****ards bent my backing plates
07-11-2007, 10:59 AM
#1
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shop bent my backing plates
after getting some service done at a muffler shop here in WA, I noticed a scraping noise everytime I turned. It progressively got worse and luckily I was able to schedule an appointment with dudebud who I am realizing has some of the best skills around. thanks to him we were able to diagnose, remove, and replace my backing plates, which as you can see from this picture have been bent due to some sort of shoddy and terrible error in lifting/dropping my vehicle using the absolute wrong technique.
I called the shop asking them whether it was possible that they did this and they flat-out denied it saying that 'the only place we lifted your truck was on the pumpkin'. I am enclosing pics to give you closeups of the damage. any opinions very appreciated, I definitely want my money back for the work they did and it would be great to get additional cash to offset all the work required to repair the damage they caused
I called the shop asking them whether it was possible that they did this and they flat-out denied it saying that 'the only place we lifted your truck was on the pumpkin'. I am enclosing pics to give you closeups of the damage. any opinions very appreciated, I definitely want my money back for the work they did and it would be great to get additional cash to offset all the work required to repair the damage they caused
Last edited by taikowaza; 07-16-2007 at 10:04 AM.
07-11-2007, 11:17 AM
#3
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I had a similar issue...
07-11-2007, 11:24 AM
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I'd write a very formal letter and sign it esquire. Or just call a lawyer and have them do it. You'll get your money back in a hurry once a lawyer gets ahold of them. You just can't trust anyone anymore!
07-11-2007, 02:49 PM
#5
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unbelievable
thanks for the good advice, I could not believe my eyes when dudebud showed me this damage and said "well, I could hammer it out...but it would never be as good as new...so you'd be better off removing them completely...and it just so happens that I have a 2nd gen with good as new backing plates in the forest behind my house...
so we drive over there, and he uses his sawzall to chop off the brake lines, and we throw them in the back of his 1st gen...and then pulls and installs the new ones, in addition to fixing my rear window, oil pressure gauge, and coil spacers which he had to sand down to size...
kudos and props to da dudebud!
boo and hiss to the company who used jackstands on my backing plates and who deny it to boot!
I will begin writing an official letter to the company. with pics like these it may be hard to deny their fault...but I wouldn't be surprised if they somehow wriggle out of it
so we drive over there, and he uses his sawzall to chop off the brake lines, and we throw them in the back of his 1st gen...and then pulls and installs the new ones, in addition to fixing my rear window, oil pressure gauge, and coil spacers which he had to sand down to size...
kudos and props to da dudebud!
boo and hiss to the company who used jackstands on my backing plates and who deny it to boot!
I will begin writing an official letter to the company. with pics like these it may be hard to deny their fault...but I wouldn't be surprised if they somehow wriggle out of it
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07-11-2007, 04:19 PM
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I would look around the under body and axle and frame to see if there are any more dents.
from what I see it looks like the truck fell off of the jack or jack stand if it fell off of a jack you should see some other signs of it falling.
also was it on the drivers side or pass? and what was the work they did for you.
I thought most muffler shops had lifts to work on cars and trucks.seems that they would use a lift instead of a jack to work on your truck.
from what I see it looks like the truck fell off of the jack or jack stand if it fell off of a jack you should see some other signs of it falling.
also was it on the drivers side or pass? and what was the work they did for you.
I thought most muffler shops had lifts to work on cars and trucks.seems that they would use a lift instead of a jack to work on your truck.
07-11-2007, 04:41 PM
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07-11-2007, 06:56 PM
#11
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Not that I dont think that they did SOMETHING... but what were they supposed to be working on?
If they were putting a muffler on - why were the tires off?
I would think that if it fell off the jack, the bottom would be smashed flat.
That looks like they stuck the corners of the lift pads at an angle (corner) into the gap betwen the wheel and the drum and lifted the truck that way.
Otherwise why the sharp indent like it was lifted with a "thin edge" or metal rather than a pad.
OR someone stuck the jack stands under the drums? and lowerd the truck on to the stands that way (scary to be under THAT)
If they were putting a muffler on - why were the tires off?
I would think that if it fell off the jack, the bottom would be smashed flat.
That looks like they stuck the corners of the lift pads at an angle (corner) into the gap betwen the wheel and the drum and lifted the truck that way.
Otherwise why the sharp indent like it was lifted with a "thin edge" or metal rather than a pad.
OR someone stuck the jack stands under the drums? and lowerd the truck on to the stands that way (scary to be under THAT)
07-11-2007, 08:05 PM
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I would think that if it fell off the jack, the bottom would be smashed flat.
That looks like they stuck the corners of the lift pads at an angle (corner) into the gap betwen the wheel and the drum and lifted the truck that way.
Otherwise why the sharp indent like it was lifted with a "thin edge" or metal rather than a pad.
OR someone stuck the jack stands under the drums? and lowerd the truck on to the stands that way (scary to be under THAT)
That looks like they stuck the corners of the lift pads at an angle (corner) into the gap betwen the wheel and the drum and lifted the truck that way.
Otherwise why the sharp indent like it was lifted with a "thin edge" or metal rather than a pad.
OR someone stuck the jack stands under the drums? and lowerd the truck on to the stands that way (scary to be under THAT)
:....they let him drive off that way 
I'll take some pics for you Tim..
Last edited by DudeBud; 07-11-2007 at 08:06 PM.
07-11-2007, 08:21 PM
#15
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Why would you lift from the backing plate under ANY circumstance? If you need to jack that side of the axle up do it from the axle tube, why the backing plate.. makes no sense.
Besides, the tires have to be off to jack from the backing plate.
You dont wanna see my backing plates, haha they're mangled from when I put my new axles in. It was hot (Really hot day).. The drivers side bearing wouldnt budge and I got .. ok REALLY mad haha and just beat the hell out of it till the axles came out.. Then hammered everything back together, replaced the brake piston and.. yea well its only the dust shield that got mangled but i got it bent all back. haha
disc brakes in a few weeks anyway
whats the name of the shop? Why wont you disclose it
Besides, the tires have to be off to jack from the backing plate.
You dont wanna see my backing plates, haha they're mangled from when I put my new axles in. It was hot (Really hot day).. The drivers side bearing wouldnt budge and I got .. ok REALLY mad haha and just beat the hell out of it till the axles came out.. Then hammered everything back together, replaced the brake piston and.. yea well its only the dust shield that got mangled but i got it bent all back. haha
disc brakes in a few weeks anyway
whats the name of the shop? Why wont you disclose it
07-11-2007, 09:29 PM
#16
That's not jackstand damage, look at the scuffed tire/rim in the picture...
I've seen someone do that to my brother's rig, it isn't from jackstands, it's from being a stupida$$ tool, rushing through a repair, who doesn't know how to properly double check the pickup point before lifting using one of these...or if the vehicle shifts as 1 pair of legs and the other set hasn't, they'll catch as they slide back/outwards, or, when "kicking 'em clear" to be able to back the truck out.
I've personally fired two shleps who did damage worse than that when I was working as a lease return investigator. Schmucks tore the crap outta two unibody rails.
*You Should post the place's name, and cc this post in the review/vendor area, so other members near you don't fall victim, or worse, somebody's car that's unibody gets written off as "frame damage". Also report them to your insurance angency, you do have insurance, right?
I've seen someone do that to my brother's rig, it isn't from jackstands, it's from being a stupida$$ tool, rushing through a repair, who doesn't know how to properly double check the pickup point before lifting using one of these...or if the vehicle shifts as 1 pair of legs and the other set hasn't, they'll catch as they slide back/outwards, or, when "kicking 'em clear" to be able to back the truck out.
I've personally fired two shleps who did damage worse than that when I was working as a lease return investigator. Schmucks tore the crap outta two unibody rails.
*You Should post the place's name, and cc this post in the review/vendor area, so other members near you don't fall victim, or worse, somebody's car that's unibody gets written off as "frame damage". Also report them to your insurance angency, you do have insurance, right?
Last edited by Four Runner; 07-11-2007 at 09:34 PM.
07-12-2007, 07:43 AM
#17
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Thread Starter
the place that did this
Hi guys this has been a very empowering discussion.
I definitely have great insurance (USAA) and I will let them know about this,
also the name of the location is Bucky's Complete Auto Repair
http://www.buckys.com
The only reason that I went there was because I had just had my new t-bars put in and the angles were way off...I thought that it would be a quick and easy job to put coil spacers in, and went to the nearest shop I found on the way back from 4wheelparts in Lynnwood. This Bucky's is at
Shoreline, WA (near Seattle)
Tel: (206) 542-6700
19805 Aurora Ave. N
4 Blocks South of Costco
Basically when I left I looked at the spacers and they were absolutely not flush with the coil, but I was told that they would "become flush over time".
In addition they took a long time to do the job, the WHOLE REAR end was dropped, dudebud later did the same job without dropping the rear end at all.
plus I saw the personal truck of the mechanic and it was a mess.
As the job was happening I realized that I had made a big mistake and that's when I decided to go see dudebud about this whole deal. then when driving away I could hear the noises and I realized that I had been totally done over. I called back to Bucky's about this and they said to bring the 4runner back for them to look at but I told them no way, that I would prefer to have the job done right elsewhere, and that I would take pictures and take it up with them later. What a mess.
I have a pic of the final job they did on the coil spacer, I have to get that off my cellphone and will add it ASAP
I definitely have great insurance (USAA) and I will let them know about this,
also the name of the location is Bucky's Complete Auto Repair
http://www.buckys.com
The only reason that I went there was because I had just had my new t-bars put in and the angles were way off...I thought that it would be a quick and easy job to put coil spacers in, and went to the nearest shop I found on the way back from 4wheelparts in Lynnwood. This Bucky's is at
Shoreline, WA (near Seattle)
Tel: (206) 542-6700
19805 Aurora Ave. N
4 Blocks South of Costco
Basically when I left I looked at the spacers and they were absolutely not flush with the coil, but I was told that they would "become flush over time".
In addition they took a long time to do the job, the WHOLE REAR end was dropped, dudebud later did the same job without dropping the rear end at all.
plus I saw the personal truck of the mechanic and it was a mess.
As the job was happening I realized that I had made a big mistake and that's when I decided to go see dudebud about this whole deal. then when driving away I could hear the noises and I realized that I had been totally done over. I called back to Bucky's about this and they said to bring the 4runner back for them to look at but I told them no way, that I would prefer to have the job done right elsewhere, and that I would take pictures and take it up with them later. What a mess.
I have a pic of the final job they did on the coil spacer, I have to get that off my cellphone and will add it ASAP
07-12-2007, 07:52 AM
#18
Registered User
First off, don't call your insurance company. No matter how it turns out, it'll be a black mark on your record and will cost you money - guaranteed.
Second, use the power of small claims court.
Take the company a repair bill, talk to the owner, tell him to pay it or you'll see him in court. Don't be snotty or angry, be professional, but no nonsense about the resolution.
If he tells you to Foff, do what you said you'd do.
Chances are those plates were bent by a stupid mechanic that doesn't understand how to relieve the pressure on drums, instead he just pried it off. That's thin sheetmetal and will bend.
FYI: I had Midas do this exact thing to my truck 10 years ago. I'd just moved here, living in an apt and didn't have access to my tools.
I caught them at it, complained on the spot, took it to Toyota to replace the backing plates and took Midas the bill and a no nonsense message. Left with a check - paid in full.
Second, use the power of small claims court.
Take the company a repair bill, talk to the owner, tell him to pay it or you'll see him in court. Don't be snotty or angry, be professional, but no nonsense about the resolution.
If he tells you to Foff, do what you said you'd do.
Chances are those plates were bent by a stupid mechanic that doesn't understand how to relieve the pressure on drums, instead he just pried it off. That's thin sheetmetal and will bend.
FYI: I had Midas do this exact thing to my truck 10 years ago. I'd just moved here, living in an apt and didn't have access to my tools.
I caught them at it, complained on the spot, took it to Toyota to replace the backing plates and took Midas the bill and a no nonsense message. Left with a check - paid in full.
07-12-2007, 10:41 AM
#19
Contributing Member
Thread Starter
Thanks Maxx
Thanks MonsterMaxx. I like your idea. I'm going to head over there and drop off a package detailing everything. I will keep a full copy. Did you need a lawyer to bring this to small claims court or did they just agree to settle out of court with you?
anyone else who has successfully gotten money back from a bad job that has been done to your yota I would be grateful to have your advice on a lawyer-free resolution if possible.
anyone else who has successfully gotten money back from a bad job that has been done to your yota I would be grateful to have your advice on a lawyer-free resolution if possible.
07-12-2007, 11:37 AM
#20
Registered User
You don't need to bring a lawyer to small claims.
Might add authority if you bring the small claims forms with you and if they refuse, fill them out while there.
In fact, I think if it were me, I'd have them already prepared and let them 'slip out' of my folder while looking for the repair recipt.
Might add authority if you bring the small claims forms with you and if they refuse, fill them out while there.
In fact, I think if it were me, I'd have them already prepared and let them 'slip out' of my folder while looking for the repair recipt.
