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1st Time Mitsubishi Owner

Hello:

I am a first time Mitsubish owner ('98 Eclipse) who has previously driven Hondas. I have always had success with small shops specializing in foreign cars, but I recently moved to Minneapolis and have not been able to find a good mechanic for my Mitsubishi. Is taking Mitsubishi's to the dealer highly recommended? And should I expect significant expense at a dealer?

I have a knocking sound in the front left wheel when slowing down (with or without breaking), and the wheel feels "loose" going over bumps. I think it might be the CV joint??

So far I've paid $30 for a small shop to tell me they couldn't find anything and to come back when it was worse. When it got worse, I paid $80 for them to weld a "broken piece", which broke again after a few miles of driving. I don't know where to go to find someone who knows what they're doing!

Any ideas?

~gretchen

Reply to
GretchenTS
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Try looking for a recommendation on a local mechanic at cartalk.com. Or call Tom and Ray.

Reply to
Stephen R. Conrad

Egads...Tom and Ray???

The knocking is almost certainly the lower ball joints signaling that they're about to fail. This part is a RECALLED PART. GET THIS FIXED ASAP! Any Mitsubishi dealer can perform this service. I would be VERY reluctant to allow the dealer to perform any other work. I agree that the small specialist shops do a better job on most things and suggest you post in the Eclipse forums at

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and
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to find a shop in your area. Archer Raching in Duluth, is the Grandaddy of all DSM shops.
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Nature of Defect: 1. SUSPENSION:INDEPENDENT FRONT CONTROL ARM:LOWER:BALL JOINT Recall Number: 00V421001 Dates Manufactured: MAR 1994 to JUN 1999 Number of Vehicles Affected: 567432 Date Owners Notified On: MAR 2001

Vehicle: 1998 Mitsubishi Eclipse Defect Description: Vehicle Description: Passenger vehicles. If the rubber boots on the lower lateral arm ball joints of the front suspension were damaged during assembly, dirt and water can intrude. Also, MMC has added the potential of leaking moisture, which can cause the ball stud to corrode.

Consequence of Defect: This condition could cause the lower lateral arm ball joint to separate, increasing the risk of a vehicle crash. This campaign supercedes MMC's previous safety recall campaign, see 99V-066.

Corrective Action: Dealers will inspect the lower lateral arm ball joint for wear. Ball joints that exhibit wear beyond the established tolerance will be replaced with newly designed lateral arm ball joints. Ball joints that are within the established tolerance will be cleaned and a special sealant will be applied to prevent intrusion of moisture.

Reply to
simpleton

On Fri, 12 May 2006 22:40:56 +0930, something compelled "simpleton" , to say:

How does one look these things up? I have a '97 Diamonte that does funny handling things, and would love it if a dealership could take care of some of them.

Reply to
Steve Daniels

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Reply to
simpleton

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Do some research

GB

Steve Daniels wrote:

Reply to
gray-beard

On Fri, 12 May 2006 21:09:34 -0600, against all advice, something compelled gray-beard , to say:

I did. I asked here, and got a good answer.

You go have a nice day, now.

Reply to
Steve Daniels

Thank you all for your help! I made an appointment at the dealer right away!

~gretchen

Reply to
GretchenTS

Reply to
rasta

It's a cheap part vs. crashing your car and perhaps dying..... $70 for the part, less if you know where to buy it, a socket wrench and a hammer.

Reply to
simpleton

Well,. thought I would post an update for those who were inquiring.

My sob story - it wasn't the control arm, and that there was a problem with the body. Apparently they don't do welding at the dealer; so they recommended I take it to the body shop.

Back at the original place I took my car, they said that what looks like an unused screw hole allowed water and dirt to leak into the frame and had rusted a big whole. They patched it up with a metal plate so that hopefully it will not break away again.

I wish I knew about cars!!!

Reply to
GretchenTS

Rusted a hole on a '98? This is most UNLIKELY. Mine is a '97 and a daily driver in Michigan where the roads see a ton of salt. There is very little rust on my underbody. Nothing that perforates any pannels or requires any type of repair other than some anti-rust paint...really. You need to keep looking for a mechanic you can trust because this sounds fishy.

Reply to
simpleton

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