John SCB

My GT is barely 3 weeks old and I just had the entire differential assembly replaced due to a "warped carrier and bad ring/pinion". I brought it home and had a look under the car...something looks very unusual. Check out the attached photos:

Left Side axle

In the above picture, the part circled in RED looks like a type of L-bracket but does not seem to be installed correctly. The part circled in BLUE is installed facing the front of the car but the RIGHT side is facing the back end of the car:

Ride Side axle

I would really appreciate if someone could look under their car and tell me if this is normal. Thanks very much in advance. :worship:

The Boss Hog

John,
That is pure crap :notnice: Both sides are installed incorrectly. Take it back and see if they have someone who knows his rearend from a hole in the ground!

The Boss Hog

John SCB

Thanks Boss...do you (or anyone) have a pic of the underside showing how it SHOULD look?

The Boss Hog

If nobody else comes up with one, I'll take some pictures. It just will not happen until this weekend sorry

The Boss Hog

John SCB

Just got back from the dealer. They put it up on the rack and the service manager became involved immediately. The bolts and brackets in question were installed backwards...boy was i pissed!! They fixed it right away with a master tech doing the work this time. Thanks to Boss Hog for the input...I'll post some pics later on of the way it now looks..the CORRECT way.

John SCB

Here are the "after" pics...the way it should look on your car!

Left side correct way

Right side correct way

The locking tabs for the side struts were installed backwards, along with incorrect bolt insertion. The L-bracket is also a locking tab for the sway bar..that was okay.

This is just another reason why I would rather do all my own maintainence! Too bad i don't have a service bay with a lift, service pit, MAC tools to the 10th power and all the other goodies we would all love to have.

The Boss Hog

Glad it worked out for you Its a crying shame that a lot of people just don't seam to have any pride of workmanship anymore

The Boss Hog

The Lyin' King

So did the service manager have anything to say about the mistake like . . . "Gee I'm sorry we almost killed you? :bang:

John SCB

Initially he tried to blow it off by saying it didn't really matter "that much". That's what really got me going . Geesh, here's a brand new car with some novice tech working on it without even refering to any service manuals or illustrations. Where was the master tech/supervisor if any questions come up during the work? Shouldn't he be available and checking up on his guys? At least the work should have been checked thoroughly before it's released from the rack.

I also pointed out that i had asked to speak with the tech before they even started work on the car in the first place. After several denied requests I was told the guy was "not very personable and kind of grumpy(?)" Usually I like to talk with the tech doing the work and get a feel for how well he knows the vehicle...then slip him $10 and ask that he take his time, do the job right and to please take care.

They took about an hour to correct the problem and then didn't want to put the work on an invoice. I insisted it be written up. Overall the service manager was okay with the whole thing but the question is: How qualified are these service techs and what kind of training/supervision do they really get? :scratch:

Mongoose

Initially he tried to blow it off by saying it didn't really matter "that much". That's what really got me going . Geesh, here's a brand new car with some novice tech working on it without even refering to any service manuals or illustrations. Where was the master tech/supervisor if any questions come up during the work? Shouldn't he be available and checking up on his guys? At least the work should have been checked thoroughly before it's released from the rack.

I also pointed out that i had asked to speak with the tech before they even started work on the car in the first place. After several denied requests I was told the guy was "not very personable and kind of grumpy(?)" Usually I like to talk with the tech doing the work and get a feel for how well he knows the vehicle...then slip him $10 and ask that he take his time, do the job right and to please take care.

They took about an hour to correct the problem and then didn't want to put the work on an invoice. I insisted it be written up. Overall the service manager was okay with the whole thing but the question is: How qualified are these service techs and what kind of training/supervision do they really get? :scratch:
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Now that I see where you are from it might explain it. Illegal emigrant that does not speak English working on your ride?

tx2005gt

there is no reason for that total bs. that tech needs to be demoted to the lube rack.

John SCB

I nearly included a description of the tech but left it out to avoid sounding racist (which i am certainly not). Bottom line still remains, these guys need proper training and supervision...no matter who they are.

klous

What makes you believe this wasnt the lube guy doing the work? Sounds like it.

Sonic05

I don't think his grumpyness had anything to do with it. They probably figured he would say something stupid.

Those brakets being installed backwards really isn't a huge issue, and really isn't that unsafe. The point of the bracket is too hold the nut in place while it is tightened. Once it is tight, the braket no longer serves a purpose.

Having said that, it's beyond me how they could do it backwards. The point of that bracket is to make assembly easier. Having them in backward like that had to make it difficult to tighten the bolts down.

FYI: The thing you had circuled in red is for the Panard Bar nut, and the incorrectly installed parts are for the Lower Control Arms.

I'm so sick of these morons giving the rest of us good techs a bad name. I can forgive this guy a little, but he should really know how the car goes together . . . that's why they have service manuals.

John SCB

Thanks for the correct description of parts involved. I know there are plenty of excellent tech's out there....the problem is finding one at my local dealership!

169stang

It sounds like it's time to locate another shop! Why the heck would he need a service manuel? He should freakin remember the way he took it off and put it back on the same. Ridiculous! Glad to see you've got it corrected. With gears, it would make me nervous as to them setting them up properly.

John SCB

Yeah, I was concerned about them taking the diff apart...even considered putting off the work until it failed altogether. Turns out Ford sent them the entire rear end assembly, intact...the dif, axles and all the guts already put together. It was a simple R&R of the whole thing. Something I probably could have done in a few hours...and done it right the first time!