onelife2stories

hey everyone, i finally got my car out. ive had it since october, but ohio winter's suck so i just got it out last night. i had a second gen before, and my fd feels completly different. it feel...i dont even kow the word... it feels light? like the rear is floating around on the road. i dont know, maybe my suspension is worn, or is this normal? i feel really uncomfortable driving it. im always worried that the rear is gonna 'float' out from under me or something. is this normal? or do i need to fix something? or just need to get used to it? i plan on getting a tien flex later on, but thats like end of summer later on. thanks for any info guys!

wtgator69

Do you mean that when you step on it the tires seem to spin more easily? Or just the handling of the car? If its tires spinning it might just be sand, it causes a huge traction issue and I get lots of that up in CT, but it certainly coulndt hurt to check out the suspension, better safe than sorry. Maybe take another FD owner for a ride who lives near you and see what they say.

onelife2stories

its not sand. i have heard before how the rear end of the car is a floating type or soemthing? i dontk now what that means? does it mean that the rear is loose so it handles better?

wtgator69

I really dont know... do you understeer or oversteer? I cant imagine why a winter would mess up your handling unless your shocks froze or something. You might want to go to a good suspension shop around you and have them check it out.

JONSKI

The FD has more weight and power to the rear wheels than most cars and so it's rear end can break traction and swing out quite easily. Be sure to check the treadwear on your tires and be sure they aren't overinflated (all four wheels should be at 32psi, and NOT the max pressure listed on the tire itself).

Does the car only seem to break traction on one side?

onelife2stories

no it doesnt break traction. all the tires are at 30 psi. maybe its just the tires? i have stock wheels with 50 sidewalls.

JONSKI

How about the alignment? Has the car ever been in an accident or bumped any curbs to your knowledge?
Is the tread wear even on the rear tires? Check the inside tread of the tire and see if the inside is noticeably more worn than the outside tread and vise versa. Also check to see if the left tire is more worn than the right and vise versa.
All tires have "wear indicators". There is a solid line of rubber that is about an 1/8" above the low area in the tread. If the tread has worn down enough to expose this band of rubber, then the tires must be replaced. You may need to roll your car a foot forward or backward to find the wear indicator.

DaleClark

iTrader: (55)

You might have dead shocks on the rear of the car. Pull the rear wheels off and look for oil on the shock body. If your car is well over 100,000 miles it's very possible that the stock shocks are blown, and will give really bad floaty handling.

Dale