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Downsides of bad suspension?


Captain Ficho

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Just wondering if there are any downsides to bad suspension, aside from bad ride quality? All of my struts are gone and the springs are mushy beyond belief, but I can't really afford to have anything done about it. The roads in Toronto are horrible and I've nailed a few potholes pretty hard so that probably hasn't helped either. Could this ultimately do damage to the car or am I alright to leave it until the end of summer?

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It could affect your spinning out if you take a curve in the rain too fast. Bad suspension can be dangerous, yes. But if you know your car's limitations with the bad suspension, you should be alright.

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bad shock/struts can make tires dribble as a vehicle travels down the road, leading to premature tire damage and tread separation and the whole shebang. additionally, the travel allowed by blown shocks/stuts makes a vehicle very unstable, and thus unsafe.

 

 

I recommend starting with the rear struts on your car, you'll get more bang for your buck by doing those, after all, a W rear end with bad struts handles like a drunk, but you can control sloppy front suspension much easier.

 

 

 

 

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I've had pretty much bad shocks/struts for 3 years or so :dunno: tire wear seems to be somewhat of an issue, but then again I know for a while I had a bad alignment

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I recommend starting with the rear struts on your car, you'll get more bang for your buck by doing those, after all, a W rear end with bad struts handles like a drunk, but you can control sloppy front suspension much easier.

 

I agree! Before I replaced my rear shocks I could kick out my back end like a RWD car around curves. It took a long time to get used to

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don't drive the car, you could cause an accident.

 

As could any car on the road, bad suspension or not. My shocks are way past gone, but I haven't had a problem with it. I've even taken a few corners fast, with no problem, not that I recommend doing it. Granted there was no one around.

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you'll put more wear on the rubber suspension bushings and sway bar bushings - due to the additional motion/travel from worn out struts.

 

And like others have said - handling isn't as stable.

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I've been doing some investigating as to how much the labour of having all the struts changed would cost. The place that put my summer tires on today even called me into the shop to show how bad shape they're in. They quoted me $328 just labour for changing all the struts and realignment after. Tomorrow I'm gonna see with my mechanic what he would want to do it. I'll keep you guys posted.

 

I plan on getting the struts themselves from Rock Auto since it is cheaper than locally. I'm probably getting KYBs because from my understanding they are the best available for W's.

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front struts are cake on these cars you don't even need to pull the wheel. First time I did them, took me about an hour. air tools are a big help however. all you need is this tool: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/OTC-4533-GM-W-Body-Strut-Service-Tool-Set_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1638Q2em118Q2el1247QQcategoryZ43996QQihZ002QQitemZ120238815644QQrdZ1QQsspagenameZWD1V

 

thats the same tool I bought, however I did have to modify it slightly with a file to make it work perfect.

 

Rear struts are a walk in the park too, you need no special tools for them as well.

 

I did mine over 2 years ago, never threw out my alignment either.

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I had strut almost break right in half on my buick :eek:!! I had it in for inspection and my mechanic put it up on the lift....it was so rotted that the pass side rear strut was almost broke in half!! That would not have been fun if it broke goin 70 down the highway!

 

I just had all 4 struts changed on my tgp. I got 4 kyb gr2s and 4 struts mounts for $324 shipped from tirerack. My mechanic charged me $250 labor to put them all on. My one rear strut was leaked out and it wore down the rear tire pretty bad.

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