Should have known better!!!

I always do all the work on my cars myself....but.....

Seeing as i'm just recovering from the swine flu,and didn't fancy working on my car in these cold temperatures and dark nights, i decided to book my Fronty in to a local Garage to have the front offside wheel bearing replaced.

I left the car with them first thing and collected after i had finished work.
On arriving i was greeted by the mechanic (AND AT THIS POINT I USE THAT WORD LOOSELY) who thrust one of my locking wheel nuts in my face.
Well, actually it was my locking wheel nut with a bolt welded to it.
He then complained that my locking wheel nut key/socket was worn and that i should arrange to get a replacement from Vauxhall.
I've never had a problem with any of the lock nuts in the past and the key still fits all the remaining locking wheel nuts no problems.

Anyhew...i agreed to pay the extra £20 he charged me for removing that wheel nut just to keep the peace.
I luckily had all four original wheel nuts unused in my tool box, so replaced the lock nuts with normal nuts.

I payed the bill and drove home. On the way home a grouching/scuffing noise revealed it's ugly head and it appeared to be eminating from the same hub they replaced the bearing in.
I decided to remove the wheel from the offending hub and have a gander.
First thing i noticed was that the small gaiters on the sliding caliper pins had not been relocated properly over the pins.
This could have led to a big problem a few months down the line.
I removed the caliper to check if there was anything amiss but couldn't find any other problems.

The grouching noise is still there and only happens now and again but it really sounds like they have either damaged the bearing on assembly, not greased it, or overtightened it.
Either way....Monday morning it's going back to the garage and i'm going to give them what for.

I'll keep you updated.

AND YES....I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN BETTER.

Check it ASAP, I bet he hasnt replaced the circlip on the stub shaft :shock:

You dont need to take the wheel off just the six bolts holding the auto hub cover on, see if the clip is in place.

I would take it back and then name and shame them!

I blinking well hope he has....i left strict instructions that he was to replace the circlip/snap ring with a new one...which he said he had done.
I'm not going to touch it untill he's looked at it....otherwise he'll acuse me of meddling.

I really want to be present while he takes it apart but i have to work....what a friggin nightmare.

just noticed is a B series no six bolts :lol:

, still worth taking a look though.

This could become a forum all to itself.
Me Renault Nevada kept having flat battery issues every morning. New battery same thing. No workshop freezing cold need the motor. Local Renault agent uplift. Collected it. No fault found but it ran OK for a few days then burst into flames. Agent said nowt to do with him it was alright when it left his w/shop.
Tried to claim on insurance but they "forgot" to give me fire when I renewed and asked to re-negotiate the price so that's why it was cheaper and I didn't specify that I wanted "exactly" the same cover. Phoned Renault "customer service" :lol:

in Paris and they said that he was an independent agent so they couldn't help me despite the fact that his garage is covered in Renault colours and logos signs the lot.
I didn't pay the bill and the insurer gave me scrap value 'cos he's my neighbour.
Great motor it was....7 seat estate and quick...... I've got the tickets to prove it.

And if you want to hear about the saga of the Transits and the local "Ford agent" recently changed to Opel let me know.

If the circlip is missing....will it damage anything when i drive the car?

Dont put it in 4wd, it will float around slightly in the hub but shouldnt fall out of the hub as the shaft is too long but it would make some banging noises as it moves about.

I know this update is a bit late but here is the latest.

I took the car back to the garage the folllowing Monday and left it there untill i finished work.
When i picked the car up the mechanic (i still use that word loosely) said that the noise was coming from the brake pads that were worn down so far that the outer plate of the shoe was rubbing against the outer ridge of the brake disc.
I knew the brake pads were running low so accepted what he said at the time.
I've only just had the chance to change the brake pads today, and low and behold, the noise is till happening.

I am grasping to describe the noise in words but it sounds almost like the noise you get when your brake pads have worn right down to the metal.
It happens totally at random no matter which way you turn the wheels or no matter how bumpy the road is.
When the car is jacked up and you turn the wheel no noise is detectable.

So i guess i'll have to take the car back to the garage yet again tomorrow to see what story he gives me this time.
I'm still a bit dubious of taking the hub cover off in case he tries to accuse me of meddling.

On another note.
When my car was last MOT'd ,(at a different garage this time), my car passed but had various advisories.
Two of those advisories were slight play and perishing in the front anti-roll bar bushes, and, slight play in both drop links.
While i had the car jacked up i decided to change the drop links and the bushes and was even more annoyed to find there was nothing wrong with either :evil:

.
Anyway...at least i know that i won't have to do those two jobs for a while, but even so, what is the world coming to.

Going back to what people have said about it being the circlip.....

To find out, jack the car up on that side (or crawl under it), and see if you can move the driveshaft (the bit that goes into the middle of the wheel), back and forth. If you can, the circlip is out.

Also whist under there, see if anything else moves easiely, and this may move you closer to what the problem is.

Just a though, if your pads are low it could be them rattling or the clips holding the pads in rubbing on the disc.

Sounds to me like a wheel bearing loose and when sideways presure is put on it the disk is rubbing against the back plate. I say this because i had the same problem on my old Fronty, it only has to move a couple of mill. If you take the disc of you can see the score mark on the backplate.

I think it is time for you to get some beers in and invite some lads round.
Two heads are better than one.

Specially if you've had far too much to drink and are looking at a mirror. :lol:

Took the car back to the garage again today and left it there all day.
After work went to pick the car up and he'd done f***k all to it.
Asked me to take his son (the other mechanic that works with him) out for a ride so he could listen to the noise.

I drove for 6 miles and the car only made the noise once. Typical :evil:

When we returned to the garage he put the car on the ramp and tried to say the noise could be anything like a UJ, Diff bearing or even the front diff.
Last time he said it was my brake pads....what a total waist of time and space :evil:

.

I just looked at him and said..."guess you are going to wash your hands now and i'll have to wait untill what ever it is goes bang".
He just replied saying..."well it's nothing we've done mate the wheel bearing we fitted is fine".

So with that i left and guess what...the car made the blasted noise all the way home.#

I think he's yanking my chain and i was even more annoyed when two people stopped me later this evening and commented that they had seen this mechanic (Andy) driving my car around earlier in the morning. So why did he want me to take his son out for a drive if he'd already been out for a drive in it?

Whole thing is doing my head in now.
I'm going to strip the hub next weekend and get my neighbour, who works for another garage, to witness what i find.

I can put your mind at rest, it cant be the front diff or anything to do with the front diff if it was in two wheel drive. :wink:

He should have at least stripped the hub to look at it.