tloftus Posted December 29, 2005 Report Share Posted December 29, 2005 Hey guys, A couple of weeks ago the wife was driving her '93 Cutlass Supreme SL (3.1L V6) when she was hit by a driver running a red light directly in the front, driver's side, fender. Aside from the header panel destruction there appears to be some suspension / steering damage I would like to try to repair. I replaced the ball joint and tie-rod end on the affected side and took it to Tires Plus to see if they could line it up. They said the frame was not bent but the strut tower, where the tie rod end goes through, is bent. Regardless they lined it up as best as they could. Now when I drive it, for lack of a better term, the car will dart. It happens at about any speed over 10 MPH. You can be driving and the steering wheel will be straight then for no apparent reason or cause the front wheels will shift to the left. Keep driving and eventually they will shift back to center at which point the alignment seems to be pretty good again. I don't have a problem replacing that strut tower if that's all that's causing this problem, but if the problem is deeper (eg. rack and pinion) I will probably wait until spring to mess with it. If anyone else has had any experience fixing a collision like this any advice would be appriciated. Thanks, Tom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88Regal Limited Posted December 29, 2005 Report Share Posted December 29, 2005 re-tighten all bolts. Somthing tells me it's coming out of place. I'm no expert but thats my guess. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy K Posted December 29, 2005 Report Share Posted December 29, 2005 They said the frame was not bent but the strut tower, where the tie rod end goes through, is bent. you mean the strut assembly itself? I suggest getting another strut. try this: jack up that corner of the car, (block rear opposite wheel!) put vehicle in neutral (Don't run car with wheel off ground!) spin the tires(may require an assistant) and inspect for wobble, both of the tire and rim, checking the inner and outer rim for a bent barrel. Repeat for opposite side. Remember the sideways force may have scrubbed the front tires, causing internal damage, ie broken radial belts, or bent a rim just enough to cause a problem, but visually ok except during a spin test. If one side is wobbles, you might try swapping the front tires, to issolate if it is the rim, or maybe a bent wheel bearing/strut assembly. also... Unlikely, because it would probably break only if the rim was broken, but i have seen brake rotors cracked from an accident... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tloftus Posted December 29, 2005 Author Report Share Posted December 29, 2005 The strut cartridge itself is fine, it's the housing that holds the spring, tie rod end, ball joint, hub, etc. One of the tires is messed up pretty bad, I didn't think that it could have had that much affect on the steering but I will try swapping them out, good suggestion. Thanks again, I'll report back when I get a chance to switch those later today. Thanks!! Tom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy K Posted December 29, 2005 Report Share Posted December 29, 2005 terminology lol... Catridge is part of the strut... it might be ok, but the strut (part that bears the load, and contains the 'shock' ie cartridge, sometimes called strut assembly) is the part you describe being damaged. You'll have to replace it One of the tires is messed up pretty bad, I didn't think that it could have had that much affect on the steering but I will try swapping them out, good suggestion. people sooo under estimate how much a bad tire affects ride quality. and safety! Is there a buldge on the tread, or sidewall of the tire? or when spun does the tire appear to have a permant flex(tread moves side to side when spun)?? If you buy new tires, make sure the rims get checked for out of round. Since the strut/strut assembly is damaged, it needs to be replaced... Will you be doing any work yourself? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tloftus Posted December 29, 2005 Author Report Share Posted December 29, 2005 There is a huge chunk missing out of the tread, the sidewall seems to be for the most part okay, but the collision caused a huge gash in the tread. They were only a month old so it didn't cause any air leak, but I have road hazard (not sure that covers accidents, but what Sam's Club doesn't know won't hurt them) so I will get that one tire replaced. Before I do that I will jack the car up and check to see for what you mentioned. As far as the strut / strut assembly goes I need to get some tools from my buddy to get that strut out of there and a spring compressor to get the assembly out, but I don't think it should be a problem, its just a matter of getting to the junk yard and getting one. Thanks, Tom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy K Posted December 29, 2005 Report Share Posted December 29, 2005 p.s. you could upgrade to 11.25 rotor (95+) style front struts right now! same pads and caliper, just a larger rotor with a lrger caliper plate, which is welded on the strut. Make sure you get the same spring or transfer and reuse the spring to keep the suspension matched. And you can change a strut catridge using a loaner tool availible from Autozone if that is an issue.... btw. by all means free tire! looks like a road hazard to me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tloftus Posted December 30, 2005 Author Report Share Posted December 30, 2005 So I got the tire replaced and have the same issue still. I went to the junk yard and picked up a new strut assembly but will have to bust the old ball joint off and take the strut cartridge and spring off before I can use it. I'm planning on having a better look at it tomorrow morning, thanks for your help again! I will update as soon as I find something else out. Thanks, Tom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeremy Posted December 30, 2005 Report Share Posted December 30, 2005 moving to the correct section Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy K Posted December 30, 2005 Report Share Posted December 30, 2005 did the rim get checked for out of round? p.s. steel or alloy rim? good luck, keep us posted. and be careful with the spring!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tloftus Posted December 31, 2005 Author Report Share Posted December 31, 2005 It's an alloy wheel and I asked the guy that mounted and balanced the tire and he said it looked pretty good. I did replace the strut assembly (and cartridge) today and found something interesting. While the arm that the tie rod end goes into was most definatly bent, I think I figured what was causing my issues with the car "darting". When I took my car to Tires Plus last week it seems they had to hole out the three stud holes in the top of the wheel well to get it to line up and it appears that the strut is now shifting inside the slots. Now that I have the new strut assembly in, tomorrow I will be taking it to a different alignment shop to see if they can get me back to where I should be and to fix the issue with the holes in the wheel well being too large (elongated). I suppose they will have to use some washers, or get out the welder? I'm not sure, ever had to fix anything like that? Thanks, Tom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy K Posted December 31, 2005 Report Share Posted December 31, 2005 It's an alloy wheel and I asked the guy that mounted and balanced the tire and he said it looked pretty good. I did replace the strut assembly (and cartridge) today and found something interesting. While the arm that the tie rod end goes into was most definatly bent, I think I figured what was causing my issues with the car "darting". When I took my car to Tires Plus last week it seems they had to hole out the three stud holes in the top of the wheel well to get it to line up and it appears that the strut is now shifting inside the slots. Now that I have the new strut assembly in, tomorrow I will be taking it to a different alignment shop to see if they can get me back to where I should be and to fix the issue with the holes in the wheel well being too large (elongated). I suppose they will have to use some washers, or get out the welder? I'm not sure, ever had to fix anything like that? Thanks, Tom OUCH! I would take it to a different tires plus shop, first off.... (warranty!) Elongated holes are the proper method of correcting for incorrect camber, (vertical angle perpendular to the wheel face) so maybe they did a poor job...... also I never trust what the tire guy says.... Even if you have to mount them on the rear to freewheel (spin without resistance) I would do so to verify that when they are spun, thet the tire and rim are not oscillating (I used a rock held in my hand, and allowed it to rub on the inner rim to feel for osciallation while the tire was spinning) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tloftus Posted January 3, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 3, 2006 Well, I took my car back to Tires Plus after replacing the strut assembly, they wouldn't "warranty" the work because I changed the strut assembly, but they did fix the problem that was causing the darting, they agreed that the bolt holes was causing the problem. Whatever they did, it seems to have fixed the problem, I would like to know in more detail but don't want to take that strut cover off again. Regardless, thanks for all your help it seems my problems with the suspension on this car are fixed and I can move onto the header panel, lights and fender! Thanks!! Tom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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