So the other day going to work I hit a slick spot (ice) and slid into a curb doing 20mph or so and the front right wheel took all the force...instead of slowing me down or stopping me it seemed like my car increased in speed (probably not really, just that sensation of becoming a sled on ice) Fortunatly no one was hurt (except the curb and my wheel) The wheel was the stock 16" alloy wheel and ground off the outer lip of the wheel. I was surprised to see that I've never lost air presure either...the real problem is now that in order to drive in a straight line I have to have the steering wheel turned completly to the left and hold on for dear life!

In this current state if the steering wheel is where it should be for straight travel then the right wheel is noticably angled outward. I took it in to have the front end looked at and the shop tells me that there is nothing wrong with the front suspension....and that my rim is bent causing the problem. While I don't doubt that is the case, I find it very odd that this would also cause the steering to be off to this degree.

I suppose that the alignment is all out of whack but could it really be as simple as a bent rim and alignment?

BTW got my replacement rims just the other day and am going to perform the swap this weekend soooo I should be able to see some improvement.

Later,
Corey

BTW in case your wondering;

1986 Trans Am WS6 suspension
305 TPI
16" Factory Rims
All factory head to toe

 

Very easy to figure out.

Swap the L & R wheels. If it pulls the opposite way, it's the wheel/tire. If it pulls the same way, it's the car.

Sounds to me like it's probably a bent spindle. That's what usually gets wacked on these cars in that situation.

 

Sorry, but I really doubt a wheel is the only damage if you slid into a curb at 20mph. You may have bent suspension components and you'll probably need an alignment as well (especially if you have to replace components).

 

I thought about doing the left/right swap but its been snowy/slushy outside since the incident (I also only have street side parking) so I haven't messed with it yet (my brother owns a shop but its about 40miles away from where I live and I havent wanted to travel that far yet to work on it)

Car is going to be towed there this weekend so I can swap out the new(er) rims and see whats going on. I agree you compuwiz but I had the local pontiac dealer look at it and they said no damage other than the wheel...I've always had good experiences with thier shop but my gut tells me otherwise.

I did have an interesting thing happen yesterday, I was moving the TA and backed it up some into the parking spot (I have to parallel park every freaking day) and the front right hit a hard patch of ice and something "shifted" in the front suspension...thats the best way I can describe it...I drove it the next morning and it steers and handles better...not great...but an improvement over days earlier.

Just so you know, I drive it only when I HAVE too (ie. going to work 2 miles down the road) My wife works also but I steal her car whenever possible to avoid further complications.


Later.