Possible susp problem: car seems lower on one side

Ok my car seems like it might have a bad suspension problem :eek: The driver's side seems like it's about 1/2" lower than the passenger side.. and the car constantly drifts to the left.

I first started noticing it after I got a new tire put on my front driver side. I just assumed i needed an alignment, which I was going to wait to do until after I lowered my car. A short time after that i got the car lowered with all brand new shocks and springs.

Once i lowered it, it seemed like it had a little more drift to the left but still nothing too bad. but now it's been a couple months and 1000 or so miles, and it's just getting worse and worse.

I was thinking it might be the new tire is slightly smaller than the others, but i checked my fender gap and there was less gap on the drivers side than on the passenger.. seems like there would be more gap if the tire was smaller.

One other thing to consider is when I bought my car I had it checked over by a mechanic and they recommended i replace my "front strut rod bushings".

So i'm wondering.. is it likely the strut rod bushings are blown/ripped/gone on one side or something and thats the major cause of the one side being lower than the other? or it is something else? I looked in the manual for strut rod bushings but only saw something called a "radius rod".. but that didn't look like it should affect the vertical height of the car :dunno: is there anything i should look for?:welcome:

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Originally Posted by frantik

Ok my car seems like it might have a bad suspension problem :eek: The driver's side seems like it's about 1/2" lower than the passenger side.. and the car constantly drifts to the left.

I first started noticing it after I got a new tire put on my front driver side. I just assumed i needed an alignment, which I was going to wait to do until after I lowered my car. A short time after that i got the car lowered with all brand new shocks and springs.

Once i lowered it, it seemed like it had a little more drift to the left but still nothing too bad. but now it's been a couple months and 1000 or so miles, and it's just getting worse and worse.

I was thinking it might be the new tire is slightly smaller than the others, but i checked my fender gap and there was less gap on the drivers side than on the passenger.. seems like there would be more gap if the tire was smaller.

One other thing to consider is when I bought my car I had it checked over by a mechanic and they recommended i replace my "front strut rod bushings".

So i'm wondering.. is it likely the strut rod bushings are blown/ripped/gone on one side or something and thats the major cause of the one side being lower than the other? or it is something else? I looked in the manual for strut rod bushings but only saw something called a "radius rod".. but that didn't look like it should affect the vertical height of the car :dunno: is there anything i should look for?:welcome:

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This might be completely unrelated, but did you check the ball joints and LCA bushings?

The radius rods won't affect ride height. I don't know what they would mean by strut rod either but I would start checking all the bushings so see if any are worn out. The pulling to one side could just be an alignment problem but the ride height issue must be something worn or broken. And since the springs are new that pretty much rules them out.
You could also take it to an alignment place and they should be able to tell you what is wrong that's affecting ride height.

C|

thanks.. can i just take the wheel off and visually inspect the bushings or will i need to do more like remove other shit to see if they are damaged?

asking an alignment place to diagnose the problem sounds like a good idea too as long as it's not too much $$

Give it more time. Mine was uneven at first too but now it's straight. The suspension hasn't fully settled yet.

should i not get an alignment until it settles then? i dunno it seems like the one front drivers side is significantly lower.. especially when I make right turns it feels weird.. i'm starting to not feel safe while driving cause i have to hold the wheel with more and more force to keep the wheels from turning left. the roads here in san jose are torn to shreds so i wouldn't be suprised if i did damage or wear out some of the 20 year old rubber

Not to jack your thread or anythiing dude but i noticed the same thing on my car. I never noticed it before and recently my car has been handling differently. I thought that maybe the spring was getting worn out due to my driving but you replaced yours and the problem persisted. Another thing i noticed was that my shock bushings(Front lower control arm) Are beggining to crush which i im sure can affect the ride height and the funky steering.; have you checked to see if those bushing are worn out on your ride?

if you dont mind a small road trip... i could check it out 4 ya

Replacing bushings, etc. certainly won't hurt but don't be surprised if it doesn't correct your problem. If you are going to do that, don't get the alignment until after you are done.

Taking the wheel of is plenty to get a good look at the bushings. I suspect the lower control arm bushing where the shock fork attaches, as 87LXiR said. If it really is getting worse you have good reason to be concerned as there is the potential for a serious accident.
Most alignment places should at least be able to take a look at it for free since all they have to do is put it up on the rack and look.

C|

thanks for the tips guys.. i'm hoping i get a chance to check it tomorrow. :)

if it is just my springs settling in.. what do i do while the car is unbalanced? my car is parked most of the time on a road with a pretty big hump in the middle so i wouldn't be suprised if the drivers side is just more compressed than the other.. but i dont want to get an alignment just to need another one soon...

mabie someone could help me here... i just had my front end alligned and today at my class i did a tire rotation and when i drove it out the stearing wheel was cocked off a bunch to the right and idea y this would happen?

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Originally Posted by hondaman1986

mabie someone could help me here... i just had my front end alligned and today at my class i did a tire rotation and when i drove it out the stearing wheel was cocked off a bunch to the right and idea y this would happen?

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You didn't center the steering wheel when you moved the tie rod ends(set the toe).

Your prolly all trained up for Wal mart they send em out like that too.

:Owned:



wp

no i didnt do the alighnmen shwabs did like 6 months ago and yesterday in my mechanics class i did a tire rotation and when i drove it out from the life i noticed that the alignment was out anybody have an idea y this would happen

im guessing the wear on your tires is uneven and thats why it's doing that.. :dunno:

i just saw the free honda inspection thread.. i think ill just have them take a look and let me know whats up :D :D

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Originally Posted by frantik

im guessing the wear on your tires is uneven and thats why it's doing that.. :dunno:

i just saw the free honda inspection thread.. i think ill just have them take a look and let me know whats up :D :D

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no unfortunatly its not that simple. the tires are all new with less that 6000 miles on them. this problem even confused my instructor and he owns an alighnment shop. every thing else is fine but the wheel is cocked off to the right... anyone else ever have this prob?

well i got an alignment and that made it better but didnt fix the problem all the way.. they recommended i get new tires since they're not matched. ill do that tomorrow and hopefully it'll work out. if it still leans to the left then ill know i need to do more but i hope it's all better after this cause otherwise ill be pissed

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Originally Posted by frantik

well i got an alignment and that made it better but didnt fix the problem all the way.. they recommended i get new tires since they're not matched. ill do that tomorrow and hopefully it'll work out. if it still leans to the left then ill know i need to do more but i hope it's all better after this cause otherwise ill be pissed

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cool get some falken tires.

i'll be getting whatever they have at wheel works for under $60/tire lol

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Originally Posted by frantik

i'll be getting whatever they have at wheel works for under $60/tire lol

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i got a set of fat fives you can borrow for the meet....


:deal:

huh? i need tired not wheels

i'm going to "Wheel Works" to get my tires :D

i took it over to the place again.. they recommended i try roating the back tires onto the front first, and they did it for me for free. :rockon:

it seems like that improved things quite a bit, though the suspension still feels odd.. like it wants to go to one side or the other all the time. I'm sure some of that is due to changing the suspension shape but is there a way to make it want to go straight more? like more toe-in or whatever the hell it is?

oh well glad to see some actual improvement and glad i didnt have to drop down another $100 to do it :D:D

Too little toe will make it want to wander side to side. You can try increasing toe but watch for tire wear on the outside edges. Also, increasing caster angle will make it want to pull to center more. Too much will make the steering feel "heavy" but shouldn't affect tire wear much.

C|

is it even possible to adjust toe and caster with the stock set up?

I think I just need to get used to everything now that the suspension is finally broken in and the car is going straight again. I've been taking it easy cause i havent liked taking turns when ive been pulling so hard to the left but now that the suspension is neutral ive been pushing it and it's fine.. though i think i need a front sway bar upgrade as there is some slight lean now which i didnt have when the springs were brand new :(

Yo is it still higher on one side then the other? I dont think the tie rod ends are adjustable on our cars and i doubt you can adjust caster on anycar on the road. Isn't caster the pitch of the shock obsorber, either towards the front or back?