VonRiesenberger
02-17-2019, 08:31 PM
Hey everyone! So first time poster, but lonnnng time lurker. My apologies for the belated arrival but I finally found something...or I guess in this case, the lack of, something that someone hasn't asked or answered.
So I recently started getting a significant rear twitchy/floaty/wandering feeling from the rear. It's mainly apparent during highway driving and on long sweeping turns at 45-65 mph and the onset of this was very sudden. My first suspect was the rear subframe bushings and search results confirmed those thoughts. However, getting under the car and taking a look at them (pics below), they seem to be in visually good shape but when I pry at them with a flathead screwdriver, the entire subframe moves quite effortlessly. When I say pry, I mean very gently and softly...like not what I was anticipating to happen to the frame at all. I should mention this was done with the rear end up in the air and with no load. There are a few small surface cracks on the rubber, but nothing that has me convinced they need to be replaced. I was under the impression that rear subframe bushings rarely go bad?
And this goes without saying but I've never installed or held new/used subframe bushings...are they normally suppose to be this soft? My eyes tell me one thing and my touch tells me another. So, in the longest way possible, is there any definitive way to tell if subframe bushings are bad or not?
That's my first question...
Second question...if they turn out to be perfectly good, what could be going on here?
Other helpful information you might need...
-128k miles on the car, and no idea about what has been serviced and not.
-If you're thinking not enough miles for bushings to go bad...you'll want to know when I purchased the car...pretty sure still with its original Dinan struts and springs...it felt like I was driving on one of those dirt roads that gets those tiny washboard bumps but....literally the entire time, on perfectly flat roads and at any and all speeds. Baffles me that anyone would let something get to this point but there's kinda a weird back story and just couldn't pass it up...anyway.
-Replaced struts/springs with catuned coilovers, and replaced thrust arms, control arms, and sway-bar ends.
-Car sits low but not too low.
-Right rear has more than usual negative camber and the coilovers are adjusted at equal height.
-Brand new tires and balanced as of yesterday.
-Wish bones replaced 10k ago.
-Rear trailing arm bushings look fine....but what the hell do I know at this point.
645848645849
Thoughts? Thanks!
So I recently started getting a significant rear twitchy/floaty/wandering feeling from the rear. It's mainly apparent during highway driving and on long sweeping turns at 45-65 mph and the onset of this was very sudden. My first suspect was the rear subframe bushings and search results confirmed those thoughts. However, getting under the car and taking a look at them (pics below), they seem to be in visually good shape but when I pry at them with a flathead screwdriver, the entire subframe moves quite effortlessly. When I say pry, I mean very gently and softly...like not what I was anticipating to happen to the frame at all. I should mention this was done with the rear end up in the air and with no load. There are a few small surface cracks on the rubber, but nothing that has me convinced they need to be replaced. I was under the impression that rear subframe bushings rarely go bad?
And this goes without saying but I've never installed or held new/used subframe bushings...are they normally suppose to be this soft? My eyes tell me one thing and my touch tells me another. So, in the longest way possible, is there any definitive way to tell if subframe bushings are bad or not?
That's my first question...
Second question...if they turn out to be perfectly good, what could be going on here?
Other helpful information you might need...
-128k miles on the car, and no idea about what has been serviced and not.
-If you're thinking not enough miles for bushings to go bad...you'll want to know when I purchased the car...pretty sure still with its original Dinan struts and springs...it felt like I was driving on one of those dirt roads that gets those tiny washboard bumps but....literally the entire time, on perfectly flat roads and at any and all speeds. Baffles me that anyone would let something get to this point but there's kinda a weird back story and just couldn't pass it up...anyway.
-Replaced struts/springs with catuned coilovers, and replaced thrust arms, control arms, and sway-bar ends.
-Car sits low but not too low.
-Right rear has more than usual negative camber and the coilovers are adjusted at equal height.
-Brand new tires and balanced as of yesterday.
-Wish bones replaced 10k ago.
-Rear trailing arm bushings look fine....but what the hell do I know at this point.
645848645849
Thoughts? Thanks!