As the title says. 

I'm looking for a reliable garage in the West Mids that is experienced with maintenance on Ford Rangers. Please can you recommend some that you've personally had good experiences with?

 

I've had an issue recently with a noise coming from the rear axle (can be described as the sound of plates spinning), I think I've finally narrowed it down to the rotors potentially needing replacing due to being warped and causing the sound..

 

The trouble is, I've taken the Ranger in to multiple garages to diagnose and resolve the issue and paid for multiple repairs on brakes, bearings, new wheels etc but the issue still persists as none have been able to identify and fix the underlying issue, its only through further research myself, that I've come to conclude it must be the rotors..

 

I don't feel very confident taking the ranger in to typical garages after the ongoing experience ive had, and I want to take it in to somewhere that specialises in our kind of 4x4 vehicles for peace of mind. (Past garage reassembled my drums incorrectly, had to have them reset elsewhere)..

 

Is there anywhere that you guys personally use and highly recommend? 

 

I appreciate your feedback.

9 hours ago, rangerlad said:

I've had an issue recently with a noise coming from the rear axle (can be described as the sound of plates spinning), I think I've finally narrowed it down to the rotors potentially needing replacing due to being warped and causing the sound.

ROTORS ???

If you are meaning Discs, then I'm surprised your Ranger has rear disc brakes. Some like the Raptor do have them but mostly they all have Drum brakes.

9 hours ago, rangerlad said:

take it in to somewhere that specialises in our kind of 4x4 vehicles for peace of mind. (Past garage reassembled my drums incorrectly, had to have them reset elsewhere)..

......and now I'm further confused as you say the garage reassembled the drums incorrectly.

Hmm, I thought 'Rotors' as I came across a video last night of warped rotors that sounded exactly like the noise I'm hearing. But you're right they are drum brakes. So it must be something else.. 

My partner recorded a video of whilst the vehicle's in motion to try and catch the sound - I wonder if you can help me figure out where this noise would be coming from? Perhaps its something youve heard before? It sounds like a plate spinning kind of, or something rubbing/lacking lubrication. It increases with the speed of the vehicle. I thought my brakes were dragging but I've had work done on them since and the noise is still occurring. 

 

One more point. I did notice that my handbrake is a bit tighter since having the rear brakes checked. There's more tension when I lift it and so to fully engage it it doesn't seem to have to be lifted as high as before I had the work done. Could this be the culprit and the garage may have over tightened the brake line causing the shoes to rub whilst the wheels are in motion? 

23 hours ago, rangerlad said:

One more point. I did notice that my handbrake is a bit tighter since having the rear brakes checked. There's more tension when I lift it and so to fully engage it it doesn't seem to have to be lifted as high as before I had the work done. Could this be the culprit and the garage may have over tightened the brake line causing the shoes to rub whilst the wheels are in motion? 

Drum brakes contain a self-adjustment mechanism to automatically move the shoes closer to the drum as the material wears away over time. When a mechanic puts it back together they'll roughly set the correct position using the mechanism's adjustment screw. They should set it so that the drum can freely rotate without brushing against the shoe material. Perhaps they didn't quite do this well enough, perhaps because they got distracted. I can't make out anything from that short video, all I hear is general car noise. 😀

Good question! That is to say: garage recommendations in West Midlands. It could be that there aren't any worth recommending!!

Completely redoing the rear suspension on my Focus 2008, and took a rear knuckle to them (in Great Barr) to tack weld a new captive nut on the lower shock bolt as previous stripped. Also had them take the hubs off (4 M10x30 bolt each side - I had already loosened 4 of the total of eight lying down on the drive not the best position, so only 4 to do), and put two new axle hub bushes in the trail arms (I supplied). 

The captive nut was well aligned but they used a standard nut when common sense would tell you a flange nut. OK should work, but low grade work and attitude.

I had told them I wanted to reuse the hubs but would renew the bolts myself. They just gunned them off without intelligence (M10x30 is only nominal 50Nm) and managed to shear one (doh!) handing it back to me in that state.

The trailing arm axle bushes were OK, even if one a quarter inch off, but that's probably adequate.

And this exhibition of mediocrity they claimed took 3 hours and charged £180! Well, the mechanic I heard saying to front desk that it had taken him 2 hours, the front desk invoiced for 3 hours and when I pointed out the discrepancy the mechanic was in denial and ran off! So I looks like I am paying their lunch hour too ...! (who says there is no free lunch?!). Bunch of tinkers really.

Actually, I could have done these jobs except for the captive nut (and should have) but thought as they were doing the one job the other two would be quick enough (how long can 4 hub bolts take and 2 x axle bushes with a press?). Had not reckoned with such low grade work or flakiness.

I worked in the back with the mechanics for several months in JLR dealership between school and university in the 1990s to earn some cash and it was an eye opener (not in a good way). Will do a MIG welding course later this year to ensure that I can do without so-called 'professional' mechanics. If I need specialist help on say the ECU or some inner part of the engine I will go to a specialist for that job (although as a 1.8 TDCI maybe cheaper to just buy and install another engine or box!).

Incidentally, another garage that have a good reputation locally did my brothers Focuses brakes (discs and pads all round). About a year later the car got scrapped. I took the wheels off for my Focus and found the hubs seized to the disc (though inconsistent and over torqued nuts were not a surprise). Some hard thumps and they came off, but the point is that they did not use anti-seize when they did the brake job (I guess just "slap it on and gun it up").

So my suggestion is train yourself up to look after your car (and try to avoid any model of car too electronically complex).

On 5/5/2025 at 9:14 PM, TDCI man said:

Good question! That is to say: garage recommendations in West Midlands. It could be that there aren't any worth recommending!!

Completely redoing the rear suspension on my Focus 2008, and took a rear knuckle to them (in Great Barr) to tack weld a new captive nut on the lower shock bolt as previous stripped. Also had them take the hubs off (4 M10x30 bolt each side - I had already loosened 4 of the total of eight lying down on the drive not the best position, so only 4 to do), and put two new axle hub bushes in the trail arms (I supplied). 

The captive nut was well aligned but they used a standard nut when common sense would tell you a flange nut. OK should work, but low grade work and attitude.

I had told them I wanted to reuse the hubs but would renew the bolts myself. They just gunned them off without intelligence (M10x30 is only nominal 50Nm) and managed to shear one (doh!) handing it back to me in that state.

The trailing arm axle bushes were OK, even if one a quarter inch off, but that's probably adequate.

And this exhibition of mediocrity they claimed took 3 hours and charged £180! Well, the mechanic I heard saying to front desk that it had taken him 2 hours, the front desk invoiced for 3 hours and when I pointed out the discrepancy the mechanic was in denial and ran off! So I looks like I am paying their lunch hour too ...! (who says there is no free lunch?!). Bunch of tinkers really.

Actually, I could have done these jobs except for the captive nut (and should have) but thought as they were doing the one job the other two would be quick enough (how long can 4 hub bolts take and 2 x axle bushes with a press?). Had not reckoned with such low grade work or flakiness.

I worked in the back with the mechanics for several months in JLR dealership between school and university in the 1990s to earn some cash and it was an eye opener (not in a good way). Will do a MIG welding course later this year to ensure that I can do without so-called 'professional' mechanics. If I need specialist help on say the ECU or some inner part of the engine I will go to a specialist for that job (although as a 1.8 TDCI maybe cheaper to just buy and install another engine or box!).

Incidentally, another garage that have a good reputation locally did my brothers Focuses brakes (discs and pads all round). About a year later the car got scrapped. I took the wheels off for my Focus and found the hubs seized to the disc (though inconsistent and over torqued nuts were not a surprise). Some hard thumps and they came off, but the point is that they did not use anti-seize when they did the brake job (I guess just "slap it on and gun it up").

So my suggestion is train yourself up to look after your car (and try to avoid any model of car too electronically complex).

Mate, I've been seriously giving this some thought. Tempted to put myself through a mechanics course or buy a scrappy just to mess about with to learn the basics. Seems like it would be a good investment! 

I have done quite a lot of work already. There's a lot of info out there on "how to" not least on this forum. Really you want a second running car, as first time you do any major work it will take much longer than you expect and the car will be off the road. Get yourself a Haynes manual (not always the best but a good way to familiarise yourself jobs and safe practice before checking other sources). Second hand tools are inexpensive from the usual sites. With labour round here costing £50-£90+VAT and hour and uncertain quality of work and honesty of billing, I think it makes sense. I find it interesting to learn and satisfying completing jobs to a standard I want and being more self-reliant. Ford parts (or OEM quality suppliers), are relatively cheap and there's always scrappies if you are stuck. Treat it as a hobby, rather than a chore.