skynetop

Well I had a crash and some repairs.

I took a turn too hard and was going too fast. I made a right turn and the rear of the car came around. I tired to follow through with the turn and ended up sliding into a curb. Rear Drivers side hit, then the front drivers side hit.

I replaced both rims and had them balanced.

I then proceeded to have the car looked at by three different mechanics in NJ. Billman my parents live out on the Island, If I cant get this thing straight I'm coming your way.

I had the Rear Lower control arm replaced along with the trailing arm and this was the alignment specs when this was done:

Front

Camber
0.53 -0.57 OUT on Drivers side

Caster Adjust
7.45 7.36 VERY BAD

Toe
-0.37 -0.56 BAD

REAR

Camber
2.42 -.80 VERY BAD

Toe
1.37 0.23 BAD

Total Toe
1.60

After the alignment was done here are the specs:


Front

Camber
-0.48 -0.39 OK

Caster Adjust
7.60 7.28 VERY BAD

The mechanic said he could not get it into specs and did not know why. He stated everything looks ok and is not sure what could be bent broken etc.

Toe
-0.03 -0.03 OK

REAR

Camber
1.78 -1.70 VERY BAD

The camber on the drivers side is out over a degree. I had the lower control arm replaced and the trailing arm replaced and it is still out. What else could be making the camber off this bad? A bad spindle? Is there anyway to check?

Toe
0.18 0.16 OK

Total Toe
0.34


The car drives straight but is very very sticky. The wheel will not center and it does not feel right. I am worried about the rear and will not drive it due too me not knowing how long the tire would take to ware out. It does drive straight, but the min you get on it, or turn, the car wants to turn where your moving the wheel and stay there. Its a weird feeling...

I really need some professional options on what parts could be bent or damaged. From the looks of the car and what people have said, know one is really sure what is wrong or could be wrong.

What steps can I take now? I am already spending a lot of money and have been without my car for a month. I drove recklessly and am paying for it.

If anyone in the NJ area has a shop or knows what could cause my alignment to be this off and you can lend a hand, I would greatly appreciate it.

I am not sure what in the front of the car could cause the Caster to sit this way. If I replaced the Lower Control arm and Trailing arm in the rear, what else could be bent?

I looked at some diagrams online and have been looking at this one in particular:

http://www.hondaautomotiveparts.com/auto/j...=REAR+LOWER+ARM

It is extremely hard for me to get back and forth to work and this is really putting a toll on me emotionally.

Help is really needed.

mikegarrison

Any chance the frame got tweaked? (This is unlikely, based on your description.)

Any chance the tech who did the alignment is just clueless? I would think an experienced alignment tech would be able to tell what was broken.

Lots of caster is not "very bad", really. It will tend to make the car a little more self-centering. If you didn't have power steering it would make the steering more "heavy", but with the EPS I would think you are unlikely to notice this. But are you saying the tech can't get less caster? That seems wrong.

And the tech can't get less than a POSITIVE 1.78 degrees of rear camber?! Whatever is broken or bent that causes that should be obvious. Either that or the tech is really clueless about the S2000. Or the wrong parts were installed, somehow. Are you sure you didn't get AP1 parts installed by mistake?

VR4

we need the cross amounts to know if something is bent but i also need the OEM specs.


ill go see if i can dig them out of our machine in a few minutes.

skynetop

Mike,

The parts were installed at a Honda Dealer. I am not sure what is bent, and yes maybe he did not know much about the s 2000. I am looking for a shop in NJ but If I have too I will travel. With that type of camber I am not sure how long that tire can hold up.

The caster feels weird. He said he fought with it for a while. This was done at a firestone where a friend told me to go. I met with a specific person who has worked on his car. I really did not want to take it there but it was the only choice I had.

If I knew of another shop I would go to one. I will also want to fix anything that is wrong with the car. Billman said in my first post it could be the spindle in the rear. Is there a way I can check this?

As far as the caster in the front I am unsure why this cannot be fixed. The blunt of the force of impact was taken the rear. I can tell by the rims and how it felt. It was a coblestone curb and the tire got a little chewed up in the front so I replaced it.


Mike,

Do you know of anything I can look for? I will try to get some people in my area in the Metro section to find me a good place to go too.

Thanks for the fast reply.

skynetop

Would the specs on the sheet help?

Here is what I got:

Front

Camber -0.33 to -0.67 -67 to -0.33 MINE -.48 -0.39
Caster Adjust 6.24 to 5.75 5.75 to 6.24 MINE 7.60 7.28
Toe -0.08 to -0.08 SAME on other side MINE -0.03 -0.03


Rear

Camber -1.33 to -1.67 -1.67 to -1.33 MINE 1.78 -1.70
Toe 0.07 to 0.22 0.22 to 0.07 MINE 0.18 0.16
Total Toe 0.13 to 0.45 MINE 0.34

Thanks

S2KPUDDYDAD

Did the car look sort of like this after the crash
This car had a very simular crash as yours

skynetop

LOL no way at all.

The rear rim was damaged but it was drivable. The rear had a chunk missing towards the lip near one of the spokes. Just behind that there was a crack. I will take some pics of the rims in a min. I have to send them in for credit.

S2KPUDDYDAD

This is what can happen when you let Raul the lot boy park a fresh trade-in
"I am so sorry, I did not think the car was so fast "

skynetop

Here is my rear rim:



Its cracked at the tip of the spoke and dented in. The tire loss no air and was driveable.

Billman250

You've got bent parts that were over looked or a bent chassis plain and simple. Most commonly overlooked is the rear spindle, and lower arm on the front. It shouldn't take long to find the problem.