[romeroom]

My son has a 2003 focus. Everything is stock on it. Put new inner and outer tie rods in last year after an accident. Had it aligned, new tires, no problems.

Less than a year later, the front tires are chewed up needing replacement. Took it to Firestone shop and they said the camber is so far off, it can't be fixed (Really...?). They recommended new struts for the front ($700) but not sure if that will fix the problem.

I've done most of the work on all my cars (including the tie rods). I would appreciate any suggestions you could give me. Thanks.

 

[GO.army.1969]

If you know how to put struts on your self you could do it for a 1/3 that price thats with the front struts rear shocks and new springs front and back. You can get it all at

Tousley Ford Parts Depot
800-328-9552
1493 E. County Rd. E White Bear Lake, MN 55110

PS I would never take any car to Firestone for repair work or anything unless your pockets are deep and you just dont know how to do it and it was the last posable place.

 

[wrc_fan]

Less than a year later, the front tires are chewed up needing replacement. Took it to Firestone shop and they said the camber is so far off, it can't be fixed (Really...?). They recommended new struts for the front ($700) but not sure if that will fix the problem.

Could be a couple of things contributing to the tire wear, but if you had it aligned, they should have found the bad camber then, as its not adjustable on a stock focus.

How are the tires wearing, is it the inside or outer edge? Is there cupping of the tread?

If the strut(s) are bent, then I would say, buy new struts and look to install them yourself. If there is damage to the frame, control arms, shock mounts, new struts won't help. Camber plates are available for the top mount, and these can move you +/- 1.5 degrees in camber. These would be equivalent to the same amount of labor as new struts, as the spring needs to be removed and reinstalled on the strut.

 

[romeroom]

If you know how to put struts on your self you could do it for a 1/3 that price thats with the front struts rear shocks and new springs front and back. You can get it all at

Tousley Ford Parts Depot
800-328-9552
1493 E. County Rd. E White Bear Lake, MN 55110

PS I would never take any car to Firestone for repair work or anything unless your pockets are deep and you just dont know how to do it and it was the last posable place.

Thanks for the reply. What are chances it's the struts causing the severe chewing on the inside of the front tires?

 

[Nickgt40]

Thanks for the reply. What are chances it's the struts causing the severe chewing on the inside of the front tires?

It's unlikely, unless like what was said above (they are bent).

My suggestion: I would take the car to a local shop for new tires and an alignment and see what they say (if anything) about it.

I wouldn't mention anything the guy at Firestone has said unless they tell you the same thing. If you do end up needing new struts then Steve at Tousley is a GREAT source, just make sure you mention you heard of him on the forums.

BTW, what wrc_fan says is true. If it is some other damage then there will be other work that will need to be done.

 

[Obocecha]

In the front of the car there is no camber adjustment so you would have to have a seriously bent part to be causing far too much negative camber. The primary issue with tire wear is toe adjustment. Camber normally isn't a huge factor in tire wear except when you have sever negative or positive camber.

 

[Missourileo]

Silly question, but where was the impact on the car in the wreck?

 

[romeroom]

Silly question, but where was the impact on the car in the wreck?

Front, primarily right. The right inner tie rod was severely bent.

Would a bad control arm be contributing to this? If so, how easy is it to distinguish between a good or bad control arm?

 

[forddorf]

What are your alignment numbers?

 

[Entrical]

^^What he said. What are your alignment numbers at right now? And do you also have a sheet with your numbers on it from when you had the tie rods and alignment done? A lot can go bad in a year, so don't get too upset just yet!

 

[mikebontoft]

if the control arm was bent you'd have a serious amount of postive camber... and control arms sure bend a lot easier than stretch. You may be looking at a bent knuckle or maybe even a bent strut tower..... something I can't really tell unless we get some SAI numbers along with the "normal" other alignment numbers.

 

[Missourileo]

I was thinking your strut tower might have been damaged. But if the inner tie rod was bent, then the stress on the control arm would be intense. I would start with a fresh alignment and see if the tech has an issue getting it correct. The impact on the p-side may have damaged the d-side as well. Get the numbers so we can help you

 

[felixthecat]

Most of the car's I see come thru my shop= body shop, like that descibed above have a bent strut ,lower control arm possible & if the strut tower & apron is messed up, than for sure the cradle got a good shove too.

 

[jetrinka]

My money is on a severly damaged mount/strut mount bushing. If its damaged enough or the bushing is torn up or even moved in the mount it can really alter the angle of the strut in relation to the knuckle. Just an 1/8" on the top of that strut can cause a huge angle difference on that long of a lever. And something tells me the original mechanic who wants to replace the struts sees this and just wants to call it struts so he can make more money on it.

 

[frednumber15]

I have a similar situation with my 03. Right front tie rod is bent by maybe 1/8"...but I'm waiting to R&R the rack which leaks.

No visible damage underneath except for the bent tie rod...and the wheel sits in the middle of the wheel well...same as the left. I've done the alignment myself....camber is now good on all 4 corners.

I also have serious cupping on the inside of the front tires...though they were on the rear when I bought the car. Front was way out of toe alignment.

I'm hoping it was the toe being off that caused the cupping.

Would like to hear what you find out....

 

[An Audio Guru]

Guys is it possible he bent/warped a spindle?

Also I just did some front end repair from a right/front end collision. My caster was off 3/4" and had to be pulled out. So did the guy at firestone get his vocabulary mixed up trying to tell you which one was off? I had a warped outer/inner rod on pass side. And found out that the frame was bent when I took it for an alignment. It was at like -4.8 degrees.

And I agree that Firestone is a rip off. Although they do free patches and plugs around here. I have had a tech confess that the prices of their shops vary depending on what part of an area you are in. If the people in the area for the majority have deep pockets then Firestone will be robbing them!!