Subaru Enthusiasts Car Club of the Sierras - View Single Post - Suspension Gurus: 03 Wagon, Rear end float

kidatari · 2006-06-01, 02:43 PM

I'm trying to help my friend Dave diagnose a problem with his recently purchased 03 WRX wagon. It is completely stock with 30k miles, with the exception of Deede's Tarmac 2s with some very well worn 225/45R17 Azenis which we installed last night.

A little bit of history: The car is a salvage, from what we can tell the front end was pushed in a bit, and the driver's side quarter panel has some bondo work. Everything else looks straight, nothing appears to be tweaked other than the front end where the bumper mounts up. Deede mentioned that it might be Debbie's old car, but I have no clue on that situation.

What we checked: The alignment was verified at Les Schwab, nothing has been modified from the stock settings. Everything checked out okay on their lazer alignment rack. We did a quick visual inspection last night when we installed the Tarmac 2's, and I didn't see any glaring problems. The gap between the sidewall of the tire and the strut was about a finger and a half on the right side, and I couldn't quite fit my finger in on the left side. Lugs are tight, tires are all air'd up to around 36psi.

Now the issue. While driving around, the car's rear end will get really light. I rode in the car this afternoon, and I noticed it sitting in the passenger seat. Dave said that he had the car up to about 120mph, and then all of a sudden the rear end got really loose. He said it got worse when he tried to brake, and he had to keep alternating the gas and the brakes to keep it in line. The car also acts odd over road gaps like expansion joints, but I can't really explain it.

We're both kind of stumped as to what the issue is. This is starting to go beyond my realm of suspension knowledge at this point. My thought is that there might be a shock problem.

Does anyone have any input?

2006-06-01, 02:43 PM	#1
kidatari EJ22 Join Date: Feb 2004 Posts: 291 Class: Low lol internet.	Suspension Gurus: 03 Wagon, Rear end float I'm trying to help my friend Dave diagnose a problem with his recently purchased 03 WRX wagon. It is completely stock with 30k miles, with the exception of Deede's Tarmac 2s with some very well worn 225/45R17 Azenis which we installed last night. A little bit of history: The car is a salvage, from what we can tell the front end was pushed in a bit, and the driver's side quarter panel has some bondo work. Everything else looks straight, nothing appears to be tweaked other than the front end where the bumper mounts up. Deede mentioned that it might be Debbie's old car, but I have no clue on that situation. What we checked: The alignment was verified at Les Schwab, nothing has been modified from the stock settings. Everything checked out okay on their lazer alignment rack. We did a quick visual inspection last night when we installed the Tarmac 2's, and I didn't see any glaring problems. The gap between the sidewall of the tire and the strut was about a finger and a half on the right side, and I couldn't quite fit my finger in on the left side. Lugs are tight, tires are all air'd up to around 36psi. Now the issue. While driving around, the car's rear end will get really light. I rode in the car this afternoon, and I noticed it sitting in the passenger seat. Dave said that he had the car up to about 120mph, and then all of a sudden the rear end got really loose. He said it got worse when he tried to brake, and he had to keep alternating the gas and the brakes to keep it in line. The car also acts odd over road gaps like expansion joints, but I can't really explain it. We're both kind of stumped as to what the issue is. This is starting to go beyond my realm of suspension knowledge at this point. My thought is that there might be a shock problem. Does anyone have any input?