Brand New Tire Worn out after Accident

skysurf · 05-07-2009, 07:32 PM

Hi guys,

Unfortunately I had an accident with my V6 mustang about four months ago where my car got rear-ended (the damage was quite extensive, almost $10K.) One of the problems the Body shop had found was that the rear-axle was bent, and they supposedly replaced it with another one.

Also, on the side that the car had gotten hit on, they had put in a BRAND NEW tire (Pirelli's PZero). However, only two months of driving after I've gotten the car back, I notice that that particular tire is almost COMPLETELY worn out and needs to be replaced. All the other OLDER tires are fine and have great tread.

My question is, did the body shop screw up here with the axle-work, causing this Brand new tire to be worn out this quickly? If so, how can I get them to fix the problem two months after I've gotten the car back (I am afraid that they will say that it's not their problem any more.)

Would appreciate any help!! Thanks!!

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mustangman02232 · 05-07-2009, 08:23 PM

either

a.) something is still off from the accident
b.) you have been doing to many burnouts

skysurf · 05-07-2009, 08:34 PM

I haven't been doing any burnouts.
What's more is that the NEW tire is the one which is worn out, on the side where the car was hit and the rear-axle was bent. The other three older tires are fine and have great tread..... Guess will have to call the insurance company tomorrow and b@tch at the body shop tomorrow hopefully to some avail.....

pascal · 05-07-2009, 08:40 PM

You need to call the Ins. back and tell them to come to look at the car so they can see that one tire has excessive wear...
And it takes usually about a couple of months (say, 2500 miles) to ruin a tire with misalignment.
When this happens on a solid axle, something is really wrong indeed.

My guess is that you still have a bent housing (not axle), or trailing arm or body anchor for said arm. The specs have to be wrong...

skysurf · 05-07-2009, 08:57 PM

Hi Pascal,

Thanks for your reply as it makes the most sense!!!!

Last month I had taken the car back to the body shop because there was a lot of 'creeky' noise coming from the rear-left side of the car (it sounded like metal rubbing against metal.) This was on the same side as the NEW tire which is worn out now. At the time, the body shop just tried to mask the problem by putting some extra clips and caulking the trim to the glass.

However now I am convinced the problem is as you said, with the Bent Housing, trailing arm, or the body anchor. There must be something wrong in the specs of the new parts mixed with the existing parts on the car, causing both the 'creeking' noise problem and the worn-out tire on the same side of the car.

I will call the Insurance company tomorrow and take the car back to the body shop tomorrow too. It's just disappointing that after taking almost $10K, the body shop doesn't look thoroughly into problems like this and just try to mask the problem out for their customers to deal with themselves hopefully later, all these a@@holes seem to care about is money, and no pride in their work.... :\

Will see how it goes tomorrow.

essexdan · 05-08-2009, 12:11 AM

When I was an insurance appraiser I used to tell people that "if you have a $10,000 repair done to your car and you get it back and there's nothing wrong with it then you're not looking at it hard enough". Any body shop that claims they never have "comebacks" is full of baloney. If you're using a reputable shop then they shouldn't have a problem with you bringing it back in for tweaking after you have done a little shakedown cruising. Write up a list, then leave the car with them for a day or two so they can go over it between other repairs. Using a brand-new axle on a Mustang would be unusual. Most likely it is a salvage axle. Sometimes the salvage axle housing will also be bent but they should detect this in an alignment or during installation. A straight used axle housing containing a bent axle shaft may get missed. Ask for the copy of the alignment printout from your file. Ask for a copy of the receipt for the used axle. In most states this receipt is required to have the VIN# of the donor car. Verify that is the same year or newer than your vehicle by checking the 10th digit of the VIN. (Many insurers will not use parts older than what was originally on the car.) Then request verification that the donor axle had the same or fewer miles on it than yours (regardless of age). Some insurers will not use axles with higher mileage than what was on the car. If you cannot get this information from the shop ask the insurer to get it for you. If you get no satisfaction from the shop go to the insurer and tell them you haven't been indemnified for your loss and you consider your claim to still be open until the tire issue is resolved. Just remember all of the above is moot if you asked the shop to cut corners to save on your deductible. You'll get the "you got what you paid for" response from both the shop and the insurer.

157db · 05-08-2009, 11:08 AM

You would have to be dog tracking pretty bad to wear out
a new Pirelli in that short of time. Have someone drive behind
you and confirm the dog tracking...

kevinmalec · 05-08-2009, 11:33 AM

Too bad the car wasn't totalled out, so you could go and buy an new one...:-(
Be persistent and make sure the insurance company fixes the issue. Good luck!

afixer · 05-08-2009, 11:42 AM

TAKE IT TO A SHOP WITH A 4-WHEEL ALIGNMENT RACK . THEY WILL SEE EVERYTHING. YOU MAY ALSO WANT TO GET AN ADJUSTABLE PANARD BAR AND HAVE THEM PUT IT IN IF THE CENTER IS OFF. MY CAR WAS OUT PLUS THE STOCK PANARD BAR WAS BENT. IT FIXED IT RIGHT UP. THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE TIRE WEAR BUT IT DOES CENTER UP THE DIFF. PLUS THEY ARE LIGHTER.

Norm Peterson · 05-08-2009, 11:51 AM

If you've got a reasonably flat area to set up on (or can shim to make flat), you can set up your own parallel strings and measure accurately enough to tell if something is amiss. Mostly, you'd be looking for strange or unequal rear toes. If nothing else, it gives you your own sanity check on any measurements that the shop claims to make (or had made previously).

It's not that difficult to measure alignment settings, though I will be honest about it requiring some patience and double-checking as you go.

Norm