i have a 91 camaro with a 99 z28 rear end with 3.42's. the front has 2" spacers for the ZR1's that i have. i do not believe these are the cause. the car feels like a old lifted truck or something of that nature. every little groove in the road seems to pull the car hard. thanks for any and all advice.

 

Thats pretty normal for wide tires. Have you alignment checked anyway

 

And check for excessive wear in all your joints. The car too. Especially the idler arm.

 

Check for broken parts , worn out bushings , sway bar links

 

My car was REALLY bad about this lately. It wasnt that bad about it before, but it's gotten worse and worse until I just didnt like to drive it on the interstate.

So... I've replaced:

Inner/Out tie rods (rockauto.com Moog stuff is a STEAL for how cheap it is)
Centerlink
idler arm
steering box (80k mile unit from a totalled Formula on TGO... So it's the quick ratio box that I didnt get from the factory)

And I've been playing around with my toe settings ever since. I also found out that my tires were slightly toe'd out BEFORE I replaced everything, but the adjusters were seized so badly I just replaced all that worn out crap at the same time.

Now I havent gotten it to a shop for an alignment yet, but after I've replaced all that stuff, it's a million times better. I cant get toe set exactly right so it goes a little to one side, but it doesnt dart and jump around with a huge dead spot in the center anymore. This may or may not be what you were talking about, but... maybe.

I also got rid of my poly bushing rear LCA's and put in some rod end LCA's, and that dramatically changed how the thing reacted to weight shifts. It used to dart and jump every time I got on and off the gas... and I finally figured out it was because the rear LCA's weren't settling back to the exact same position every time the car moved a little. These are very, very minute changes to the direction the axle is facing, but it would change every time I went to another gear because the car would unload and then reload... (Manual trans and super heavy throttle return springs mean I dont really shift this car as smoothly as I probably should) So the rear bushings would bind a little and one side would end up in ad ifferent position than the other... and this would cause the rear axle to point in a slightly different direction... After I replaced all the front end stuff this behavior wasnt nearly as obvious, but it WAS still there. Going to a rear bushing that can smoothly articulate DID make a noticable difference.

Anyway... point is, yeah I replaced a bunch of crap, but I saw drastic improvements. The car isnt scary to drive in a straight line the way it used to be. Now MAYBE you just have a problem with your tires grooving, but I would suggest you have an alignment shop set the toe after you get under the car and see if there's any play/movement in the tie rod ends and centerlink. There's going to be play in the steering box too, and it all adds up by the time it gets to the spindle. So you just have to eliminate as much as you can.

This stuff normally costs a fortune... but all Moog stuff from Rock auto can be had for around $100 or so. They have some incredible deals.

 

I'm just going to repeat what the others have said because i agree with them.
1. Check your steering linkage and suspension (bushings, ball joints, and strut mounts). I replaced all this at once. 180k, it was time.
2. When is the last time your alignment was checked? Might be time to get it checked. Toe out will also cause a car to wander or become "darty" A good alignment shop will catch/check all the things in #1. Plenty of positive caster, a hint of negative camber, and 3/32 toe in. I don't like to settle for "in acceptable range" when it comes to alignment.

3. It is common for wide tires to wander and follow lines and cracks in the road.

 

Thank you all for the information. As soon as I get some time I will check all of this and probably replace a lot on the front end. I have really been debating on putting a stock rear back in it just to get away from the spacers on the front because I thought maybe it was causing it. But I will check with everything else before I do that. Thanks again.

 

I have 2 inch spacers on all 4 wheels I dont wonder all over the road. unless I am chasing a squirrel

 

yeah if the spacers are tightened properly they should be no different than any other wheel. Just as if there's an extra 2 inches of solid aluminum on the inner face of the wheel. The wider tires will exacerbate problems in the other areas mentioned though. They will track and groove with the road and if your steering linkages have any slack in them the wider tires will pull through that whole range.

 

If you have some broken components or worn out busing and parts wider tires can take you all over the road, But if you have no worn out parts wide tires are fine. I run 35x12.50x15 on my jeep and it does not pull all over the road.

 

My Expo wandered like a horny tomcat after I replaced a bunch of front end suspension parts. A $40 alignment is worth every penny.