So what do you think exactly happened? I was going off what the guy at the used car lot told me. He’s the one who paid for it to be towed and he’s the one who fixed it. I had just bought the vehicle from him 6 days before it happened.
The guy at the used car lot lied to you to cover his rear end to keep the lawyers from taking his wallet.
They may have replaced the drive axle or wheel bearing and left the pinch bolt’s nut off.
This reinforces yet again to have any car.you want to buy inspected by a mechanic of your choosing that you pay for.
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That particular failure appears to be due to someone leaving the pinch bolt loose during a repair; or flat out forgetting to reinstall it.
The CV grease looks a bit odd to me so I wonder if this involved a salvage yard axle replacement.
Just a caution. All owners manuals (which you will not have) state regular inspections of chassis and steering components. A few on this board in the past have stated this is “nothing more than a money grab by dealers for checking things”.
As you have seen, “checking things” is not a money grab.
You are very lucky. As reported on local news a woman here in OK lost her life some years back when a ball joint on a Buick did separate at highway speeds while she was in a sweeping turn. The car rolled twice and that was the end of her.
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This is a 16 year old vehicle, but look at the rubber boot on the ball joint. It looks brand new. That leaves me to speculate that the ball joint was recently replaced and the mechanic forgot to put the pinch bolt on.
I would recommend that you inspect the other side to make sure the bolt is in place with the cotter pin. It may also be a new ball joint, check the rubber boot for signs of checking/cracking due to age. If the boot is new and the pinch bolt and cotter pin are in place, then I would not worry about that side.
If the bolt is there but the cotter pin is not, then I’d have that bolt retorqued and a cotter pin installed.
Yep, on closer look it sure seems it wasn’t fully installed. Looks new.
The sway bar link appears to be new.
The lower control arm bushing on the rear of the control arm has also been replaced.
Take it to a good independent shop and have the whole suspension inspected.
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Thank yall so much!