pffpffpass

iTrader: (2)

Hey guys I am having some trouble with my car that is pretty damn scary..

It has been raining pretty hard for the last couple days down here in San Diego, and when I was on the freeway the car is extremely unstable.. It will kinda jerk to the left or right, and the rear end feels really weird.. The 20min drive to school may have been one of the scariest drives ive ever had..

I was going like 40-50 and the car was just all over the road.. I would have just stopped, but I had a final to get to ASAP..

Anywho, I dropped my car a few months ago on Tanabe springs and this is the first time I have encountered any rain.. I completely forgot to get an alignment after dropping car, so I am pretty sure that is the culprit of these symptoms..

What do you guys think? Alignment? Bad shock? Bad ball joint? I know its kinda hard to diagnose over the internet without being in the car, but yeah..
I think im going to get an alignment as soon as I get some cash.. but what do you guys think.. BTW car drives straight and fine in dry conditions..

Turbonut

iTrader: (1)

If it didn't do it before the drop, it's alignment.
I assume that drop is only @ an 1", but first I'd check very closely check to see if any uneven tire wear, then go for an alignment. It may be too much negative camber after the drop, and the weight of the car is riding on only the inside tread of the tires.

Speaking of tires, what are on the car now, size, model, condition?

ifirahse

iTrader: (6)

My guess would be your tires. What kind of tires are you running?

Perhaps a combination of bad alignment and bad tires.

anarchy[sear]

iTrader: (1)

Tire wear from some camber could be the problem. Look at it this way when you lower your car you are decreasing the size of your foot pattern on your tires. Your going from using this much |ssss| (<--Tires) to this much |ss|. Not getting the alignment can be the biggest cause to this problem with wear. The next time its dry do me a favor and jack up your car and look at your inner threads of your tires. It is probably worn out more than your outside due to the negative camber.

crzygosu87

iTrader: (4)

with that small of a drop, you shouldn't have that much neg camber ... what you described is probably something that can be fixed with an alignment and/or balance (after any suspension-related swaps you usually want to get an alignment asap)

also what tires are you running?

luckyAKAhappy

If it's fine when dry...it would have to be your tires. They suck in wet conditions.

pffpffpass

iTrader: (2)

Well after driving today, I'm pretty sure it is the alignment.. Although rear tire are worn unevenly due to camber.. I don't think that is my problem though.. After reading some threads similar to this I think it is a Toe problem.. The rear end seems to want to kick out, which is very scary..

I don't think it is the tires because they are fairly new, only about 6-7 months old.. And my drop is about 2", not 1" so the camber and toe must be way off.. I have the tanabe springs which are the most aggresive springs out..

I guess all there is to it is to get an alignment.. Thanks for the replies guys

anarchy[sear]

iTrader: (1)

^chea you should make it out to one of the meets sometime since you live in San Diego

pffpffpass

iTrader: (2)

I'm down.. When is the next one? Lmk

anarchy[sear]

iTrader: (1)

https://acurazine.com/forums/showthr...396397&page=67

Sometimes we have days where we just help people install stuff as well.

01tl4tl

when you lower the car not only does the camber go negative, the toe goes out as well
Alignment is MANDATORY if you expect tires to last and the car to drive correctly

Alignment affects gas mileage too!

A 1-1.5 inch drop should leave the camber less than negative 1.5 degrees
neg 1 is max spec- I run neg 1.2 and 1.4 with no wear issues
Toe is important!!
Correct tirepressure is all important
Try 80 percent of listed max pressure and see how that works
ie: max 50 cold- try 40 or 38 and see how it handles
Read the owner book for important rain and weather driving tips related to the abs and traction control systems and what they will do

I hate cars

FWIW, I just got my car out of the bodyshop. They did a 4 wheel alignment but I had taken my subs out so no one would steal them. I had it realigned immediately and the alignment was off with the rear sitting only 3/8" lower.

An alignment is mandatory with any lowering.

The wet conditions brought this out but if you ever took it to the limit on dry pavement, there would be problems.

PeterUbers

iTrader: (1)

alignment and tires... totally agreed ...

also check yer tire pressure in all four corners...

04ManualTL

Holy Shit I need an Alignment bad, I have the same issue. My car feels like its about to spin out or loose control when im driving in the rain with some load in the rear. I dropped about 2" all around, and been hearing my rear tires screeching when turning. Ive been wanting to get an alignment but im not sure what part to buy to adjust the Rear Toe? Since it cant be adjusted much or at all.
I checked my rear tires and they are wearing on the inner treads.
Would appreciate some quick responses so i can fix it before going back to school.

dopeboy1

Well until you get the alignment done then you don't know for sure what parts you need to fix the alignment. You might get away with just buying control arms or you might need the whole 3 piece set. Impossible to tell without the alignment data. 2 inches is a fairly significant drop and depending how long youve been driving with it that low and without an alignment, your tires might be toast. So have a good look at your tires and get that alignment done! Maybe grab yourself some control arms and hope they are all you need to get the alignment in spec.

04ManualTL

Yeah, I just ordered some SPC adjustable Rear Toe Arms +-3.0 from HeelToe. Hopefully they arrive quick so i can get them in and go get an alignment done. I could only afford the Toe control Arms for now so hopefully that takes care of most of my problem.
​​​​​​​Surprisingly the front is not even fazed from the 2" drop. Like no Tire wear at all on both front sides.

04ManualTL

After


Before (front)

1st Picture is after correcting TOE and 2nd pic was my before on the Front, didnt get a pic for the before for the rear but it was in the -1.4ish TOE. I only have Toe control arms so got those zeroed out. Camber isnt really an issue but -3 in the rear is pretty aggressive lol.
UPDATE: Drives waaaaay better in the rain, doesnt feel out of control.
*Car is lowered on F&F type2, about 2" probably more*
*Stock 07-08 OEM wheels with 235/45/17*