Over the last fifteen years, we have inspected many thousands of vehicles from every manufacturer - import, domestic, of unknown origin... Over the last five years, we've been maintaining an inspections database along with photographs showing details of every inspection. It turned out that the most challenging task has been choosing examples capable of impressing a non-professional. It's not that there are not enough of them - actually, there are too many...
Burnt up brand new cars, brand new cars with the wheels falling off, new cars that can't make it off the delivery truck, cars that lose brakes after a few weeks of service, cars that virtually never leave the shop for years... All these cases we've dealt with are worth mentioning.
Of course, it is impossible to include them all here. So, we chose a few that - according to our judgement - can be easily understood by a "casual observer". We intend to update/change information on this page so come back and "enjoy".
The information we have included on this site is not intended to scare you. It represents real facts of real life. Ask yourself: If this can happen to a brand new vehicle what can one expect from a used one? Yes, not everyone becomes a victim of a poorly made and/or designed ball joint, knuckle, tie rod end, brake system, etc. The question is: DO WE NEED MORE THAN ONE "MATCH"? We at Precision Diagnostics do not think so. That's the reason our inspection includes the most thorough evaluation of the suspension components. See the Services page for detailed inspection description.
Some defects would result in a worry-free tow truck ride, others may kill you and/or others. We do our best to make sure that these "crucial" items are in good working condition. Indeed, it turns out that safety is one of the most important factors in a vehicle-buying decision, and rightfully so. Here, let's start with a few examples intended to demonstrate that manufacturers are concerned about your safety as well. In their own way, that is.
Your physical safety will not be jeopardized if a Manifold Absolute Pressure sensor malfunctions. Unless, of course, it causes the engine to stall when you are crossing railroad tracks or going downhill... you got the picture and it's not pretty.
But what happens if a ball joint (a component responsible for keeping a wheel where it's supposed to be) falls off at 70 MPH in the mountains... We have seen many times when this happened to newer or even brand new vehicles.
The vehicle on the following pictures has lost its upper ball joint. According to the dealership
Service Manager, somebody at the assembly line failed to tighten the mounting nut properly... At 563 miles it's less than
impressive longevity. By the way, according to the same Service Manager, it happened the second time since the vehicle had been purchased. The owner (eventually) evaluated the situation properly, and the manufacturer was forced to take this mode of transportation back.
Here is another one. In this case, the lower ball joint completely separated from the control arm due to corrosion. By the way, rust or corrosion IS NOT COVERED BY EXTENDED WARRANTY. In this case, however, this is a secondary issue because it is very likely that if something like that happens, the occupants of the vehicle will not live long enough to get a chance to worry about the repair bill.
And finally, here is yet another "failed" ball joint. It is just four years old - just like the one in the previous example.
Here is yet another defect - "failed" knuckle - with similar potential consequences - complete loss of steering. This picture was taken on the street, and it seems like there were no signs of impact or collision. How nice do you think it would feel to be in this vehicle if an incident like that had occurred in the mountains or just at a highway speed?..
For most people safety is associated with the size of the vehicle and performance of the brake system. The first - size - is one of the most common misconceptions. As far as the brake system goes, follow this
link
to see what and at what mileage one can expect from brakes...
There were so many words said about ball joints that it seems to be a good time to explain what a ball joint is. This component is responsible for keeping the front wheels of a vehicle where they are supposed to be. Most of us - even those who are not related to automobiles professionally - know how important wheel alignment is. If not set properly, it not only accelerates tire wear and increases gas mileage but also negatively effects handling. To understand the concept, let me mention that wheel angles are adjusted with an accuracy of a fraction of one degree. Imagine what happens when one of the wheels changes angle 45 degrees like in the cases above. When this happens, the direction the vehicle moves in is totally unpredictable. It can be towards an 18-wheeler carrying 60,000 lbs of you don't want to know what, towards a cliff in the mountains, etc.
As we - hopefully - managed to demonstrate - suspension components may fail right from the factory or may completely deteriorate in just four years or less than 50,000 miles. In either case, your life is in danger if this happens at a wrong time or place.
This is precisely the reason steering and suspension components need to be carefully inspected. As a matter of fact, this part of inspection alone is worth the money. Unless, of course, your life is not. We have had an inspection of an expensive "luxury" European vehicle that needed all connecting rods and ball joints - steering elements that connect steering wheel with front wheels of the vehicle - at less than 20,000 miles. Once any of these parts
fails, the vehicle will not steer just like in case of a failed ball joint. But even if nobody is injured or killed, it may cost thousands of dollars to replace these components. In the last mentioned case, the dealer charged over $2,000 for parts alone! Do not assume that a failure like this can happen to anybody but you driving anything but what you drive. An assumption like that could be a source of major disappointment. The rusted ball joint in the set above came from Detroit while others - from other parts of the world.
The following case is intended to illustrate that a new - not to mention used - vehicle may have a significant surprise in stock.
Here is the story. This mode of transportation had been purchased ONE DAY prior to being towed back to the dealership in the state shown on the picutres. This misfortune occurred when the proud owner activated the alarm for the first time...
There is one more detail the reader might find amusing: the owner replaced the car with the identical model immediately after the incident... No kidding.
Previously, we had mentioned that it is not a unique occasion when a brand new vehicle cannot make it from a delivery truck. If you have never witnessed that personally, you most likely think that that statement was a major exaggeration on our part. The proof follows. The first picture shows a one-day-old truck delivered by means of a tow truck. On the second picture, you can clearly see a hanging drive shaft - the transmission is being replaced. The stickers on the window indicate that the vehicle never had a chance to be sold.
