Sub 97 Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 Hi everyone, I have a Subaru Outback 1997 2.5L Limited Auto. I only got it last saturday and have noticed that it wiggles/swerves right to left when I either brake, acclerate or it changes gear. Any ideas? I need to figure out the problem as I am worried it could cause an accident... Please help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rooster2 Posted May 3, 2012 Share Posted May 3, 2012 I suggest jacking up the front end on each side, get the road wheel off the ground. Then pull the road wheel left and right, up and down to see if there is any looseness (play.) I suspect that you have a bad tie rod or ball joint that is causing the problem. You may also want to see if the road wheel lug nuts are tight on all 4 wheels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sub 97 Posted May 3, 2012 Author Share Posted May 3, 2012 Thank you for that, I will have a look tonight! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nipper Posted May 3, 2012 Share Posted May 3, 2012 Go over the entire front end with a fine tooth comb. This sounds like ball joints, but can be anything or everything at this age. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivans imports Posted May 3, 2012 Share Posted May 3, 2012 rear trailing arm front bushing or bad struts Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nipper Posted May 3, 2012 Share Posted May 3, 2012 Look carefully at the tires, what do the treads look like? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sub 97 Posted May 3, 2012 Author Share Posted May 3, 2012 Treads look ok to me... I will check it all over tonight! Thank you everyone! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WoodsWagon Posted May 3, 2012 Share Posted May 3, 2012 rear trailing arm front bushing I will second this. The rear trailing arms mount to the underside of the floor in front of the rear wheel wells. When these bushings wear out (and I've seen it on cars up to a 2002 so far) the handling gets really sketchy. Had one mid 90's legacy that was a drifters dream because both sides were completely worn out. Come into a corner on a dirt road and do anything sudden with the throttle or brakes and that car was sideways. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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