Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums Branches Eastern Canada interesting experience

So, I'm driving down Bank Street south yesterday with the windows down and hear a peculiar kind of creaking noise from the left front.

I pull into the Loblaws at South Keys and the slight creaking has grown to a very loud grinding noise. I proceed at a slow pace to the nearby Donnelly's Ford service department. Test drive with a tech. He's not sure what it is, but says I'd better not drive it.

Three hours later, they call me. The problem: Lug nuts on both front wheels were coming loose, almost certainly due to improper torquing.

Background:

On May 22, four new tires installed at Frisby's. I watched the guy hand-torque the lugs on all four wheels to 95 pounds.

On May 23, I take the car to Campbell Ford for a front-end check and a check on the alignment. They find nothing wrong anywhere (my left front tire had disintegrated within a thousand kilometres after an alignment at Campbell's earlier in May).

As an aside, I find it odd that no one can explain why that tire went so bad so suddenly...I think maybe Campbell's did find a problem on May 23, and just didn't tell me about it for fear I'd demand they pay for the new tires.

Anyway, I fax a copy of the "loose lug nuts" work order from Donnelly's to Campbell's. They call to say the tech who looked at my front end never took the wheels off, so it's a mystery to them.

I pointed out that the rear lugs were fine...only the fronts were loose. I could hear the Campbell's guy shrugging his shoulders over the phone.

Comment:

a) Not a very thorough front-end check if the wheels were not taken off the car, if you ask me.

b) I think Campbell's is telling me a fib.

Damn.... I'd be hopping mad and be in the service manager's face over that.
"The squeaky wheel gets the grease"...

Somebody screwed up somewhere along the way, that's for sure. I wouldn't let this slide if I were you.

Wow Craig!

Hope there's no damage from the loose lugs?

If all you had done was the alignment and a visual inspection, it's possible that they didn't remove the wheels. Find out exactly what the "Front-end Check" consists of.

I just had an alignment done there 3 weeks ago and the only problem I had was getting onto the lift.

You should also be getting your alignment reports from Campbell so that you can tell what was out of spec if anything.

Good luck!

Thanks for the sympathy, and as far as Donnellys could tell, no permanent damage to the lugs, and I think I will see if Campbell's will give me a copy of the alignment reports.

I think for my next alignment, I'll follow the late Ray McNairy's advice, and go to a "ricer" shop. He points out that Hondas are also quite sensitive to alignment problems, and their shops tend to be pretty good at it.

In any event, the car is at Campbell's again today, for a new dash. (I noticed another black 98.5 or 99 in the lot...anyone we know?)

The service advisor was very sympathetic about the wheel lugs, but no suggestion it had anything to do with them.

One amusing thing...as I was standing at the little fence waiting for my advisor to finish up with the person ahead of me, I overheard another of the service advisors standing at the far end of the room telling the service manager, "That's (insert my name here)there."

It's kinda fun to have a "reputation."

"That's Steener over there - the co-holder of the world record for most tranny-trans-plants"

Good one, Harry.

It's nice to be famous for something.

My new dash is lovely...now all I have to do is clean the gunk the installer got all over the inside of my windshield.

Be carefull with the nuts now, I had a 626 that the guy at the garrage forgot to tight the nuts and a wheel came off, after the repair, the wheel came off again, because the studs were never changed...
Make him change the stud also!
Vince.

The guys who tightened the nuts said the studs looked fine...but believe me, Vincent, I'm going to be checking the torque on a regular basis!!