I recently took my car to my family's mechanic after years of going to dealer service. Among the many things I asked my family's mechanic to take care of was to inspect and repair the rear struts. I mentioned that almost exactly a year ago, the dealer had replaced the front struts. My mechanic pointed out that the amount of rust on the bolt and screw fittings of the front struts suggest that the dealer may not have replaced the struts after all. He had not inspected the struts themselves, but he didn't think that that much rust would accumulate in one year. I do live in the Chicagoland area and the car is parked outdoors even through winter.
I was hoping you could provide me with a third professional opinion before I go charging into my dealer service and accusing them of fraud. Is this much rust possible after only one year?
And if it is an issue, would you have any suggestions about how to most effectively approach my dealer?