So.. I brought my car in to get my struts fixed.. 600 for all four, which I think was a great deal. Considering every place that I called was around 1K. Anyways.. got a call back, the CV Boot is cracked, which I knew, that will run me $150 for the axle or something, something is wrong with my left lower ball joint that will run me 200.. (maybe coincidence but my left lower ball is aching right now from all these repairs..) and then last but not least.. my front brakes are going. Its about to grind so it will run me about 200 to fix the front brakes/rotors.. What do you guys all think about this? All in all, the total will be about 1K and it all has to do with the front end. I figured might as well have them do it while its all out there.. I think this is a good price for all this work.. but what do you guys think? As for dumping money into fixing this when it could be spent on other things....... in a big way...

 

$600 for for struts i hope they are tokicos r coilovers.look in the classifieds section and get them for under $100 bucks shipped and bring them to the mechanic to install while he fixes the other problems.

 

heck u could of saved up a litte more and gotten coilovers

 

Are you into doing anything yourself?

What struts are they installing for 600 bucks (that includes installation and alignment right?)

150 is reasonable for the drive axle if it includes parts and labor.

200 for front brakes/rotors - depends on what parts they are planning on using.

200 for a lower ball-joint is on the high-side - but its all labor - so not unreasonable.

 

It depends on the brand/quality of the parts. But 200 for the ball joint seems very high....
Then again, I did all those things to my car, so it was just the cost of parts. Way less than those prices.
But, as you say if it is a great deal, and cheaper than your other estimates, go for it!

 

Do the brakes yourself, save some money.
I got my front rotors from tirerack.com,
got my duralast brake pads from autozone.
Around 35 bucks for pads.
Around 95 bucks for rotors.

 

No I'm not doing anything myself. I haven't had the time lately to even take a crap.. as for the struts... I think they are just regular struts.. As for buying the struts, I would've been able to purchase the struts on here through a member but the thing was that I would've had to buy all miscellaneous parts and that doesn't include anything that they may see that I needed....If I need this bushings and that bushings and this and that.. it'll save me aggravation I think.
As for the brakes. he mentioned something about ceramic pads. Kinda sucks but I think most of it is probably all labor..

 

Then just get it done. It's ALWAYS cheaper to do things yourself, but if you've decided that you don't have the time/interest/tools/etc. then thats perfectly fine too. Not everyone thinks the same way - so take what you read around here about DIY with a grain of salt.

Just try to make sure they use a quality strut - you can buy KYB GR2 locally (from most auto-stores or private parts stores), and try to make sure they use quality pads (cheap rotors are ok), like Raybestos QuietStops or Duralast from Autozone. None of that 9.99 special from JCWhitney.

Good luck!

 

Thanks NJmodi.... That made me feel alittle better. I try to do somethings myself when I have the time.. but lately.. its just finding the time thats a pain.. I mean. i have 175K on it.. not sure if updated struts other than regular ones would really make much difference.. i could be wrong.. maybe i'mjust drained today that I can't think... thanks

 

No probs.

 

They got you good on the struts.

 

I got hosed Tommy.. I got hosed..

 

I think my CV boot is cracked too...

Sorry about not making a new thread, but I don't have enough post yet.

Anyways, my front left rim has little black lines of grease on it...looks like a spider web...lol --and the entire inside of the rim and the strut is covered in grease...

Now the question:
What do I do? Can I just replace the boot and just add more grease to where ever it all leaked from? Or do I have to get a entirely new left CV axle... Hopefully not the 2nd, because I just did that for the right CV axle, because of a small encounter with a curb, going sideways, and it was not fun... --especially to a n00b.

Also, would I do significant damage if I continue driving it with a crack in the boot? I noticed the oil on my rim about a week ago, but after it got worse, I noticed what had actually happened today...


Thanks for your help,
-Andrew

 

Yes, you can just replace the boot and regrease it. However, if you drive with a split boot for too long, you will introduce contaminants such as sand and which will require you replace the axle altogether.

 

OK, cool. Now, any ideas where to get the replacement boot? I'm sure it's going to be a special size. I'll try checking Auto Zone tommorow... Sure as heck dont wanna go to the dealer...

 

I got a replacement from Carquest for $9.

 

I think everything there is very reasonable. I couldn't comment on the struts as I have not replaced mine/looked into pricing.