Need some help in Phoenix

Well y'all... I'm in a bit of an SOS situation. I'm living in my truck right now on account of a nasty divorce situation. In Phoenix area to see my kids the next three days.

I hit a nasty washout yesterday which I didn't see coming and my camber was absolutely screwed but I hobbled into phoenix on a hope and a prayer last night and took it to a shop this morning. I was hoping it was just alignment. Basically the shop said it was so bad that they recommend taking it to a collision center. He said the steering knuckle on the passengers side is bent and that the entire hub assembly needs to be replaced.

I have an airbnb for the next three days to see my kids and absolutely have to make that happen. I haven't been able to see them in over a month. After that I need somewhere to take the truck on Friday to see how bad this is.. dude at the shop this morning said I'm likely looking at several thousand dollars especially if both sides need work... and of course I'm living in my truck right now so I need somewhere that's going to let me drive it away while they wait on parts.

Any recommendations on where to go come Friday would be greatly appreciated. I'm in Goodyear right now but will be in Mesa with my kids.

I saw a recent post someone recommended State 48 Overland but wasn't sure that was even the kind of thing they would want to take on.

Thanks y'all.

 

Ooof. Sounds like a bent spindle. The good news it’s an easy fix (for someone with the tools/space to do the work) once you can find the part. Chances are you only need to replace the side that took the impact.

I hope someone local can take care of you.

 

Linked to this thread in the AZ 2A and BS threads.
Bump.

 

I appreciate you! Not gonna lie I wish this happened closer to your place because I need someone I can trust and who knows what they're talking about... I'd be bringing it straight to you if I could.

 

I can help out. Can you take some pictures of the damage and send it over or post them?

 

I really appreciate you. I'm in a hotel right now so I'll run down to the parking lot. I honestly don't know what I'm taking pictures of... because like Sergio said I assumed it was just the spindle but the guy at the shop (Big Brand here in Goodyear who I've used before in Cali and trust) made it sound like it was way worse than just a spindle. He said something about about a proprietary design that Toyota uses that they don't have the tools to do. But then I asked what was bent he just said steering knuckle (which I thought *is* the spindle?). Obviously doesn't help that I don't know enough about this stuff to know what I'm talking about...

 

@azchris Do you have a passenger spindle laying around? I cant remember what you ended up with after everything.

 

I’m off I-10 and 7th St in between Goodyear and Mesa if you want to stop by and I can check it out. Sounds like you are still driving it, just cautiously. Not sure what your schedule is like but if it’s not drivable, I could come to you after 5:00PM and bring all my tools and shit.

 

I'm still driving it cautiously. You are amazing. I got nothing but time right now -- just need it to stay drivable until Friday. If you're cool with me swinging by today please shoot me an address.

Here are some photos...

Passenger's side is definitely the problem side:













Driver (which they said was also out of alignment but they didn't inspect in detail on account of the passenger being so bad):

 

Are there any noises or vibrations coming from the front? I’ll shoot you a PM with my info.

 

No noise that I've noticed except for what sounds like increased road noise from the tire I assume on account of the camber (but again I don't know what I'm talking about). No terribly noticeable vibration but it feels off for sure with the alignment being so jacked so it's hard to know what's what.

 

Maxx, you’re the best

 

Spindle for sure. I just gave my spare set to another local member.. but I think he kept his one good one (which was passenger side I think). There may be some others locally who have a spare spindle laying around..

@05TacoRunner any input?

 

Y'all are amazing. That would be awesome.

Anybody know what beer this guy drinks so I can try and find some?

 

Awesome! AZTW to the rescue again!

Yep agree with everyone else it looks to be a bent spindle. Hopefully there is one locally laying around. @Maxx is a great guy and should be able to get you taken care of. That is not a difficult job to tackle.

 

So that story got fun. Long story short - both the driver's spindle I grabbed from you and my old passenger's spindle are slightly bent. I got the gusset kit and went to weld it up and it was like an inch out at the bottom when I bolted the top in. Took the spindles and the gussets to the dealership and compared them with new ones off the shelf to make sure it wasn't just the gussets that were out of spec, and confirmed both spindles are a bit off. Think I'm just gonna bite the bullet and get the fancy billet ones from Camburg. If you want to take them back or pass them along to @LiquidArrogance I'm game, I'm probably just going to dump them otherwise. I think they're probably still straight enough to get the alignment in spec, but I'd rather start from something fresh since I'm going to all this effort.

 

I appreciate the heads up.

I just called Avondale Toyota and they do have one in stock but ain't cheap.

 

oh boy... Well.. that doesnt entirely surprise me as they were both on trucks that got used pretty good.. lol Bummer though man. Sorry they didnt work out! You can toss em, or.. if @LiquidArrogance needs a temp quick fix.. pass them onto him if they'll do in pinch. Also, if you want another option.. I went with new gusseted spindles from @m00seNUckLEz (RC Fab) when I rebuilt the front end the 2nd time.

 

No problem, it's all yours if you need it, getting trashed otherwise. I did the same thing as you, but stuffed the driver's side instead I'm in Gilbert, but could probably meet you guys somewhere to drop it off. My only disclaimer is that AFAIK the alignment was in spec when I took it off the truck, but it is a couple degrees off from a brand new one, so there's a small chance that an alignment wouldn't be able to get it fully into factory specs. It's certainly a lot straighter than your current one though

 

There's a shop off the 60 and Mesa Drive called Desert Toy Shop.. They are Toyotas only and I use them for my alignments. They'll be able to work with the alignment more than other places and might make something work if you really did need a Temp alignment.