Angel on my shoulder... Les Schwab (Fabtech 3") Lift Fail!!

[Rednek]

They should inspect the brake lines and abs harness,and replace the lower ball joint as well for side loaded stress.

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[Missy_Fussy]

Lift was installed at Les Schwab about a month ago. I've put maybe 100 miles on it. About 15 minutes before it happened I was driving freeway speeds on a sketchy two lane highway with 3 kids on board. I dropped off one of the kids, and as I was about to pull out of the driveway, this happened:

Has anyone every seen anything like this? Any advise?

Thank God everybody is safe and sound... but yes, that really sucks

 

[Ricky_gibbs]

I think the problem is trusting a place like that to do more than just changing a tire, even then I wouldn't trust the lug nuts being tightened properly

 

[BigMeatsBronco]

So I just went out and re-checked mine...one side was still super tight and torqued correct, the other side had loosened up a bit ...like a 1/4 of a turn from torqued. So AGAIN anyone who has aftermarket UCAs should check these again and often.

 

[JGayler911]

Well that sucks...looks like the front fell off.

LMAO watching this... it's like chicken soup for my soul right now...

 

[buzpro]

Lift was installed at Les Schwab about a month ago. I've put maybe 100 miles on it. About 15 minutes before it happened I was driving freeway speeds on a sketchy two lane highway with 3 kids on board. I dropped off one of the kids, and as I was about to pull out of the driveway, this happened:

Has anyone every seen anything like this? Any advise?

SO GLAD this didn't happen on the highway !!

 

[mpeugeot]

What wax did you use?

And people wonder why I won't usually even allow shops to do an oil change, much less anything more complicated.

There is no way that this should happen in 100 miles unless there was a installation failure or a manufacturing failure.

Don't know which one it is, but you have a better chance of spotting a manufacturing defect when you do the work yourself.

 

[mpeugeot]

I hate to say this, but most people that pay to have a lift installed aren't actually going read the instructions that came with it.

I hate to say it, but most shops won't either... I can't tell you how many times I have seen things installed without any evidence of anything being torqued to spec.

 

[Fonz54]

Wow... Thank you everyone!... Super helpful feedback!

Should I be worried about the brake line? or lower control arms? seems like there's a lot of things to get bent in a situation like this.

I trust Les Schwab to make it 100% right. but also worried they're going to blow sunshine, and do some jedi-hand waves

No offense , but why would you go to Les Schwab to have a lift installed on your 4WD vehicle. Might as well have gone to Pep Boys. Why not use a reputable shop that specializes in 4WD vehicles? I know I am being a Monday morning QB but just wondering. I do hope this gets resolved quickly and I am glad you and your family are OK.

 

[gryphon1231]

under 100 miles on the lift

yes... same shop.

But my suggestion would be to get some high quality video and still images of the the failure. Do you have any documentation supporting the milage? Did the shop take down the milage when they took you Bronco in to install the lift?

I hate to say it, but most shops won't either... I can't tell you how many times I have seen things installed without any evidence of anything being torqued to spec.

That wouldn’t surprise me.

 

[Silver-Bolt]

I was about to blame Fab-Tech. They aren't exactly known for quality products. After seeing the photos, this is 100% installer error. It doesn't look like the even lubed the uniball. Once you have it back I would go over every nut and bolt they touched and confirm they have been properly torqued.

 

[Taltyman]

Still don't have our Bronco but have a Rubicon on it's second lift and have had nothing but 4wd vehicles since the 80's. I'm 74 now and don't feel like crawling underneath any more than I have to but I've done most everything in the past myself including rebuilding engines, replacing transmissions and rear ends. The shops I've used for the last 3 lifts have never mentioned checking any torque after so many miles and I have never had any issue other that the Rough Country lift I had in the past was a POS lift that simply wore out. That's the only one I've ever had to replace or had issues with. Just from experience I've had it seems like the more expensive lift kits last and ride better than the cheaper ones. Currently we have the previously mentioned Rubicon with a terraflex 2" and a 2000 F350 with almost 350K miles with a 4" lift. The F350 lift has never given me any issues but I have no idea now of what lift kit is on it. Getting too old to remember.

 

[CyberOrangeBronco]

Looks like the installer only went to ugga ugga when the instructions clearly call for at least 6 uggas.

But seriously, OP thanks for posting this as it's a great reminder for all of us who installed lifts to be a bit more intentional with re checking everything.

If I were you, for added piece of mind I'd let the installer know that the original idea of coming back after 1000 miles to retorque everything is no longer going to work for you, tell them you'll be back in a day or two to have it all rechecked and back about a week after that (than periodically as you see fit). Given the failure you just had they should be happy to accommodate and not charge you for these additional visits. The main bolts you'll need them to check on these followup visits is the failed UCA bolt plus the sway bar and tie rod bolts that go through the LCA. One of them is 21mm and the other two are 18mm. You then have 5 nuts holding the shock in place, 3 15mm up top and 2 18mm on the bottom. (I'm going off of memory from my install last week so it's possible I'm not 100% correct on number and size of each nut).

I would assume that for easier access the shop will put the vehicle on a lift to recheck everything, and it's probably something you'll want to watch them do. You don't have to be in the bay standing over the mechanic but just make sure they are actually wrenching on the vehicle while it's there.

 

[CyberOrangeBronco]

I would think a lift kit that requires retorquing of fasteners at 50 miles and then periodically re-check is a kit meant for off-road enthusiasts that expect such suspension adjustments. If the design requires such torque specs, then proper engineering would dictate at a minimum safety wire for those fasteners that are subject to loosening during use.

Or even more likely it's just a coverall that may be helpful if Fabtech ever found themselves in a future lawsuit over a part failure due to a improper install.

 

[Tonka Bronka]

I just don’t get the need to void your warranty for this. Just not worth it.

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