Posted this elsewhere a few days ago and haven't gotten a response, hoping I have better luck here:

About two months ago I was rear-ended at a red light, also pushing me into the car in front of me. Before the accident my steering was dead on. When I first started driving my RL afterward, it had a very large pull to the side. Last week I got it back from the shop, they replaced the right rear suspension linkage and did an alignment. It's driving much better, but there's still a slight pull to the right. After the alignment one value was still out of tolerance, the shop owner said the bolts were too rusted for them to adjust it. Also, after my first full fill-up, it looks like my MPG dropped about 15%, and I can't see anything else having changed to give that kind of a drop.

My questions:

Could that value be causing the pull to the right I'm getting? If so, any recommendations on what can be done to fix it?

Should this be something covered by insurance along with the initial repairs?

Even though it's not that much of a pull, I know over time it will start to aggravate me, so I'd like to get it fixed ASAP if it's not too expensive or time consuming.

Attached are the alignment results I was given:

 

Without going into too much detail, the caster settings should be the same on both sides. Although it is (relatively) right on the edge of being in spec on the front right, that much of a difference between the right and left sides could/will cause a slight pull.

In my shop, I always tell the tech to spray it down with WD-40 or something similar and wait for 15-20 minutes if bolts are too rusty. Usually this does nothing, however there are a few times I have been surprised. Remember, the caster affects the tires performance in a corner, and although the specs you have above are right at the edge of spec, they are still considered out, and it is conceivable that you are doing enough cornering to hamper gas mileage (however in my opinion this is not likely).

I don't know how easy it is to deal with your insurance company. I would definitely bring it up however, as your car is not running like it was pre-accident. The biggest hurdle is probably getting the shop to accurately fix the issue.

 

Thanks for the quick reply. A buddy was giving it a once-over today to see if I missed anything obvious, and noticed a ball joint popped out. Based on the service manual, it looks like the driver's rear stabilizer link isn't connected to the stabilizer bar.

Instead of trying to fix it myself I went ahead and brought the car into the shop's night drop so I won't have to take time off work tomorrow. I left instructions to reassemble the stabilizer and perform a realignment. I'm also typing up an email to my insurance contact right now and preparing if the shop calls in the morning. Hopefully they can reassemble and realign without too much delay.

 

Is this a body shop? Or is it like a Merchants/NTB shop...?

 

It's a body shop.

 

That actually went much smoother than I expected. Got a call when I was getting ready to leave work Thursday that I could pick the car up. No charge, they just replaced the stabilizer link and realigned it. From driving around yesterday it seems like that finally brought it back to what I'm used to. None too soon, either, as my internship is ending next week, and when I go back to school I'll be too far away to reasonably take it to the same shop.

 

Wow, seems like an excellent body shop!