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Bent control arms

14K views 55 replies 19 participants last post by  warzim 
#1 ·
I don't know if you have ever had this problem, but I just came back from the local Jeep dealer where my TH awaits about almost $1800 in repairs. It seems that possibly my off-road excursions have resulted in some "problems" under the vehicle.

I noticed recently that my steering wheel was off-center by about 10° to the left. I dropped the car off at my local private mechanic to get it repositioned and was told when I went to pick it up that 1) he hadn't fixed it and 2) I needed to contact my insurance company. It seems that the rear wheels were both out of kilter so that the tops of the wheels were a couple inches closer together than the bottoms. That is when it was on the ground, on a lift the effect was more pronounced. Don, the shop owner, suggested that I take the TH to the local dealer as they would have both expertise and access to Jeep parts to fix it.

At the dealer they found a number of things wrong. Both L & R control arms were bent, there is a minor leak around the center drive shaft (warranty item) and there is a dent in the exhaust pipe where it is unprotected coming down from the manifold. The dent reduces the exhaust diameter by almost half. Whatever is causing the steering wheel to be offset is unknown but they guess it will be fixed with a four wheel alignment after the rear end is repaired. Oh, also the oil pan is dented adjacent to the drain plug and will also need repair at next oil change.

Total estimate from York Chrysler Jeep for repairs is $1780. I called USAA insurance and have filed a claim but I have no idea if they will cover it as a "comprehensive claim" rather than an "accident" since there was no other vehicle involved. I haven't been off-road since the Lake Pleasant to Crown King run back in November and have since put about 2500 miles on the car, including a 1,000 mile round trip to San Diego, so I have no idea when/where such damage could have occurred. I never noticed the wheel problem until Don pointed it out to me even though I have checked tire air pressure a couple times, especially before the SD trip.

I wanted to let you know so that you could keep an eye on your TH's undercarriage and wheel alignment. I searched the forum but couldn't find any similar damage topics.

Great vehicle, goes anywhere but eventually lives up to the name JEEP for Just Empty Every Pocket.

Has anyone else had similar problems? The control arms are the only real exposed part of the undercarriage and take off-road rock hits all the time, but I can't imagine them getting hit and bent without immediate problems nor can I see how I wouldn't feel (not hear, as I'm really impaired in that respect) a more recent shock in the past 2500 miles since off-roading in November
 

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#2 ·
With regards to the rear camber, mine is way out also but it's fairly normal. But if the dealer says it's broke, I guess it's broke. I don't know how hard you'd have to wheel to break them but they are steel I think. Fronts are cast aluminum I think. So they'll break before they bend.

I haven't had a problem with mine yet but tomorrow I go in for an estimate to replace my front bumper and fix my alignment. So when it's at the dealer getting the alignment done I'll know more.

But either way, my rig weighs in at nearly 6000lbs with all my gear and I haven't had a problem other than low ground clearance. I did crush a skid plate pretty good but it's still functional.

I'd have to say if you managed to do that on a stock TH maybe you were going a little too fast offroad.


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#3 · (Edited)
Check the front end. This is my damage after driving over rocks.
http://jeepcherokeeclub.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=145450&d=1483048085
Also, the threaded end of the front resonator clamp points down and can catch on rocks.
Look in the center of the picture. http://jeepcherokeeclub.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=40082&d=1417291119
Have a Jeep dealer check the alignment. Many alignment issues require replacing parts.
Also check the resonator hanger bushings. There is one for each front pipe.
They are cast aluminum and break easily.
Dents in the exhaust pipes doesn't seem to be a problem.
Leaks are a problem.
Apparently the drill is break the car, get it fixed, and keep on trucking.
You are obviously having too much fun.
My rear control arms flex at the inboard attachment point and scrape against the frame.
So far it hasn't bent anything.
Since the Cherokee TH isn't a REAL Jeep I rebadged it as a Fiat, as in "fix it again Tony".
 
#5 ·
@warzim
I will take some pictures of my undercarriage. I have plenty of dents and dings on the skid plates, LCA's, exhaust pipe, exhaust hangers, etc.
And it just went through a scheduled maintenance at the dealer (free!) with only the note "off-road use" put onto the work order. (separate thread about that)

Obviously, if your LCA is broken, then that's that and repair away. And I don't think you can claim it's a warranty failure.
As discussed in the other thread, I think that's why they marked mine as off-road use, so if I try to say something failed then they have an argument to not cover it.

If I smash something on a rock, I just know I'm the one that has to fix it.


But since you and I did that trail together, I didn't think we were pushing the TH's beyond their limit and causing damage. (unless you did something I didn't see you do... in which case, share the photos!)
 
#6 ·
I get soooo frustrated when a Jeep dealer even notes that their vehicles have been used off road. I mean, of course! It's why we bought a Jeep instead of a honda or something else.

If Jeep doesn't want or even expect people to use them off road, then perhaps they shouldn't slap a badge on it an call it "Trail Rated" and market them for this use. When is the last time you say a Jeep commercial by Jeep and not a local dealer where they didn't showcase them off-road?

I like to direct them toward Jeep's marketing videos and say "I wasn't using it any harder then Jeep did here." They really don't have a leg to stand on..... Having said this, you could be in for a fight and chances are they have better lawyers than you can afford. :(

Google "Tales of t Trailhawk" or check out my link to these videos HERE



To the OP... Are oyu sure the camber adjustment bolts haven't just come loose? If the arm is in fact bent, I'd like to see pics because the rear is actually a fairly stout piece. The front is a concern of mine though and one of the reasons I am fabbing skid plates for them.

Sorry you're dealing with this...
 
#7 ·
To the OP... Are oyu sure the camber adjustment bolts haven't just come loose? If the arm is in fact bent, I'd like to see pics because the rear is actually a fairly stout piece. The front is a concern of mine though and one of the reasons I am fabbing skid plates for them
Agreed - it would have to take a pretty good wack to bend the rear arm. Agreed on the fronts as well.
 
#8 ·
And bending arms making them longer?? Would normally expect a bent arm to be shorter end to end pulling the wheel in at the bottom not pushing it out.

Although they are curved so I guess it may be possible to land hard on it and reduce the curve efeectively straightening it and making it longer.

Still sound suss

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#19 ·
And bending arms making them longer?? Would normally expect a bent arm to be shorter end to end pulling the wheel in at the bottom not pushing it out.

Although they are curved so I guess it may be possible to land hard on it and reduce the curve efeectively straightening it and making it longer.

Still sound suss
I am a bit skeptical on this as well. I have replaced rear knuckles on 2 Trailhawks for negative camber issues. Never been off road. A bent arm would cause positive camber.
 
#9 ·
@warzim I was behind you the majority of the trail and do remember seeing a few whacks on your rear LCA's, but they honestly looked minor. Mostly just large rocks that were pushed out of the way by the arms.

As the other stock TH out there I only had 2 "minor" damage issues: stock Firestone tire sidewall damage (replaced with KO2's) and a torn up bushing on the exhaust (probably from when I high centered on that **** rock).

Good luck with the repairs, keep us posted!


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#10 ·
Rear camber is adjustable too, have they checked the holes havent elongated or bolts come loose?

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#12 ·
This sounds like they are trying to rip you off...

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#13 ·
Here's a few shots of the damage on my TH undercarriage. LCA's are taking a beating, but as far as I can tell, its just superficial. No changes in alignment or bends, etc.

Some of the skid plates have some dents, but nothing major there either.

Biggest one is the cross member supporting the exhaust pipe. That was bent and damage a fair bit. I just took a screw driver to it and straightened it out as best I could. No noticeable difference in performance or exhaust sound.






Overall view, looking toward back of vehicle.


Front skid plate, looking toward front of vehicle.


Exhaust support piece and damaged aluminum supports (damaged, but still functional) Support pipe mis-shapen, but functional.
Looking toward driver side of vehicle.


rear driver side LCAs. Looking toward rear of vehicle.


closer view, also rear driver side LCA. Scratches on exhaust.


wider view of rear driver side, looking toward rear
 
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#14 ·
Well, I tried. I wrote up a very detailed response to all the postings about my lower control arm damage on Friday morning, spending quite a bit of time on it. Before I hit the "POST" button I intended to do the usual review for errors but when I hit a button to review it it disappeared. Apparently I mistakenly clicked on the "Go Advanced" icon and POOF... gone. Well I got POd and annoyed and shut down as I hadn't saved the text and didn't want to recreate it all.
So, Friday afternoon I went back to the dealer, returned my loaner Chrysler 200 and paid off the service department. $848.95 labor and $929.71 parts plus misc/tx total $1780.62
My insurance company is USAA and I have a $500 deductible. USAA told me they would take the claim as an "at fault collision" since I must have hit something (rock, pothole, etc.) and that was avoidable. I have no idea how to get them to change their mind on that so I guess I can face a rate increase in a couple months. I always thought that if there was no other vehicle and no police report that it would end up being a "comprehensive" claim. No such luck.
I recovered the lower control arms (listed as "link-spring" @$262/ea.) that had been replaced and find that they are severely dinged, dented and scraped but I really don't see any visible "bending" on them. The fact that they are very light and yet have all the dents, etc. shows how incredibly strong the steel material they are made of is. There are serious gouges in the steel at the top end where they bolt into the rest of the suspension components and I suspect that is what the mechanics are referring to as bends.
Also replaced was the first exhaust pipe section from the manifold. It had a serious dent where it turned and was unprotected between the skid plates. The pipe alone was $374 so don't let yours get damaged.
My oil pan also had a dent in it close to the drain plug but I declined having that changed as I couldn't see spending another dealer price for an oil change not due for another 6,000 miles.
The biggest individual charge was $824.95 for labor for the "suspension inspection" that included all the R&R work and a four wheel alignment. The printout of the alignment showed that camber and toe-in on mostly the right side was way out of whack but all was reset to norms. Driving home I found that my steering wheel is now back to 0° TDC and the vehicle tracks perfectly.
Overall, I can't fault the dealer's service department for anything although I do have to check back with their cashier and find out why I was billed $24 for a "Flash (Software flash for PCM) listed as 944 C 0.20". I thought software updates for in-warranty vehicles were no charge?
Unlike most of the postings on this forum I am not complaining about the vehicle or the dealer in any way. I find the power train and suspension to be superb and have yet to get stuck anywhere other than through my own fault (snow bank anyone?) Whatever caused the damage to my vehicle was likely something in the roadway, be it on road or off. What I don't understand about this particular incident is that my last off-road trip was mid-November 2016 and yet the steering wheel off center condition didn't appear (or be noticed) until Christmas Eve en route to San Diego and the rear tires being grossly off camber didn't show up until the 9th of January 2017 when I had accumulated about 2500 miles since off-roading. At no time did I experience any sudden impacts that I think could independently cause the damage.

It's a good thing to have this forum so that I can vent about this incident. Now I feel a little better even though my wallet is a little lighter. And if anyone is curious, the dog is seven year old "Prince", an Australian Shepherd rescue.
 

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#15 ·
Good to hear its resolved, shame about the price though!

Now that you have the old ones a quick tape measure of centre to centre of the mounting holes and compare to the new ones would be order I think!!

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#16 ·
If your going to play be prepared to pay. I've had a purpose built FJ40 and a Wrangler as well as atv's and i always bent or broke things. Just smile and enjoy yourself :nerd:
 
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#25 ·
In looking at the photos... if you see the LCA in the last one in my post above, you can see the curvature that it has. Curved upwards by default.
If that took a huge (and it would have to be full weight of the vehicle I'd guess) hit in the middle of it. You might straighten out that bend a little. And actually push the wheel outward to a toe-out condition.

David Baker's post says the same thing.
 
#26 ·
Ahh yes I just took a closer look at the pic with the dog in it amd the one closer to the camera does have a bend opposite to the original. Looks like it took a beating and has straightened out the natural curve of it. Wow.

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#27 ·

Good write up, I'm in the middle of getting my tierods replaceed myself.
 
#28 ·
I do not off road in rocks and situations where I could hit the undercarriage in my AD2 Limited for obvious reasons. Plenty of other situations though to play in as needed without the risk of undercarriage damage.
Cleaning off the mud is bad enough for me when it happens.

For all the Trail Hawks out there: All I can say its the price of admission for the fearless owners that want to push the limits of their Hawks. I would further guess that even Wranglers and other off road vehicles can suffer the same kind of damage if pushed hard enough into the extreme.

Just have fun!
 
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#32 ·
I'd like to wrap up my comments on this topic by saying that I appreciate all the feedback I have received on this forum.

I got my Trailhawk back from the dealer service department last Friday after only three days. The service was prompt, the work well done and the price, although typically dealer inflated, reasonable. I have driven around all week and find that the alignment is perfect and the car runs very well. No complaints there.

At home I examined the lower control arms that had been replaced. They are brutally dinged, scared and even dented but I am unable to detect any bends. Because the units are significantly curved along the edges, trying to compare them or match them up against any straight edges is impossible. I have come to accept the fact that upon initial appraisal, any competent mechanic would conclude from the cosmetic damage to the surfaces of the LCAs that they must have been bent and needed replacement. So if there are bends, then all was done properly but if not, still understandable to R & R them.

In a secondary discussion with the service rep at the dealer the conclusion we reached was that the damage to the alignment must have occurred off-road but was mostly a loosening of the adjustments enough that the problem was exasperated over time and only really became obvious several weeks later.

I have requested a modification of my original claim from the insurance company in hopes that "maybe" pinning down a date/location of my off-road activities might induce them to change the status of the claim from collision to comprehensive such as hitting a deer or at least changing from "at fault" collision to some other definition. Maybe I can avoid some rate increase along the way.

Whatever happens I must say, I have had a great deal of fun off-roading with my Trailhawk and will continue to do so. I am convinced that it has the most sophisticated and effective drive train on the market and the vehicle is greatly under rated in comparison to the average stock Wrangler.

My location in central Arizona is currently under a storm watch for around a foot of snow over the next few days so I'm ready to go play. Adios!
 
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