rear end ride height off, something bent?

di_rosa

never ending project ...
Apr 2, 2005
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got an 89 turbo, with a 2" difference in ride height between the two sides. i have verified it is not the suspension as i have swapped coilovers between the two sides, and the ride height remains the same.

i took a quick look underneath, and noticed that the (what Toyota calls) "strut rod" is bent, except on the opposite side! the left side "strut rod" is bent, yet the right side sits lower. i'm just wondering if a bent strut rod would raise the ride height, and/or if anyone knows anything else i can measure/check to fix the ride height.

here is a link to where toyota says "strut rod"

RA_056.gif


thanks
 

di_rosa

never ending project ...
Apr 2, 2005
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i understand bent parts will change angles, but the bent part that i can see, is on the opposite side! so my real question is what can i check that will change ride height. i know most of the parts in the attached pic above will change camber, caster and toe, but what will change ride height?
 

Supracentral

Active Member
Mar 30, 2005
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Now this is just my opinion, but I have a feeling you aren't going to get many helpful answers on this one.

Ride height isn't something that changes unless you've got physical damage to suspension components. You've already noted one obvious damaged component. It's fairly safe to infer the suspension has taken a serious hit, and there are likely other damaged components.

Instead of a quick look, jack the damned thing up and start looking for what else is damaged. Everything we tell you here is guesswork.

Simply put, you have the car. Go look.
 

lintlars

ROOTS RADICALS
Apr 1, 2005
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Ft.St.John BC
www.cardomain.com
Was the car ever in an accident? I had the same problem I found it to be my rear subframe was twisted and cracked where I could not see it from below I could put the subframe on the floor and it would rock about and 1"
 

Supracentral

Active Member
Mar 30, 2005
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lintlars said:
Was the car ever in an accident?

Unless he's laying down damned near 1500 RWHP on slicks, it has to have been.

A strut rod isn't going to just bend on it's own.
 

di_rosa

never ending project ...
Apr 2, 2005
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i was under the impression that it was in a front end collision, and once i got bumped from behind from some guy going like 10km/hr, but other than that, no.

but how are you supposed to check? like i did jack it up and look underneath for a good 5-10 minutes, and the only thing i saw that wasn't straight, and didn't match the other side was the strut rod mentioned above. i don't know what measurements i can take. the car is on an uneven hill, so putting a level to it won't work.

i'll see if i can take some reference height measurements from the body to the subframe and see if it is the subframe like mentioned above.