j_eclipse96
15+ Year Contributor
- 175
- 0
- Oct 26, 2004
-
Laramie,
Wyoming
Well, this happened sunday (last week). Since I got my car, I've known about the bad ball joint on my front passenger side. The girl I bought the car from told me about it, and the mechanic I had look at it told me about it. I chose not to have it fixed (it was like $200), not knowing how much of a big deal it actually was.
Sorry about the long post, but its worth it to read it
Well, like I said, last week on sunday, my and two of my friends were really bored, looking for something to do. One of my friends had to go to church at about 5:30 pm, so my and my other friend decided what the hell, why not. I was a little reluctant at first, because I was going to go to my girlfriend's house to watch a movie. But I agreed. Well, we went there, and it was all good, what you'd expect from church I guess. Anyways, after about half an hour, we decided to leave to go see that movie, so me and my friend that needed to go to church left. We were about 100 yards away from the church at an intersection, and I start to pull out, going left, no cars in sight. I am about halfway through the intersection when all of a sudden, what do you know, I hear a snapping noise and my car leans heavily towards - wait for it - the front passenger side. Ever hear the jake brake on a truck? You know, that loud RRRRRRRR noise, like when you use offroad tires on pavement. Or when your ball joint gives out and your tire rubs against your rear fender guard. Anyways, I immediately get on my brakes and turn down my radio. "What the #$!@ was that?!" says my friend. "My ball joint." I said. Realized I had to get it off the road, I pulled forward about another 5-10 feet onto the side of the road. Scary noises that made. Once she was off the road, me and my friend got out to survey the damage. My friend said it looked like I had just been shot or something when I saw my entire wheel bent in at a 30 degree angle, the back of the tire right on my fender guard. "It looks like you have a camber kit" was the first thing my helpful friend said. Eventually we got it on a trailor, and it was in town for awhile at a shop. They gave me a $200 damage estimate, which was not pleasing to the ears. I decided to call my local Mitsubishi dealer to see if I still had a warranty, or something that would make this suck less. The call I got back was unbelievable. It just turns out that there was a RECALL on the front ball joints on only 1996 Eclipses. That might be why it broke, but I was still glad as hell. So I brought it in, and they said they would fix it for free. Great. Peachy. Things couldn't be better - right?
What I didn't mention is that before last sunday, I hadn't gone to a church service in SIX YEARS. Yes, six years. I also didn't mention that I take the interstate to my girlfriend's house, so this incident probably would have happened going 80 mph, instead of 5 mph around a small corner. I'm pretty sure I would have died, or at least totaled my car. I also got my car back this morning, and I saw the bill that I would not have to pay for my car being fixed. It turned out that when the ball joint gave, I also messed up my entire control arm and screwed up my front axle. $534.19. Yeah, that would have been a dent in my bodykit fund. I thank god that my stupid ignorant ass is still alive, and I realize how lucky I actually am. Its amazing. I don't really understand it, but damn am I thankful. I'm not going to ignore any problem like this ever again.
Sorry about the long post, but its worth it to read it
[Typo]
Well, like I said, last week on sunday, my and two of my friends were really bored, looking for something to do. One of my friends had to go to church at about 5:30 pm, so my and my other friend decided what the hell, why not. I was a little reluctant at first, because I was going to go to my girlfriend's house to watch a movie. But I agreed. Well, we went there, and it was all good, what you'd expect from church I guess. Anyways, after about half an hour, we decided to leave to go see that movie, so me and my friend that needed to go to church left. We were about 100 yards away from the church at an intersection, and I start to pull out, going left, no cars in sight. I am about halfway through the intersection when all of a sudden, what do you know, I hear a snapping noise and my car leans heavily towards - wait for it - the front passenger side. Ever hear the jake brake on a truck? You know, that loud RRRRRRRR noise, like when you use offroad tires on pavement. Or when your ball joint gives out and your tire rubs against your rear fender guard. Anyways, I immediately get on my brakes and turn down my radio. "What the #$!@ was that?!" says my friend. "My ball joint." I said. Realized I had to get it off the road, I pulled forward about another 5-10 feet onto the side of the road. Scary noises that made. Once she was off the road, me and my friend got out to survey the damage. My friend said it looked like I had just been shot or something when I saw my entire wheel bent in at a 30 degree angle, the back of the tire right on my fender guard. "It looks like you have a camber kit" was the first thing my helpful friend said. Eventually we got it on a trailor, and it was in town for awhile at a shop. They gave me a $200 damage estimate, which was not pleasing to the ears. I decided to call my local Mitsubishi dealer to see if I still had a warranty, or something that would make this suck less. The call I got back was unbelievable. It just turns out that there was a RECALL on the front ball joints on only 1996 Eclipses. That might be why it broke, but I was still glad as hell. So I brought it in, and they said they would fix it for free. Great. Peachy. Things couldn't be better - right?
What I didn't mention is that before last sunday, I hadn't gone to a church service in SIX YEARS. Yes, six years. I also didn't mention that I take the interstate to my girlfriend's house, so this incident probably would have happened going 80 mph, instead of 5 mph around a small corner. I'm pretty sure I would have died, or at least totaled my car. I also got my car back this morning, and I saw the bill that I would not have to pay for my car being fixed. It turned out that when the ball joint gave, I also messed up my entire control arm and screwed up my front axle. $534.19. Yeah, that would have been a dent in my bodykit fund. I thank god that my stupid ignorant ass is still alive, and I realize how lucky I actually am. Its amazing. I don't really understand it, but damn am I thankful. I'm not going to ignore any problem like this ever again.
