Welcome to the Crown Vics ETC blog!

On April 6, 2000, I purchased a 1998 Ford Crown Victoria LX HPP with 23,490 miles. I decided to start a little website for it featuring a running log of my experiences with the car. Vic 1.0 was retired in 2015 due to rust and electrical issues. Vic 2.0 was a 2006 P71 in Blue Pearl that belonged to my boyfriend. It was a Ford demo and never saw actual police use. It was damaged in September of 2018 with well over 186,000 miles. It was replaced by Vic 3.0 in October 2018, a 2008 P71 in Silver Birch with 120,971 miles. To read posts prior to 2010, click a link at right, or go to Crown Vics, ETC.

Wednesday, May 23, 2012

UPDATE: Tie Rod Ends, Ball Joints, Alignments... OH MY!!

The last few days have been interesting... and expensive.  Try to follow...

FRIDAY:  While out and about, I was really starting to worry about the car shuddering under hard braking.  Also noticed the front end was getting really loud. 

SATURDAY:  We finally took off the snow tires.  Noticed front right brake rotor looked a bit warped.  Rear brake pads need to be replaced.  But worst of all, left tie rod end VERY loose.  I mean bad. 

SUNDAY:  Dropped car off at Taxi Guy

MONDAY:  tie rod ends replaced, made appointment for alignment next day

TUESDAY:  dropped ar off for alignment at 7:45AM.  Went for half hour walk.  When I got back, the car was on the rack, but not aligned.  I was told there was a bad ball joint on the right side.  They told me it would be a waste of money to align it, then get the ball joint repaired, only to need another alignment.  Got quote for job, about $200 installed.  Drove to Taxi Guy.  Said to leave car there.  Mom picked me up, went to Friendly's for breakfast.  Passed shop less than an hour later, and car is being backed out.  All done.  Drove to alignment shop, made appointment for next day.

WEDNESDAY:  dropped car off again for alignment.  Hours pass, car done.  Drove home.

2 comments:

  1. It is generally not recommended to re-install any components removed during the installation. An alternative to labeling the placement of the tie rods is to measure the distance spanned by the tie rod assembly as a whole.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Look for a tie rod end that has superior durability. If you want to make sure that your replacement tie rod end can handle the stress that comes with its function, you must get the product that is made from heavy-duty raw materials.

    ReplyDelete