Question for the DIS Car Experts

[Disney Daniel]

This is a bit long, but unfortunately there is no way around it so here we go. Two weeks ago I was out of town with my vehicle and needed to get my summer tires put on the car (I had them in the trunk) so I went to a large, national chain to have the winter tires removed. While there they changed the tires, changed the oil and I requested that they give the car (2004 Malibu with about 90,000 miles) an inspection to make sure everything looked good. They told me the car was in excellent shape and they saw nothing that needed to be done, so I thought everything was great. I drove back home (350 miles or so) without any problems.

Fast forward about a week and I noticed that when I drove on the highway I was beginning to hear a noise near the right front tire when I would go above 40MPH. Anything below that was fine, but over 40MPH and I got a sound similar to the humming sound when you have landing gear retracting on a plane.

I took it in to the same chain in my hometown and they told me that the bearing in the right front wheel was worn out which was what I thought the problem was. However, they also told me that both of my rear coil springs were broken and they strongly recommended having them replaced and an alignment performed. They said this was a 7 on the 1-10 danger scale and that within two months it would be a full blown 10 and very expensive to have take care of. They told me that at this point when all is said and done that they could take care of it for about $950 including the cost of their research to figure out the problem.

I phoned the store that had just told me my car was in excellent shape and asked their thoughts. They believed that it was very logical that the bearing could be worn down, but he didn't believe they would miss both rear coil springs being broken, however as we all know anything is possible. I said I thought the whole thing sounded fishy and I planned to call my Chevrolet dealer to discuss it and he agreed. I visited the dealer and they are going to look at it on Monday, however they also said the whole thing seemed odd and they figured the bearing alone was probably my issue.

My question is would the car be driving differently if both rear coil springs were broken? I have the noise near the passenger side tire, but the back seems as good as ever and there are no rattles etc. back there (I even had someone sit in the back and they couldn't hear anything out of the ordinary and didn't feel any discomfort).

The whole thing just seems a bit out of the ordinary as one minute I am told the car is great, the next that if I don't invest almost $1000 in repairs that my car will be a danger on the road.

Anyone able to put their thoughts in on this? Many thanks in advance!

 

[Charade]

You would notice if you had just one broken rear spring. Two would be dangerous and you would surely notice that. It would affect both the ride handling creating an unsafe condition. I had a 2005 Malibu that had a rattle coming from the rear suspension but it wasn't a spring because I had them replaced (they sagged because I carried a bunch of stuff around in the trunk all the time).

I would let the dealer look at it right away just to be sure. Let us know how you make out.

I had over 160K miles on my '05 Malibu and it still had the same front bearings when I traded it. They do go bad but it sounds suspicious that you have a problem after having someone work on the front end.

 

[Kimberly]

Not really sure what to tell you without seeing the car in person. I'm guessing the national chain may have been busy, had some young guy look at it that didn't know any better, or they just wanted to get you in and out of there (less time spent is more money for them... although repairs would have netted them more money... maybe the mechanic had a date?).

I would trust the dealership before I'd trust a national chain though. They often have a sales reputation to worry about, unlike the national chains which seem to get random customers looking to save some money from the dealership. Not that dealerships are trustworthy...

A broken coil spring is very dangerous though. And it should have been VERY noticeable to say the least by any mechanic. If you try to make a rapid directional change, your suspension can buckle and lose control.

 

[mr.bungle]

It is highly unlikely that even just one of your coils is broken, let alone two. And you would know if they were broken. The suspension would basically sag if both were broken. It has been a fair number of years since I worked in the auto industry but I really haven't heard of coil springs "breaking". Just wait to take it to the dealer or a trusted indie mechanic.

As for the noise, a bearing is definitely likely.

 

[tvguy]

I'd ask around among your friends and find a good, honest, independent mechanic. No dealerships, no chains.

 

[mrodgers]

It is highly unlikely that even just one of your coils is broken, let alone two. And you would know if they were broken. The suspension would basically sag if both were broken. It has been a fair number of years since I worked in the auto industry but I really haven't heard of coil springs "breaking". Just wait to take it to the dealer or a trusted indie mechanic.

As for the noise, a bearing is definitely likely.

Coils do break, had one in my old Altima. I am a car guy and it felt no different to me. It was broken on the very first coil that was sitting on seat.

$169 for the coil (dealer only item) and around $90 labor to replace it at a local garage I think. Going to a national chain or dealer you are going to get raped in labor charges.

If you like to easily part with a lot of money, always go to the dealer. If you don't, find yourself a local mechanic. Local mechanics charge labor on how long it takes them. Dealers charge labor on how long the book tells them it will take even if it says 3 hours and they do it under an hour.


Case in point, I had to change a ball joint in my truck. I took it up to where my brother-in-law works (dealer) after hours so we could use the lift. Book time was 2.5 hours to change a ball joint because you had to disassemble the entire front suspension and drivetrain. What we did was unbolt ball joint, lift the top arm of the suspension with a prybar, swap the ball joints, bolt it back up. Took 5 minutes and this is what a dealer garage tech would do yet the dealer would still charge 2.5 hours labor for that and pay the tech 2.5 hours wages. It's why my brother-in-law would go in on a Saturday with a few of the other guys and whip out 30+ hours worth of labor in a 4 hour shift and make some decent money.

 

[Disney Daniel]

Thanks to everyone for the replies. I took it to the dealership today and they said that the bearing was worn down and both coils were definitely broken. They were cheaper than the chain in the end so they are working on it now. It certainly wasn't the ending I was hoping for as even today the car was driving fine and really didn't look any different. The back end looked slightly lower than usual but it certainly was not something you would look at and think "Boy, there is something wrong with this car".

Anyway, at least I know it will be properly taken care of.