Problems with Steeda

[v8musclecobra]

So my last thread was taken down because i guess i broke some rules so here's a new one. I bought a rear swaybar from STEEDA 3-4 years ago..."the last sway bar you'll ever have to buy". Well it broke a few days ago. I called Steeda and i guess the one i have wasn't a lifetime warranty one so evidently it was an inferior and poorly built product. Car has had around 2200 miles on it since i put the part on 4 years ago. Car has no rust but the piece from Steeda shows some. Part was also put in by certified Ford Mechanic. The person i talked to on the phone whose name i'll leave out was pretty rude. I asked if i could speak to his boss and he said that i couldn't...lol. Anyway, it didn't break at the weld but near the screw hole on the flat part of the steel. Anyone else had problems like this with a Steeda product?

Paint flaked off on the side not broken as well and has rust.

 

[STAMPEDE3]

I've dealt with them a few times with no issue.

However, what did he say that was so rude?
Did he give you a reason for not letting you speak to his boss?

Any more details?

Looks like it broke just like the factory ones did on the SN95 Cobras.

 

[v8musclecobra]

I've dealt with them a few times with no issue.

However, what did he say that was so rude?
Did he give you a reason for not letting you speak to his boss?

Any more details?

Looks like it broke just like the factory ones did on the SN95 Cobras.

Well not allowing me to talk to his boss for one. He didn't really have an answer except saying all he could do was knock $30 off the price of a new one (which is still a lot more expensive then a lot of other companies products out there and i wouldn't trust spending money on the same thing twice). He said everyone would tell me the same so i couldn't talk to anyone else.

YUP! broke just like my factory one did which was the original reason for buying this one. I had hoped if i spent more i would get a better product but i should have just went for an OEM replacement for half the price.

 

[GOTSVT?]

3-4 yrs! Give me a break. I think you got your use out of it! Although that doesnt mean shitty customer service is acceptable.

 

[v8musclecobra]

if i actually drove the car maybe...and it broke at the SAME place. If it's meant to break how can they say it's the last one i'll ever need to buy? Judging buy a lot of reviews and other members on here this isn't the first time their product has failed someone. I would think the control arm where this bolts on to would take a lot more abuse then the bar itself as the bracket on the control arm is a lot thinner then the one on the sway bar and it's not like it broke at the weld.

 

[01cobravortech]

if i actually drove the car maybe...and it broke at the SAME place. If it's meant to break how can they say it's the last one i'll ever need to buy?

They are right. Its the last one you'll ever buy from them.

 

[v8musclecobra]

They are right. Its the last one you'll ever buy from them.

haha exactly. MM here i come.

 

[zak88lx]

3-4 yrs! Give me a break. I think you got your use out of it!

I would also be pissed off if an aftermarket part I purchased broke after only 3 years.
If people start accepting that it's normal for aftermarket parts to break after only 3 years then we're all screwed as eventually no company is going to make a high quality product.

 

[Nickerz]

I sell about 35K parts a year, and hate to break it to you, but you're wrong.

If the item didn't have a lifetime or 5 year warranty, you have NO right to complain and you are what we refer to as a nightmare customer.

The product sucks, but there are plenty of bad items out there. The rest of us move on and vote with our dollar and just make a post about it.

Sellers are not in debt to you forever. If you wanted a lifetime part, Maximum Motorsports is well known to sell lifetime warranties with their parts.

What you did was buy an item which you thought was a fair exchange of your money for a product. It offered what I assume was a one year warranty. You made an assumption, which was incorrect which could have been dealt with in less than 5 minutes worth of research, calling or reading. Now you are trying to alter the deal by trying to make them assume a 4-5 year warranty period.

Again, I understand it sucks, but to be honest I doubt they were rude with you. I've dealt with a large number of people just like you, and I'm sure he calmly told you that you're well outside of your warranty period, after which you wouldn't listen you demanded a manager. No one needs to get a manager to tell you you're 3 years outside the warranty period.

Seriously man?

 

[GOTSVT?]

Most people I know, myself included dont keep cars that long. hahahaha

 

[kevinatfms]

how much did that crap metal bar cost? glad i bought FRPP/eibach, i broke an endlink about 3 years after owning my bars and they sent me a new rear endlink free of charge with no shipping cost, even wanted the old one back to make sure they knew why it failed.

bad powdercoat? time and age/rust got into the cracks and then metal fatigue set in.

 

[ITRIEDEL]

"the last sway bar you'll ever have to buy". <--- Advertisment

"Warranties terms and conditions" <---- Official

 

[AluminatorSnake]

I sell about 35K parts a year, and hate to break it to you, but you're wrong.

If the item didn't have a lifetime or 5 year warranty, you have NO right to complain and you are what we refer to as a nightmare customer.

The product sucks, but there are plenty of bad items out there. The rest of us move on and vote with our dollar and just make a post about it.
Sellers are not in debt to you forever. If you wanted a lifetime part, Maximum Motorsports is well known to sell lifetime warranties with their parts.

What you did was buy an item which you thought was a fair exchange of your money for a product. It offered what I assume was a one year warranty. You made an assumption, which was incorrect which could have been dealt with in less than 5 minutes worth of research, calling or reading. Now you are trying to alter the deal by trying to make them assume a 4-5 year warranty period.

Again, I understand it sucks, but to be honest I doubt they were rude with you. I've dealt with a large number of people just like you, and I'm sure he calmly told you that you're well outside of your warranty period, after which you wouldn't listen you demanded a manager. No one needs to get a manager to tell you you're 3 years outside the warranty period.

Seriously man?

Whats he wrong about exactly, i would be aggravated about a high performance product breaking in 2200 miles. Its not like he is asking you a favor, its clearly a rant.
Also, YES he does have the right to complain about whatever the hell he wants. Thats freedom of speech, I can complain all i want if my 75k mile 09 focus or my 99 cobra or my 00PSD breaks something and they are all out of warranty.
Thats exactly what he did make a post about it. I also dont blame him for callin steeda. There is always a chance a company will significantly help someone out with an item like that. Ford Racing will go leaps and bounds for people sometimes.
35k parts a year eh? who cares what you do, it pertains nothing to this thread. My mom sells jewelry from her couch and sells that many items of jewelry, she doesnt advertise or even use the web. You see how that doesnt pertain to the thread, or impress anyone?

OP that sucks that it breaks just like the stock piece, I would buy frpp for my next if they still have them, or maybe check tousley for a stock unit.

 

[CobraBob]

Reading this info on Steeda's website, it seems they have corrected the breakage problem. This sway-bar has a lifetime warranty, unlike the one the OP bought. Read, in particular, the 4th paragraph. Steeda Heavy Duty Rear Swaybar for 1979 thru 2004 Ford Mustang 555-1085

I agree that if a part has a regular 1-year warranty there should be no complaint if it fails after that.

 

[AAG]

I sell about 35K parts a year, and hate to break it to you, but you're wrong.

If the item didn't have a lifetime or 5 year warranty, you have NO right to complain and you are what we refer to as a nightmare customer.

The product sucks, but there are plenty of bad items out there. The rest of us move on and vote with our dollar and just make a post about it.

Sellers are not in debt to you forever. If you wanted a lifetime part, Maximum Motorsports is well known to sell lifetime warranties with their parts.

What you did was buy an item which you thought was a fair exchange of your money for a product. It offered what I assume was a one year warranty. You made an assumption, which was incorrect which could have been dealt with in less than 5 minutes worth of research, calling or reading. Now you are trying to alter the deal by trying to make them assume a 4-5 year warranty period.

Again, I understand it sucks, but to be honest I doubt they were rude with you. I've dealt with a large number of people just like you, and I'm sure he calmly told you that you're well outside of your warranty period, after which you wouldn't listen you demanded a manager. No one needs to get a manager to tell you you're 3 years outside the warranty period.

Seriously man?

A part like that should NOT break after 3-4 years. And if it does, you should do more than "knock off $30" if you want repeat/new customers. Word of mouth gets around pretty quick when a customer isnt happy.

 

[Dirks9901]

a part like that should not break after 3-4 years. And if it does, you should do more than "knock off $30" if you want repeat/new customers. Word of mouth gets around pretty quick when a customer isnt happy.

+1.

 

[v8musclecobra]

I'm not really upset that they didn't fully replace it with another one, what i'm upset about is that they didn't do much to help me out with a new one. They must have known that this part was a POS because they evidently have a new upgraded model that has a lifetime warranty. There's nothing worse then buying something to upgrade your car only to find out that it was a waste of money and you could have bought something else. It's like buying a turbocharger and in 3-4 years that 7-10grand going down the drain because it broke (now that's a sig. amount more money, and also takes a lot more abuse with pressures, but how would you feel if it broke that soon). I would have been happy with a half off the new one offer but that wasn't the case.

 

[racermatt]

Every story has two sides, here is ours.

Both myself and my immediate supervisor offered you 50.00 off PLUS free shipping, not 30. "The last swaybar you will ever buy" is what it says on the website for the current copy on the current bar which has only been there less than a year. There is even a note on that very same product page you are quoting that states "Replacement warranty applies only to this current bar design" Here is the link for everyone to see for themselves.

http://www.steeda.com/store/steeda-heavy-duty-rear-swaybar-for-1979-thru-200
4-ford-mustang.html

Your swaybar is an older design purchased over 4 1/2 years ago. That bar at the time had a one year warranty. So it is 3 1/2 years out of warranty.

There is a reason a market even exists for that swaybar and it is because the OEM swaybar can and does break. There are other reasons besides inherent weakness that can break a swaybar too, particularly if you have control arms with tired bushings which put an increased amount of load on the swaybar itself, eventually if unchecked this can cause other problems like sagging ride height since the lower arm acts as the lower spring perch supporting the car. So there are a variety of reasons the rear swaybar can fail.

Regardless, being that far out of warranty we could not offer you a warranty replacement as it did not qualify. The current bar design is our latest evolution that if you somehow find a way to break it, you would deserve to have a new one. It is a beefy piece. We have made the current bar design as strong as we feel it could be done. It is a much higher cost to manufacture in its current form. The swaybar you purchased 4 1/2 years ago was only 129.00, compared to the current 249.95 price.

On the deleted threads topic if it was on one of the other forums out there where you started cursing and calling people names for questioning your story, that is likely why it got deleted.

Our original offer still stands, although it was obviously not to your satisfaction, the new bar will have a lifetime warranty and if would be replaced even if it broke because of one of the other reasons we mentioned bars break and no fault of the bar itself.

 

[v8musclecobra]

Every story has two sides, here is ours.

Both myself and my immediate supervisor offered you 50.00 off PLUS free shipping, not 30. "The last swaybar you will ever buy" is what it says on the website for the current copy on the current bar which has only been there less than a year. There is even a note on that very same product page you are quoting that states "Replacement warranty applies only to this current bar design" Here is the link for everyone to see for themselves.

http://www.steeda.com/store/steeda-heavy-duty-rear-swaybar-for-1979-thru-200
4-ford-mustang.html

Your swaybar is an older design purchased over 4 1/2 years ago. That bar at the time had a one year warranty. So it is 3 1/2 years out of warranty.

There is a reason a market even exists for that swaybar and it is because the OEM swaybar can and does break. There are other reasons besides inherent weakness that can break a swaybar too, particularly if you have control arms with tired bushings which put an increased amount of load on the swaybar itself, eventually if unchecked this can cause other problems like sagging ride height since the lower arm acts as the lower spring perch supporting the car. So there are a variety of reasons the rear swaybar can fail.

Regardless, being that far out of warranty we could not offer you a warranty replacement as it did not qualify. The current bar design is our latest evolution that if you somehow find a way to break it, you would deserve to have a new one. It is a beefy piece. We have made the current bar design as strong as we feel it could be done. It is a much higher cost to manufacture in its current form. The swaybar you purchased 4 1/2 years ago was only 129.00, compared to the current 249.95 price.

On the deleted threads topic if it was on one of the other forums out there where you started cursing and calling people names for questioning your story, that is likely why it got deleted.

Our original offer still stands, although it was obviously not to your satisfaction, the new bar will have a lifetime warranty and if would be replaced even if it broke because of one of the other reasons we mentioned bars break and no fault of the bar itself.

First off i was told $30 off; If i misheard i apologize but i heard $30 off and nothing said about shipping. Number 2...i haven't even had the car over 4 years. I could believe maybe 4 years but NO WAY 4 and a half years old, i'd put it more 3.5 years. There's no way i paid only 129. The stock bars run for that, i paid ATLEAST $170 which is what they run now on various websites. That offer, although better, was NOT what i was told on the phone. The old one said the same thing...i had it on an americanmuscle.com link but i can't find it now. Evidently you made a poor product in the first place and "corrected" a problem. If i wanted another one that broke i would have bought a stock replacement. I figured i'd spend the extra coin and get something from a good name that would last me but i guess not.

 

[Black*Death]

Hey our product sucks but you only paid $129 so your SOL.

We recognize our product was inferior and made a much better one ,but ignore that point and read how there are multiple ways to break a sway bar besides our poor design.

Blame the customer for our weak product.

I think that sums up the argument?

Penny wise... pound foolish I say