Loud BUMP-BANG now car sits .4 inches lower on Front Driver side.

Thought about posting this in wheels & suspension, but then figured it might be more of a general issue. So here goes with the explanation.

Driving around 25mph through some road construction areas. Went over a harsh dip/bump then heard a HUGE KERKLAMP! The best way to explain it is: kinda like if you blow out a tire then the rim slams onto the asphalt.



So then we pull over expecting to see a blown tire & bent rim..... NOTHING, so I check the undercarriage & oil pan to look for any signs of damage (dents scratches, leaks etc)... NOTHING.



WHAT GIVES? I even went back to the spot where we went over the bump & looked for signs of any debris or loose manhole covers, or anything of similar nature that might have contributed to the BANG NOISE.... NOTHING

So we continue driving, get on to the freeway & arrive home safely. I use the car twice more that day with no issues.



Then, this morning I take my son to school, then head home. As I pulled into the driveway I hear a SCRAPE/SCRATCHING NOISE. I got off & noticed my tire has a slice (not deep, but enough to tear an eighth of an inch off the spot where it hit the fender.)



WHAT THE FU$#!!!!

I immediately lifted the car & began looking for the culprit.
Things that came to mind were:
-broken links
-broken bolts
-broken spring
-blown shock
-blown mounts etc.

NOTHING!

I dunno what else it could be, but I do notice the car sits lower on that front driver side.

ANYONE WANA CHIME IN, or has anyone experienced anything like this before?


Here are my current suspension specs:
Koni Yellows with Eibach Pro-Kit springs. (gives me a 1.5 drop in front & a 1.0 drop in rear.)

 

What perch are you on with your yellows? Is it possible the force of the impact could have made one of the locking rings drop a perch?

I dunno....just an idea.....

 

HMMM I think I was on the lowest perch.... so that really doesnt make sense. BUT MAYBE I WASN'T. FUUUUDGE it was so long ago.

and with this rain it might have to wait till tomorrow. FREAK!

have you heard of any KONI locking rings running into this issue?

 

Just googled "koni yellow perch fail"... CRAP this image looks bad! NOT MINE, but now this forces me to take it in to get checked.

 

I haven't personally, but I could see how it could happen with a big enough impact.

 

Man that blows Hopefully it wasn't on the lowest perch and it just dropped a perch when you hit the hole!

 

+1^

 

OH man I agree. I am praying to god my rears don't drop a perch like that or I'll have some serious issues. GL, let us know what you find out.

 

Yeah, I just put on some Koni's and I hate reading stuff like this! I hope this is not your issue, but then wonder what it could be......Good Luck and keep us posted.

 

WOOHOO! Issue resolved! No PERCH FAILURE!
PICS SHOULD EXPLAIN MOST EVERYTHING.




As a soultion: we extra tightened the clamp (not so much that it would break though.. LOL) since it was left loose a bit since the pushed in strut "nipple" left the clamp loose. I am contacting koni in the hopes of replacing this strut. If not I will weld a small metal "nipple piece" to the strut so it wont slip back in.


Overall I am very surprised how well the other 2 nipples held thier place in order to prevent it slipping all the way down & eventually bottoming out.

 

I saw the title of this thread before I saw your name and I was thinking it sounded aweful familiar.

Sorry my phone hung up on you today. I was in Oildale and figured it would be best to concentrate on not road raging instead of calling back immediately. Bad, bad day lol.

 

I forgot, don't worry too much about failed perches. Chances are the others were due to improper installation. That bump tab thingy is made to fail long before the perch. No matter how hard you hit something, the perch only has to deal with the spring's forces. The bumpstop takes over from there.

There is a bit of paint that needs to be cleaned out from the groove before installation though. All it takes is the snap ring to not seat all the way and you significantly weakened the perch. I used my GF's nail file to remove excess paint...