I have an 07 4x4 ext cab stx with 2341 miles.Never off road never loaned to any one to drive.I went to local shop non ford to get an oil change.When he picked up the truck on the lift he said out loud holy sh%t.My power steering rack is crushed
and leaking just in front of the diff cover.Its at the point that the pinion for the steering shaft joins the rack.I went to a local dealer to get it looked at and they were not the selling dealer.The service manager was very nice but told the truth.It is crushed and there is no sign of any other damage like dents or paint scrapes to show I ran over some thing to cause it.Its clean under there no mud any place so its clear its not been off road.He said ford wont cover it cause it looks crushed.He offered to fix it for just under a grand but I would have to pay upfront and if ford covers the part he will refund the money to me.He said that the odds of ford covering it are super slim to not at all.I am going to go to the selling dealer today to try and talk to the GM and see what he says but the selling dealer is a waste of space and I dont have much hope of them stepping up to the plate.Im not a cheap bastard and if I broke it I would have no issue with payn for it but I did not do it but how do I prove that?The truck wanders back and fourth at hiway speeds and has done it since I picked it up new.I need ideas on how to deal with this.To have to shell out a grand on a brand new truck for a fix I did not cause is not setting well with me.

 

This sucks! Did you not notice any fluids in your driveway? What are the chances the the non ford tech smashed while putting it on the lift?

 

Go back to selling dealer and tell them. I got one question that kinda has me wondering. Why didn't you go back to the selling dealer in the first place?

 

First, it shoudln't cost anywhere near $1000 to replace a steering rack.

Second, what do you mean by "it's crushed"? A power steering system doesn't hold much fluid, so if it's been crushed and leaking since you got the truck I think you would have run out of fluid long ago since you have over 2000 miles.

Third, didn't you notice any fluid in your driveway or anywhere else you park?

 

I watched him lift the truck for the oil change and he has been my go to guy for years on my last 05 f150 and mustang so he did not do it.

I called the selling dealer they would not look at it till wed of next week.I was set for a road trip next week so I was tryn to speed things up by going to another dealer.

I did notice a small stain in driveway but did not think it was from a brand new truck.My mustang tends to mark its spot once in a while.


I just took a couple pics I will see if I can upload them some place.Its not crushed flat by any means.

 

http://www.f150online.com/galleries/....cfm?num=14546


Pics of rack,taken in the driveway so not the best

 

That looks like it was done during assembly or maybe even before it got put into the truck.

I don't think the dealership should give you a problem with replacing it.

 

It kinda looks like it was damaged prior to assembly to me.

 

Agreed, it looks like it had to be in that shape prior to assembly. If they give you a rough time I'd think it would be time to pop a gasket and have Ford customer service initiate an investigation.
It will be pretty tough for your selling dealer to argue that it wasn't in that shape before you bought it, at least from what I can tell from those pics.

 

If I hit some thing large and solid to cause that damage I would have felt it.I would also think it would have dented the diff cover or tore up the paint atleast a little.The paint on the front crossmember is as new and so is the diff cover and the rear crossmember no chips,dents,scratches any place.

 

If you hit something shouldn't the damage be on the opposite side, towards the front of the truck. I would think it would be extremely difficult to damage the backside of the part. Hopefully the selling dealer will be better. If not it would be time for heads to start rolling.

 

Yeah the damage seems to be specific to that component. Hopefully the dealer will take care of you.

 

I would have called that a warranty rack replacement... but I guess not every tech looks at things the same way. Want to drive to C&C Ford? I'll replace it under warranty for ya as long as there is no other damage around that part...

 

So. It wandered since new - for 2,341 miles - and you never wondered about that???

That isn't gonna be easy to explain to the selling dealer, IMHO.

Sincerely - good luck.

Bubba

 

Go to your dealer and tell them that it's had a side to side wander since you bought it. Don't say anything about the rack!!!! Just tell them to it check it out and get back to you. Let them be the one to find the problem.