Subframe Shifting?

[befarrer]

Has anybody had issues with the front subframe shifting? My car likes to pull to the right sometimes, and othertimes its straight, sometimes it feels like someone is pulling the steering wheel. I checked my camber on the fronts just now, seems one is slight positive, and the other slight negative, but then I measured my garage floor, and it was slightly unlevel, so I may check when I clean it out this week and park in the middle where its level. My subframe bushings are all original, car has 244,000KM on it, 98 V70 AWD, also, are the front subframe bushings hard to change out in the car?

[abscate]

Much more likely to be worn out ball joints in the lower control arms.

They last about 100k miles o these cars on good roads

[scot850]

If the sub-frame bushes start to go you will likely hear a clunk coming from it. +1 to what abscate says.

I'd also check the control arm bushings for wear on the front suspension and the inner and outer tie-rods for play.

Issues can also come from the rear suspension as well. Unusual tire wear would show on tires.

Neil.

[befarrer]

It could be control arms. I am getting no clunking or anything. I was thought about rear suspension alignment, I set the rear for some toe in, but I don't think rear suspension would cause the steering wheel to pull, just cause the car to crabwalk.

[befarrer]

I just checked my toe in at the front by placing a long straight metal bar across center of rim down the body of the car. Measured 2 points the distance from the bar to the rocker 17" apart, turned that into a right angle triangle to get my toe in degrees, and I got a value of 0.3685 degrees, which from what I can find online is right where it should be.

[FLXC90]

if you tap the brakes, does the car veer? that is a dead giveaway for control arm bushings, yours may not be that far out yet.

[befarrer]

I made a mistake, I noticed the rocker cover tapers out the last 6" before the front wheel, I re-measured using a long piece of angle iron 2 places 17" apart at the drivers door where the rocker cover appears straight, and I had about 1 degree toe out, I re-adjusted it to have 0.34 degrees toe in, will see how it handles now. I know having toe out causes steering to pull badly, I used to auto cross my Fiero, and I found having toe out really helped steering response, but made it hard to drive on the roads, kept pulling steering wheel out of my hands depending on the crown of the road/ruts.

No pulling of any sort while braking, no shaking, etc... I know my rear toe is not even, the adjustment bolts look very rusted and might be a pain to remove, but the toe rods or whatever they were called were bent backwards (giving toe out) from rocks/etc hitting it, so I adjusted my toe by hammering them back straight, and its pretty close, but I do remember one wheel being slightly more toed in, but that would just cause a slight crabwalking.

[befarrer]

Ok, well, my second allignment seemed to help, it doesnt pull as much. But measuring to the rocker covers isnt the best either, it looks straight, but it is also slightly rounded. I cleaned out my garage so I can park in the middle, got the car level (level placed across the subframe), and using a 2ft level across the tire (in front of the centerline so that the tire is not buldged out where it is on the ground), and it looks like I have slight negative camber on the drivers side, and slight positive on the passenger side, so that would explain my pulling. I also did a better home made allignment. Using a 4ft straight edge, I went across the wheel through the wheel centerline, down to the ground, marked the ground where it contacted, did this in front and behind the wheels on all 4 wheels, measured the distance in the marks made on the left and right side, and got what I think is a pretty accurate total toe value. I have now, 2.034* total toe in on the front, and 0.96* toe out on the rear, so that will need some work.

I ordered new lower control arms, should be here early next week to install, the ones on the car look relatively new, they are not rusted and still black, but I will replace them so that I know the age. When I replace these, I will try to address my camber on the front.

[scot850]

I know that some alignment placed make adjustments to allow for the road camber so it stops the wheel being pulled into the ditch when driving and braking. I know on my 4Runner the dealer adjusted to a 'special' alignment setting as it used to steer me into the ditch all the time which is tiring on country roads.

Neil.