shaft should not effect wheel alignment. The alignment should have stayed the same.

K- I have never had to replace a CV joint on a tour but did on 2 Taurus. Both ahd to be re aligned. I had it done at Pep boys and they told me I would need alignment and I said no- thought they just wanted to charge me for. I took it back the next week and had it aligned. Take it back and tell them to check the alignment. I am suprised the service manager didn't go for tacking on the alignment anyway- they get comission off all that junk.

Well, The job was done under an extended warranty. ESP Base Care......
This is partially the reason i thought they may have been trying to avoid the re-alignment.

Any other opinions? They simply replaced the OUTER CV boot...... what could have the dealer done to make my car pull to the right more than it was before?

I'm not sure what they would have done to throw off your alignment, but my g/f had one of her's replaced on her Probe and the same exact thing happened... right CV boot, pull to the right. I'm not quite sure what happened, but I am 100% confident that the work was done right. Take it back and have it re-aligned, they sould do it without a hassle... especialy if you explain to them that you are not blaiming them for doing a poor job... just that it wasn't like this before they touched it and now it is.

To do the outer CV boot, they would have had to disconnect the front axle from the steering assembly, et al. I'd feel better if it was aligned after moving all of that stuff around.

If they did it right you shouldn't need an alignment. If the struts stayed on the steering knuckle, and they didn't screw the tie rod ends in or out, then it should be at the same alignment. You might have to disconnect the pinch bolt for the lower ball joint, but when you put it all back, the alignment should be the same.

Check the simple stuff like tire pressure. Maybe you picked up something in a tire at the shop, or just coincidentally.

Or maybe something wasn't put back together correctly?

Or, did they bend something, like lifting the back end of the car at the trailing arms?

I wish you well.

TB