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Okay so about a month ago I hydroplaned my 4 month old to me 02 Z06 with 91k miles. My fault for not replacing the worn rear tires, I went into a ditch and slid through it (weeds mud etc) and came out on the other side hitting a mile marker post and visually only a dented fender and cracked bumper cover. Drove it home from the accident.
Car was repaired, rear tires were 275 40 18 Tiger Paws?? and installed the correct 295 35 18 COntinental DSWs. Front tires were checked over and came back good no bents etc. Alignment was supposedly done by the body shop....
Car still drives sketchy, at highway speeds it feels very unstable especially when changing lanes. It seems to wander and track a lot. I know cars with wide tires do this but it was never like this before the accident, it feels like it understeers also in corners. I'm wondering if I have blown shows since I know they have never been replaced and well overdue. Any simple way to check this??? I don't see visual leaks on the bodies. Tire pressures are 30psi all around.
Okay so about a month ago I hydroplaned my 4 month old to me 02 Z06 with 91k miles. My fault for not replacing the worn rear tires, I went into a ditch and slid through it (weeds mud etc) and came out on the other side hitting a mile marker post and visually only a dented fender and cracked bumper cover. Drove it home from the accident.
Car was repaired, rear tires were 275 40 18 Tiger Paws?? and installed the correct 295 35 18 COntinental DSWs. Front tires were checked over and came back good no bents etc. Alignment was supposedly done by the body shop....
Car still drives sketchy, at highway speeds it feels very unstable especially when changing lanes. It seems to wander and track a lot. I know cars with wide tires do this but it was never like this before the accident, it feels like it understeers also in corners. I'm wondering if I have blown shows since I know they have never been replaced and well overdue. Any simple way to check this??? I don't see visual leaks on the bodies. Tire pressures are 30psi all around.
THANKS FOR THE HELP.
I'm betting your alignment got thrown off from all of the sliding and hitting the post. You should get it checked.
I'm betting your alignment got thrown off from all of the sliding and hitting the post. You should get it checked.
You said body shop did an alignment, or said they did...but I still suspect it isn't right given your description of your car's handling. Go to a shop that knows Corvettes and have a four wheel alignment done. Have them check your shocks at the same time.
Also, for street driving, I would recommend the same brand/model tire on all four corners. Different tire types front vs. rear opens the door to all kinds of weird handling issues (some folks do this and have no issues, but it is a variable you have now introduced if the tires are different).
UPDATE:
I pulled the front wheels off and couldn't find anything loose in there. The front sway bar end links may need replacing soon but nothing crazy it seemed just a little worn.
On the tires I don't believe that could be the situation since they were already mixed before the accident. I replaced them shortly after the accident while I waited 2 weeks on the shops schedule to open up to take the car in. It felt like this before the tires were changed but after the accident.
On a side note I did notice something interesting, the rear leaf spring looks tweaked. Is this normal??
I had the 295 35 18 Continental DW's on my C5Z and they were horrible with the swaying/unstable-ness on the freeway and lane changing. Soft sidewall is the culprit i believe. I drove on them for maybe 300 miles and took them back and went with a different stiffer sidewall tire.
The rear spring appears to be fine. A supposedly done alignment isn't much use. Get a proper alignment and the read-out. Left and right sides should read identical except for a little extra caster in the right front.
It's also entirely possible that the did do an alignment, but didn't know the best specs to set it to. DW definately have a softer sidewall. I've run them. They are pretty cushy. Add that to a alignment that's not spot on and you get an uncomfortable "I'm going to tip over" feeling changing lanes.
I'm gonna go ahead and most likely bite the bullet and pay for an alignment and hope thats it, I'll check back in with results thanks for all the input guys!
Search around in the Autox forum for the old pfadt alignment sheet that's been posted a few dozen times and have them use that as a base. Getting an alignment isn't going to help a lot of the guy doing the alignment has no clue how to set it up and just puts it back into a place where the car is drifty.
Just an Update: Alignment was done and toe was found to be correct in the front slightly out in the rear but nothing major. Camber was way out on the passenger side wheels (The same wheels that dug into the mud in the accident) and the opposite wheels were fine. All were set to spec and the car drives better BUT still requires a lot of input to maintain it going in a straight line. I will post the alignment sheet later.
I'm almost sure now it is the shocks as it seems the car darts from a straight line path whenever small bumps are hit. Any way to check the shocks? No visible leakage.
I'd think something is bent causing excessive bump steer. When I bought my car it drove OK without wandering but when I replaced the shocks they were like pogo sticks - no resistance to travel.
To test them, take them off and force them in and out through their full travel. There should be decent resistance to the movement.
Just an Update: Alignment was done and toe was found to be correct in the front slightly out in the rear but nothing major. Camber was way out on the passenger side wheels (The same wheels that dug into the mud in the accident) and the opposite wheels were fine. All were set to spec and the car drives better BUT still requires a lot of input to maintain it going in a straight line. I will post the alignment sheet later.
I'm almost sure now it is the shocks as it seems the car darts from a straight line path whenever small bumps are hit. Any way to check the shocks? No visible leakage.
if the car is darty you can use more front toe in or more caster
no such thing as specs for an alignment, just starting points, toe and caster are individual preference. you might try .08 in each side rear toe and .04 i each side front toe with 7deg caster and have that offset for road crown
10-01-2014, 03:00 PM
C5 Z06 Suspension Woes, Blown Shock?
