Uneven suspension on OBS

[Plumbing Guy]

So, I have a '97 Impreza Outback Sport, 5MT. When I jack up the car using the front jacking point under the engine, the passenger side front tire leaves the ground before the drivers side. When the drivers side tire finally clears the ground, the passenger tire is about one inch off the ground. I'm thinking maybe a bad strut/spring?

 

Almost forgot, I know the car was in an accident involving the front end passenger side, before I bought it. Everything looks straight, panels have even gap, etc. I haven't noticed any funny handling.

 

What do you think? Time for new struts and springs.

 

Thanks for any input.

[lmdew]

Could just be where the jack is placed.

 

How the car rides is a much better indication of the health of the strut then how they extend when you jack the car.

 

How's the clearance between the fenders and tires when the car is on the ground?

 

Have you looked at the sway bar, bushings and links?

[heartless]

my 1995 Legacy does the same thing when jacking it up, as did my 1990 Legacy - it means nothing other than there is slightly more weight to one side of the center jacking point. (remember that the drivers side has a heavy battery, while the passenger side doesnt...)

 

As Imdew pointed out, how the car handles and rides, and wheel well clearance when on the ground, is a much better indicator of strut/spring condition.

[madkow007]

I'll toss in my 2 cents...well about 87 cents these days

 

1) Is someone sitting in the drivers side when you jack it up? if yes, theres your prob. if no see 2

2) Does it lean to the east or the west or north or south? if it leans to the west it could have something to do with how fast the earth is spinning or the

magnetic pull of the north or south poles.

3) Have you checked to see if the ground is level? Get level and check ground (remember the earth is round, so it may not be perfect)

4) Have you looked at the jack? Looks ok? Best to take it in and have it recalibrated anyway and have them put on new casters while they are at it,

they could be wore out on one side.

5) Have you had new tires put on? yes? no? Best to check them anyway and make sure they are a matched set...don't want torque bind.

6) Did you buy the car used? Maybe someone put the wrong springs or struts on it at some point...better check them all and make sure they are the

right ones.

7) Have a hoist installed and lift the whole car up at the same time to see if any wheel stays on the ground longer then the other. (4 friends will help

with this)

Or it could be like every car I've owned as far as I can remember where one side came up before the other.

Good luck and let us know what you find out. 

Edited March 22, 2014 by madkow007

[Fairtax4me]

Lifting the car is no way to tell if suspension parts are worn because the weight of the wheel/tire and suspension will pull everything down to the same point.

As said before, it just means the car isn't being lifted evenly. Either because there is more weight on one side, or because the surface under the vehicle is not level. If you want to test that, get a long 2x4 and a long level. Cut the 2x4 so the ends sit on the inner lips of the fenders with the hood open preferably up as close to the strut towers as possible. Hold the level on the front of the 2x4, center the bubble, and draw a line on the 2x4 across the top of the level.

Now lift the car until the one wheel is just touching the ground. Re-center the level and draw another line.

 

The best check you can do to measure suspension height is measure the distance from the center of the wheel to the lip of the fender while the car is off the ground. Compare left to right. If one strut is different this will tell you.

 

If the car sits unevenly when on perfectly level ground (concrete pad) then it could have a worn out spring. To determine this measure from the wheel center to the bottom fender lip. This has to be done on perfectly level ground or your measurements will be all over the place.

 

As for hoisting the car to see if all 4 corners come off the ground at the same time, this never works. Most hoists do not lift perfectly evenly. One side tends to be higher than the other on every hoist I've ever used.

Also, the front suspension tends to have less travel than the rear, which means the rear tires will usually still be touching when the front tires are totally off the ground.

[Plumbing Guy]

Okey Dokey, sounds like like I don't have to worry. Thanks for everyones input.

[1 Lucky Texan]

some autoX guys and other 'racers' will corner balance their cars so, that tells me, cars are not corner balanced from the factory anyway. The spring under the heavy corner might be a little more worn out.

 

throw in worn bushings and shocks - well, you'd go crazy worrying about everything that MIGHT be wrong.