Hi Everyone,

I was at my Jag dealer getting an oil change on my 2002 X-Type 3.0L V6. They report the Right Control Arm must be replaced soon because it is causing excessive wear on my tires. Also, it was recommended I get an alignment because my rear tires are showing unusual wear.

The cost for the Right Control Arm replacement (parts and service) is estimated at $330CAD
The cost for the alignment is $200CAD

Could you please advise if I can get the parts/repair at a better price?

Thanks,
D

 

why do you need a control arm(only reason would be cracked /broken bushing) and is this US $$$????? we charge $90 for alignment

 

Hi Brutal,

Thank you for your post. Apparently the right control arm requires replacement because there is a lot of play when they shake the right wheel on the hoist. The play in the wheel is causing excessive wear on the tire. The service advisor states the right tire edge is starting to smooth.

The prices quoted by the Jag dealership in Toronto is in Canadian funds.

What are your thoughts on their statements and price?

Thank you,
D

 

I am going to assume we're talking about the right / REAR control arm? So we're talking about a bushing going bad, and not a ball-joint, right?
I just want to be sure we're all talking the same thing.
Here in the US, the control arm / bushing assembly is right at $100, per each. I did it myself, so no clue what the shop labor for it would be.
As for the Alignment; My Jag dealer charged me $149 (the highest I can find ANYWHERE in town) for a ****ty job at an alignment, that I had to have REDONE at Les Schwab for $69 (and they did an EXCELLENT job, by the way)
$200 is waaaay too much. (wait... what's the conversion rate?)

 

yes front or rear.....inquiring minds want to know

 

Hi Everyone,

Sorry for the lack on detail in my post. The rear lower control arm on the right side of the car has excessive play.

Thanks,
D

 

then yes, you will absolutely require a full alignment once it has been replaced. The only question is what it's worth in your area.
Call your local 'reputable' tire shop. find out what they charge, and then ask your service manager at the Dealer if he thinks he could split the diference for ya if you have him do the whole job?

 

why would you require an alignment? that arm is a bolt in place part. replacing it will restore the alignment to where it was before.

 

yeah, thats right....and when your tires are wornout cause they didnt check and align it...who you gonna bitch at then....thats right them...."what you meen you do suspension work on my car and didnt check the alignment and adjust if needed? I want you to replace my tires now"...and what grounds would the dealer have to stand on?...none case closed
oh and on the lower control arm, if there is play then yes it it will let the tire toe out when driving since theres an eccentric to adjust rear toe. and you HAVE to do an alignment when done because youre taking this eccentric bolt out and even if you mark it I guarantee it wont be aligned correctly, and with the price of tires today...that would be penny smart and dollar stupid

 

Oh, right! Good point! So with that in mind, why do the manufacturers even provide alignment adjustments? I mean, if all the parts are the same, and there's only one way to bolt them on, then abviously they will all be aligned perfectly, right? Geesh! All this time we've been paying for alignments when we didn;t need to 'cuz parts-is-parts!

Hey jimmy: in case you can't read the sarcasm in this post: YES... YOU ABSOLUTELY MUST ALIGN IT.
Let's assume just for a moment that having one whel slap around from side to side every time you changed lanes did not cause anything else to go out of alignment (which is a pretty big stretch, beleive me). So, you get the new part with new bushings (and in the case of the pre-04 cars: an updated bushing) and you bolt it in place. Do you really beleive for a moment that this new part has the EXACT dimension bolt-center to bolt-center of the last part? I mean, down to the millimeter? Of course it doesn't. So you get the part replaced, and because it's still out of alignment, the wear on the other side is accelerated, and the tires wear unevenly, and the car won't drive in a straight line when it's wet or snowy.

Now, tell me again why you wouldn't align it?

 

1) $200 is too much, even in play money.

2) Brutal, perhaps you can answer this, I once had the X aligned at NTB (I know, I should be shot) and they bumped up the price ($75 up to $120) due to the need for a "special tool." However my local mechanic that does my inspections did an alignment and didn't say anything about a "special tool" to get the job done. Does it require anything "special" toolwise? Or is the only "tool" they guy working at NTB? lol.....

 

Yep you do you special tools for xtype alignments
theyre called wrenches, 4 of em 24mm, 19mm, 18mm, and 15mm
19 and 18 for the rear and the other 2 in front
and people call us *******s

 

LOL!!!!

Thanks Brutal....that's what I figured. Fool me once......

 

Hi Everyone,

Thank you for your post. So far I've gathered that I need an alignment following the rear lower control arm replacement and it should be done somewhere else because the Dealership is too expensive.

Should I get my Rear Lower Control Arm replaced by the dealer or another shop? Also, could you please advise if I need to purchase the part from Jag or can I get a similar part from somewhere else?

Thanks in advance,
D

 

The part will be available only at your Jaguar dealer. The replacement is very straightforward and any competent shop should have no problem with it. The most common difficulty with them seems to be the bolt seizing in the aluminum 'hub' center of the bushing (because they are dissimilar metals) and they can be a B**ch to remove. I ended-up cutting mine out. You might think ahead and buy the bolt from your dealer while you;re there. ($4, if I rememebr correctly)

 

Most cars dont have much adjustment for alignment. German cars usually tells you to replace parts when the alignment is off. All they have to adjust is toe in the front.
In the rear of most cars the alignment is fixed by design, and in some cases manufacturers sells offset bolts etc.. to correct problems caused by bad drivers banging the wheel into curbs etc. The only way to lose the alignment is to bend something by force, or have one of the parts wear and get loose. It does not lose aligment by devine intervention. The adjuster on some cars ( a few of them on the x) is there to compensate for bent parts.

Now the dealer already declared that the aligment is off due to the worn link. If the aligment was off due to a bent part that is an entirely different story. I dont know how the dealer can claim that the reason the alignment is off is from a worn part, then insist that they adjust things for a bent part????


As far as I know this particular suspension does not have any eccentric bolts on it. It is a simple bolt on part. There are no adjustments on this particular part.

If the jag is sooooooooooooooooooooooo sloppily built that you cant replace a simple part like this little arm. then there is certainly something screwed up with the design in the first place.

I can assure you that the factory does not put the car on an alignment machine, and every bolt on every part of the entire car is assembled in a matter of seconds

what is missing here is knowing if the alignment was good in the first place. Also only the driver know if they crashed into anything.

 

you know jimmy most of the time Im pretty docile.....you dont know what youre talking about
I work on these cars all day long, there are eccentrics in the rear of Xtype to adjust toe and tie rods in front for front toe. no caster camber adustment...
XK, front and rear toe adjustment, No caster/camber
Stype front and rear toe adjustment and front caster and camber with eccentrics 03 and later, 00-02 need eccentrics installed for this
Xj front and rear toe, caster and camber with eccentrics in front. XJ and XK can adjust rear camber but you have to separate rear axles to install shims and unless really out of spec I never recommend. Useally if something is worn, bent or loose, it will show during the alignment as you wont be able to get in spec. But this does not hold true for everything since you may be able to align into spec but when driving the worn or loose part allows the tires to be uncontrolled and useally toe out resulting in inner tire wear. this is all really basic...but sorry youre way off base

 

i am referring to the little arm that wears often on the X type. It is about 8 inches long, and has a swivel joint at one end and a rubber bushing at the other. it is a tube about and inch and a bit in diameter and a couple of slight bends in it.
There are no adjustments for this part.
Changing this part will not upset the position of all the other bolts. I know there are adjustments in other places. If this little control arm is worn, there is no reason why the other adjustmetns would need adjusting. ( dealer has already said the alignment is due to WEAR, not bent parts)

 

Jimmy:
you're arguing on the wrong side with the wrong guys here. You can't just pretend you know what you're talking about in this crowd.
The part itself has no adjustment, you are correct. did you even read my other post? The one where I explain to you how things can move out of alignment from bent / worn / abused parts, and just replacing the parts will NOT re-align it.... it's not magic, dood.
And the word is "Divine", not 'devine', and nobody has suggested that God has anything to do with it.
And are you REALLY suggesting that you think the car comes from the factory without it first being aligned? Whether by assembly jig or by other methods, the car IS aligned. Guaranteed.
Tell ya what though: you go right on ahead and replace parts without knowing what you're doing... and then we'll see how your car handles afterwards.

 

Jimmy,

Are you talking about the sway bar link? If so then that part has nothing to do with the alignment of the car and I suppose you would be correct. If you are talking about the lower control arm then yes, you would want to get an alignment as everyone else has recommended.