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Date: Thu, 14 Aug 2003 00:36:31 -0300
From: Dexter J <lamealameadingdongnopsamlamelame.org>
Subject: Re: front end mis-alignment or...?


Salutations: Abdallah wrote: > > "LauraK" <lkrznopsamcomnospam> wrote in message > news:20030813173851.28365.00000592nopsam10.aol.com... > > > > > >tyre is out about 1.5cm!!! that blew me away. needless > to > > >say i'll be following up with the body shop that repaired > > >the car after the accident... > > > > What was damaged in the accident? You might be able to > trace it back to that > > repair. Perhaps the frame wasn't straightened properly. > > there's a thought. a pretty unsettling thought though. the > left front fender was hit and then the delinquent vehicle > bounced off and hit the left rear passenger door. it wasn't > a heavy impact, but given the position of impact there may > be some straightening to do. i can see i'm in for a bit of > a shooting match with the bodyshop. > Affendi(?) Abdallah - the impact incident you describe would suggest that you had seriously damaged your lower forward clip, your forward panels or your engine mounts.. The tire wear mileage you describe would be considered inadequate performance for low-grade racing slicks in pretty much any configuration as regards camber.. One of the great things about SAABs is that they - really - are designed to absorb impact and sheer in such a way as to isolate the passenger compartment - or the 'egg' - and I can personally attest to this quality regarding SAABs.. If the delinquent vehicle hit you in such a way as to spin around past your front passenger door - then - prang your side at the rear door - you were hit with very considerable energy.. But it very probably didn't feel as quite as serious as it actually would have felt in a lesser passenger shell commitment.. That SAAB shell is why it now takes air bags and curtains in new cars to average back to the passenger survival rates found in pre-airbag SAABs through the 80's.. But it is a trade off in that it is not easy to put right again once you have sacrificed the panel corrugation to the energy of the impact given it is designed to a considerably higher tolerance than other unit construction impact absorption systems.. In the SAAB - impact energy is absorbed on a very carefully planned ratio along a strategic corrugation and seaming model in any given panel in the inner body structure feeding into the firewall (a remarkably thick and study plate on a SAAB) and up the rear upper quarters and inner wheel well into the roof along the rear.. As energy is absorbed into the panel(s) the shell increases resistance literally on a schedule through the machine so as to lower the energy wave through the 'wetware' (you and I).. Thusly - I too would be gravely concerned about this this tire wear - but I would eliminate some hopeful possibilities in this order: First - the engine mounts or brackets may have been damaged so that the axles are no longer in the correct plane from the transmission to the inner bearing face.. Second - if they replaced one or both axles/hubs/bearings as a part of the repair - they may have replaced with a slightly longer axle/hub/bearing set.. Similarly - review the control arms, tie rods, steering rack and lower wheel mounts for correct tolerances.. Third - I had a pair of front springs replaced this Spring and was very surprised to see that they were considerably shorter than the OEM springs I needed in my particular model although the part numbers matched up.. This has 'lowered' the front end of my car. While not increasing inner tire wear as near as I can ascertain - it has 'lowered' my front end grip considerably when cornering by throwing off a very carefully considered weight distribution.. This weight issue was I think outlined earlier.. Finally find someone who does a lot of dealer insurance work locally - but who is not attached to the particular folks who repaired your machine - and have them take a very close look at the inner panel structure described above to check for a panel/clip driven change in geometry in any of the systems described above. In the old 99/900 - you could tell immediately if a machine was lined up right by how the forward opening hood clipped back into the rails and tabs at the firewall.. If it has been smacked and you had concerns about how correctly it has been done - you checked the tabs and rails to see if they where flat, straight and undamaged - then checked carefully how the pins from the hood itself slid along and locked into tabs.. If the geometry was off in this system - the car would consume tires as described unless the wishbones where shimmed to accommodate for the changes in over all geometry.. As I think was pointed out earlier - 1.5 centimetres is a considerable spread and given that several remanufactured and used parts will in fact bolt in and operate correctly - but out of tolerance for a specific variation and model year - it may be possible that you have some part that is oversized and putting you wheels out.. However - it may well be that you have a inner panel/clip that has been pulled straight - but not then pinched in at the axle openings to account for the stretching that occurred when you where hit or the subsequent pull straight.. Have them take a look at the distance between the upper shock mounts under the hood and them repeat from the lower ball joint on the underside.. That alarming possibility suggested - it could equally be something as simple as someone shimming out something to meet some incorrect specification for your model year they have on hand.. Which would be a fair mistake as long as they are willing to fix it on the house.. It's a good over all safety design and a reasonable trade for the complication of the unit construction mounted suspension systems.. Good luck - al Shalah(?) -- J Dexter - webmaster - http://www.dexterdyne.org/ all tunes - no cookies no subscription no weather no ads no news no phone in - RealAudio 8+ Required - all the Time Radio Free Dexterdyne Top Tune o'be-do-da-day Colin James - Cadillac Baby http://www.dexterdyne.org/888/066.RAM

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