[s-cars] Front control arm fell off

[TMULLANE at snet.net]

Aaron,

Which nut came off?  The nut on the end of the front 
sway bar, or the nut (and then the bolt) that 
attaches the ball joint to the knuckle assembly?

In either case, I would let the shop make the first 
move.  If the failure is related to their work, at 
the very least they should repair and damage for free.

Tom



Date: Wed, 19 Jan 2005 22:03:55 -0700
From: Aaron <aaront at cox-internet.com>
Subject: [s-cars] Front control arm fell off
To: Audi - Scars <s-car-list at audifans.com>
Message-ID: <41EF3BBB.9080405 at cox-internet.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; 
format=flowed

Hi folks,
Im in need of some advice. 
Two weeks ago I had my front end redone by my local 
allignment shop who 
as done a few audis and seemed pretty knowledgable. I 
consulted the 
archives and made sure he had the correct parts. He 
installed both 
control arms as a kit with all bushings including 
those for the sway 
bar. He also did a tie rod, steering damper and strut 
tower bearings. 
Well today we feel lucky to be alive. My wife was 
driving slowly around 
town ( 10 min after being on the icy highway) and to 
her surprize the 
front end "dropped" and she stopped immediately. 
Turns out the outer 
control arm nut came off and the spindle assy came 
free and jammed in 
the wheel well!
This is one day after returning from a long - fast - 
road trip across 
eastern idaho where shall we say the road was empty.
The car has been towed back to the shop but I have 
not yet spoken to the 
guy who did the work as he was out today. Im pretty 
shaken up and am 
unsure how best to handle it. The bill for the orig 
work came to around 
700$ and has not yet been paid. Im not sure I want to 
pay it. We are 
talking about a serious liability issue here.
On the technical side im not sure if the control arm 
nuts were replaced 
(im assuming they are supposed to be). What about the 
bolt holding the 
ball joint to the spindle and the bold holding the 
inner end of the tie 
rod. Should these have been replaced also?
Luckily it appears nothing else was damanged. The 
strut tower, jack 
shaft, wheel well etc all appear OK. Anything else I 
should look for?
Thanks
Aaron