Front Strut Boots Torn - what to do?

[Bladecutter]

And the reasoning behind that would be...??

He had a problem with his dealer saying that they couldn't get a previous car back into spec before.
If he has them take the measurements on the car before they do any work, they can then go about putting the car back to the same setting after the work is complete, instead of to some random setting that is within the "specs" that they set his previous car to.

I didn't think I was unclear with why it should be done.

BC.

 

[Bladecutter]

So, you want the dealer to perform 30 minutes worth
of labor for free? Good luck with that.

Don't know where you say that I implied anything should be done for free, but yes, I would recommend that he ask them to put the car on the rack, install the alignment lasers onto the wheels, and take the measurements, for free, before the work is done. He's bought 4 different CX-5's from them, they should be willing to give him 15 minutes worth of free labor to ensure the job is done right.

If it were me, I would be talking to the manager of the dealer, and would make the request directly to that person.
There shouldn't be much of an objection, if it's a good dealer.

BC.

 

[joemon1984]

Don't know where you say that I implied anything should be done for free, but yes, I would recommend that he ask them to put the car on the rack, install the alignment lasers onto the wheels, and take the measurements, for free, before the work is done. He's bought 4 different CX-5's from them, they should be willing to give him 15 minutes worth of free labor to ensure the job is done right.

If it were me, I would be talking to the manager of the dealer, and would make the request directly to that person.
There shouldn't be much of an objection, if it's a good dealer.

BC.

I noticed that my cars shock boots are torn too. Waiting to hear from forum members how dealers are dealing with it.

 

[CX5racer]

This could be concerning, wonder if this is limited to cold weather locations? My 2003 Honda Accord has 200,000 miles on it and the original struts are still good and no issue with the boots. I've never had a car that required strut boots to be replaced before the strut itself. Interestingly I had a 626 that went through universal joint boots every 15,000 miles which drove me nuts.

 

[katman]

Don't know where you say that I implied anything should be done for free, but yes, I would recommend that he ask them to put the car on the rack, install the alignment lasers onto the wheels, and take the measurements, for free, before the work is done. He's bought 4 different CX-5's from them, they should be willing to give him 15 minutes worth of free labor to ensure the job is done right.

If it were me, I would be talking to the manager of the dealer, and would make the request directly to that person.
There shouldn't be much of an objection, if it's a good dealer.

BC.

The whole request is stupid, really.
The dealership gets a set amount to do warranty work.
Checking the alignment before just for the sake of matching it after is pretty stupid- they are not going
To foot the bill for foolishness.
Think about-op traded car in because of an alleged
Bad alignment . Sorry but that is pretty stupid!

He could've had dealership redo or even taken it to a shop and have it done right for $70, that's a lot
Less than ditching the car!
Lastly, there is no such thing as the perfect alignment.
There is such a thing as the best alignment for your driving style. For example, more toe for high speed driving,
Less caster for city driving, etc.
I know nothing about the front end of the cx5 but I bet
That the only thing to check would be toe, hardly worth doing a before an after. When a car is on the rack, adjustments are not always needed. But hey, what do I know, I have only done alignments, I'm
Sure those who've dropped of their cars at the dealer and never have got yet their hands dirty know more!

 

[xtrailman]

In my experience when complaining about uneven front wheel wear, and asking the dealer to check the tracking, they either don't do it or can't do it.

Years ago a Nissan dealer said the tracking was ok, but when I took it to a specialise it was shown to me as being 5% out.

 

[gova]

...
Think about-op traded car in because of an alleged
Bad alignment . Sorry but that is pretty stupid!

He could've had dealership redo or even taken it to a shop and have it done right for $70, that's a lot
Less than ditching the car!
Lastly, there is no such thing as the perfect alignment.
...

I hate to call names but you must be mentally deficient or you are the dealer.

No such thing as perfect alignment? Really, you'd do 1 degree off here, and here and maybe over there and then car is within specs but drives as crap, pulls to the side...

That's what I heard from the dealer. It was in 'mazda's specs' which are quite wide, but pulled to the left still.
My new car as well as other cx-5 that I have don't do it. Stock settings, perfect driving feel like on rails.

I could not argue my case as it "was in mazda's specs". Also, I did go to three (3) good alignment shops to check it out. All three said that from the readings it looks like it tends to pull to the left, but all was barely within specs, just too much off to properly align.

You call 'stupid' the situation and OP, which happen to be moi, but have no clue about the history of this issue and try to fit everything within your narrow field of thought.

Actually, the trade was not that stupid.

I traded in crappy driving car, FWD with 10K on it for AWD Touring with Bose and Moonroof, new shifter and 5 miles on it for a price of AWD/Bose really. The trade itself did not really cost me $. It was more of an upgrade to AWD/Bose/Moonroof.

I posted this topic to illustrate that my other car's boots are torn and the dealer does not give a frick about anything as long as it is in 'specs' and you can't argue otherwise.

 

[katman]

Off 1 degree from what? Please elaborate.
Like I said, no such thing as a perfect alignment, just best for your siruation.
If you lived in Europe you'd need more caster on the other side of car but of course
You know that!
I'm sure you also know hrs once you take the care off the rack, the actuall alignment will be different from the
snapshot given to you, right?
I mean hey, you are the expert- you did trade in a year
old car and not lose any money, right?

 

[robertmazda]

Off 1 degree from what? Please elaborate.
Like I said, no such thing as a perfect alignment, just best for your siruation.
If you lived in Europe you'd need more caster on the other side of car but of course
You know that!
I'm sure you also know hrs once you take the care off the rack, the actuall alignment will be different from the
snapshot given to you, right?
I mean hey, you are the expert- you did trade in a year
old car and not lose any money, right?

Hey katman - why not go take your insults back to your VW friends and leave this board? No use for rude comments here. If you can't make mature, respectful statements, then perhaps you should not say anything. That's not too much to ask of an adult, is it?

 

[CC58]

Hey katman - why not go take your insults back to your VW friends and leave this board? No use for rude comments here. If you can't make mature, respectful statements, then perhaps you should not say anything. That's not too much to ask of an adult, is it?

I agree. Seems some people forget this is a forum to exchange information and not a CNN blog. If one does not have something of value to add or a legitimate question, they should keep quiet.

 

[gova]

Anyway... this is what the dealer said:

"it is very strange that it happened on both sides, we'll contact Mazda to find out what to do. We'll contact you when they get back to us."

 

[katman]

I agree. Seems some people forget this is a forum to exchange information and not a CNN blog. If one does not have something of value to add or a legitimate question, they should keep quiet.

Really? I am the only that posted any relevant information on wheel alignments here, which one will have
To be done after the repair. You have not said a single informative thing.

 

[joemon1984]

Really? I am the only that posted any relevant information on wheel alignments here, which one will have
To be done after the repair. You have not said a single informative thing.

Information is not the last word here. Politeness and mutual respect. .... it goes on like that. Not everyone is a mechanic or pro here. Its a friendly forum.

 

[RG_Flyer]

Anyway... this is what the dealer said:

"it is very strange that it happened on both sides, we'll contact Mazda to find out what to do. We'll contact you when they get back to us."

Does anyone know who the OEM is for Mazda's struts? Just curious as I have read elsewhere that KYB boots have a tendency to split at the corrugation, which is what the OP's photo indicates. If it is KYB, the struts have a great reputation, but the boot and upper mount/bearing are known to be problematic. The consensus (for another vehicle) is to use KYB struts with Monroe mounts and boots.

 

[phoned]

I noticed my strut boots would easily come off one end, with the car wheel off so suspension relaxed, but not torn.

The bottom is supposed to be "disconnected" so if any moisture/dirt gets in there it can easily fall/drain out. I was curious about it too and checked out a few other days and they are all the same like this. I guess it also helps if the suspension needs to travel out a lot it doesn't pull the bellows apart.

 

[gova]

Dealer called. They in process of ordering parts and they will call to schedule replacement.

I'll post the end result once completed.

 

[phoned]

My dealer has "never heard of this" despite all the CX-5's I've looked at in our area are in the same shape. I have an appointment next week for them to look at it (sending them pictures wasn't enough)... Might take awhile to get fixed. Oh well, they will probably break soon after if they are the same part.

 

[V8toilet]

Found out last weekend that my front strut boots are torn too. If I never had jacked up the car to work on the brakes I never would have known. You can't tell that they are torn with the car on the ground. Gova, I'm interested to know what the dealer will do to fix it. Will they replace only the boot or the whole strut?

Thanks

 

[gova]

Found out last weekend that my front strut boots are torn too. If I never had jacked up the car to work on the brakes I never would have known. You can't tell that they are torn with the car on the ground. Gova, I'm interested to know what the dealer will do to fix it. Will they replace only the boot or the whole strut?

Thanks

I do visual check of the wheel wells from time to time w/out jacking up the car, just simple once over every now and then... This is why I noticed that on wife's CX-5.

The dealer was surprised asking how she found out about it. They did replace the boots, just the rubber part (they call it dust cover).

The car is 7K miles/7months old and I would have been shocked if they replaced whole struts.

She left the car after work on Thursday and picked it up on Friday PM.

I went ahead and checked the material of the new boots. It seems/feels different from the old one. It definitely is more rubbery while the old one was more plasticky. It is actually easy to detect by touching.

 

[CX-SV]

Gova - Good info on new boots, thanks.


Last questions remain:

1. Can they cut off old boots without disassembling strut?
2. Can they install new design boot without disaaembly/assembly of strut?

If yes to both questions, labor involved would be low.