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I need some serious help ? Suspension/handling woes


Guest time2die

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Guest time2die

Hi All

This is a difficult problem as i have mentioned this on a few occasions over the past few years.

 

Have owned my supra for about 8 years on a M plate which is around 95 reg i think.

 

Car handled like a dream and it was stiff and responsive and i could feel the feedback from the tyres apart from when its a little wet or snow on the ground then the car is as expected virtually un drivable.

 

Now i have taken this car to John Wilson some 3 years ago with this problem and John Changed the Gio Settings or something but the car drives like a pig.

 

Now i am not blaming John for this as i think the problem is something different to what John actually concentrated on.

 

 

It all started some 3 years ago when the car failed its mot on worn out rear tyres,not a problem as i told the garage to swap like for like and put some decent tyres on.

 

Ever since that day i noticed the steering felt really lose and floppy and had no sense of feedback or grip from the tyres.

 

Seems the car has a mind of its own and when driving it around it seems to feel very dangerous and also tram lines and veers to the left.

 

I have had the tracking done and tested and have the correct tyre pressures but something is wrong with this car,regardless of what the experts say on here i know my car and i really need help because i want this car to be right.

 

I have had 3 different makes of tyres on over the years and no matter what i do it still drives terrible,its hard to describe really and whats needed is someone to have the car for a few days and road test it.

 

John wilson took the car down the road for 2 minutes 3 years ago and thought it drove better than most supra he has driven.

 

This car is not right and i need somebody on here who lives reasonably close to Tewkesbury who is prepared to tell me what the problem is,i don't mind taking the car to that person and he is welcome to have it for the days required to get to the bottom of this once and for all.

 

Obviously i could take it to Toyota but i don't have Hundreds of pounds it will cost if i do so.

 

It would make my day if somebody had the car and finally told me what was wrong with it and the cost involved.

 

Somebody on here a few years back told me that they may have broken the suspension or damaged it when jack car up to replace tyres.

 

Car recently passed Mot and it was mentioned that the back suspension was slightly lose but no big deal.

 

I don't know nothing about cars and i really would appreciate any help in who i can take this car to and who understands what I'm talking about.

 

Car is a Jz Twin turbo Auto with 17inch rims and it has the correct tyre pressures.

 

One thing that is strange is that after the Mot The car felt stiff and back to how it was long ago and it was a lot more stable and felt grippy,but sadly this lasted for only a matter of hours and the following day it was back to normal.

 

I don't know if this is a steering rack issue because on a few occasions when i have altered the steering position i seem to find a sweet spot and the car steering feels like its stiffened up a bit,again this only lasts a while.

 

Please ,Please someone tell me or point me in the direction of some help here,i don't have a endless pit of money and i don't want it to be with some guy who checks the tracking and a few other things charges me £300 for doing so.

 

I don't mind paying money when somebody finds out the problem but i am a little worried that i have taken my car to supra specialists only to pay out hundreds of pounds for a car that drives the same the minute i drive it away.

 

I do know my own car and like i said this car drove like a dream for many years up until i changed the rear tyres

 

Now has something happened here or could this be a coincidence but please help me find a solution,i have had the steering rack checked [All the uj apart from the top one that the guy said takes more time] The one that actually changes the steering position,could this be the problem.........?

 

All i ask is someone point me in the right direction here as i would love to have the car back i once loved but know hate talking it anywhere as feel its a danger on the road.

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I am not that techy, but have you had the suspension struts checked, if the car felt better for a while after the Mot, it could be that the car had been jacked up, allowing the suspension struts to open completely and then when droped back down they kept pressure for a couple of days.

 

I could be talking out of my @rse, but thought I would give you my thoughts;)

 

I know you have said you are putting in the right tyre pressure, but what pressures are you running and what tyre sizes

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My money is on the shocks are worn. The fact that it felt better after being lifted and dropped back down, probably means that the shocks played their part until they got back to their natural rest position.

 

Does the car feel crashy in comparison to what it used to? My old red auto TT had worn shocks and felt crashy and harsh until new shocks were fitted.

 

My new 6sp TT has HSD coilovers fitted, and they've tranformed the car completely.

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A more suitable thread title might attract Mr Wilson quicker...

 

I concur.

 

..and possibly make it shorter and more to the point.

 

Try the heading 'my car handles like a dog'... and leave poor old John Wilson out of it. He was only trying to help :taped:

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Have you ever had the front and rear subframe bolts checked, they are a regular service item. Shortly after I got my car I had a really nasty experience pulling into the M3 I hit some slightly uneven ground, and for a few seconds it felt like something else was taking control of the car. It felt dangerous all lose and all over the place. I crawled home and jack up the front of the car, all the subframe bolts were lose, not finger tight but easy to tighten with a deep socket. The should have been done up to a significant torque, I had to jamb my feet on the front wheel to get enough purchase on the bolts to reach the torque required

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Another vote for Chris Wilson. He'll soon tell you what's up, he can spot dodgy camber with the naked eye :blink:

 

And also better thread titles in future please, give people some information to go on or they won't come looking in your thread. I'll change it this once :)

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Guest Budz86

I've just changed my suspension to a set of BC Racing coilovers and had the geo done. Very happy with the results, feels much more planted now.

 

Another thing to consider might be bushes. If they have never been changed they could be worn. That will cause excessive movement, and the handling will be off.

 

And on a side note, I wouldn't take your supra to Mr T to fix, they don't seem to know what they're doing! Find one of the specialist's from the forum, Chris Wilson is a good bet if he's not too far :)

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Guest time2die

Cheers guys for the help and there is some good information there for me to go on,By the way i am not having a go at John Wilson as he had the car to check out the geo settings ..........Period.

 

I put 34psi all round in my tyres and one of the guys that mentioned that after it had been jacked up the car felt right for a while could be on the right track because that's what the guy who done the mot said claiming that he jacks the car up correctly as tyre fitter don't seem to do.

 

He said something about resetting the springs or something and they would have settled back into the correct position even though this was just for a short time.

 

Anyway anyone know how much this work costs and a good place to take it,I'm not in Shropshire anymore I'm in Tewkesbury Gloucestershire.

 

Thanks all for the help and response and dogeyrog i think you may have nailed it mate.

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I could meet up with you if you wish and test drive the car, im not far from Redditch and can also recomend 2 places to carry out any work required on your car and neither charges stupid hourly rates.

 

Do you know what geo settings are on your car now ?

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If it's worn bushes or ball joints then the problem should be easily found with a thorough inspection of all the suspension, at the same time it can be bolt checked to make sure nothings loose.

 

If its worn dampers then again it shouldn't be to hard to diagnose if looked at properly.

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Guest time2die

Sent you a pm DNK and i don't know the geo settings on the car which were set by Chris Wilson about 2 years ago if not more.

 

To be honest i don't think it has anything to do with tyres,geo settings,tyre pressure but things mentioned on here.

 

Sorry i have been calling Chris wilson John Wilson who is the fishing guy lol.

Edited by time2die (see edit history)
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