Alignment issues after a small hit.
 

My car was parked and someone must have hit it on the side. The body damage doesn't appear to be so bad but something else under the car has gone wrong because it pulls to the left (driver side). I went to a Firestone alignment shop and got the alignment done the pulling has been decreased by 90%.
The alignment shop told me that there is something else bent or broken elsewhere in the suspension components which is why they couldn't get the rear end alignment in factory specs. I will scan and post the adjustments little later. They said it is something small which can't be just seen with a naked eye but in machine world it might be slightly bent so they suggested me to take it to the dealer or a professional body shop.

I wanted to see if there is something in particular that should be checked out that's stopping the rear end to be adjusted within factory alignment specs. I don't have any suspension mods done. I went ahead and dropped it off at a professional collision shop for them to put it on the "computerized" auto body machine because the alignment shop said all bushings and rods seem to be ok.

Any feedback to help fix the issue will be highly appreciated. Here are some photos of the body damage. I will try to get the alignment sheet up soon.

Control arm, trailing arm, or toe rod.

If I had to bet I would say that you have a bent toe rod due to the contact happening at the front side of the rear wheel. The toe rod effects the toe, which is more than likely off on your car which is causing the pulling issues. Do you by chance happen to have the alignment specs from when the shop aligned the car? If you do post them up.

I will have them later on today and should be able to post them up.
The person from the collision shop called me back and said that something is definitely bent and fortunately it is not the chasis. He's suggesting me to replace the control arms on the side that got the hit and possibly the stabilizer bar.

Now ofcourse I am happy to get them replaced but I am wondering if I should go with an aftermarket setup/kit to replace maybe both sides on the rear end.

Can you guys make some recommendations? I am not planning on coilovers yet but they're on my future mod list so I'd like to go with something that will work with my present stock springs and the drop springs or coilovers setup later down the road.

I am sure there is a diagram/photo of Camaro's suspension, I tried looking in sticky threads and such but couldn't find any. If anyone has something bookmarked please share it so I can get a picture in my head of all the small and large parts involved in rear end suspension.

Also, is the rear stabilizer bar aka sway bar or are these 2 different items?

I'm guessing toe rod also.

Here is a quick diagram I throe together not too long ago.

Yellow highlighted part - toe rod
Blue highlighted part - trailing arm
Red highlighted part - lower control arm
Purple highlighted part - upper control arm

The highlighted yellow toe rods is what I am almost positive is bent on your car since the front of the rear wheel is pushed inward and the alignment shop was unable to get the factory alignment specs out of it.

We build toe rods, trailing arms, and lower control arms in different configuration depending on the end user's needs. If you are looking at replacing some parts I would recommend our BMR non-adjustable toe rods w/ poly-urethane bushings (TR002), BMR non-adjustable trailing arms w/ poly-urethane bushings (TCA029), and the BMR outer trailing arm bushings (BK006). These parts will work perfect for you now and once you start getting into modding the car a little more heavily. These parts will really help get rid of some of the unwanted movement in the rear suspension which will help get rid of a lot of the wheel hop and help improve the overall handling of the vehicle. I think it is super unlikely that your factory lower control arm is bent so I wouldn't mess with them at all.

If there is any way we can help you out let us know.

Kyle

Yes the rear sway bar/stabilizer bar are one in the same.

I am also betting this is a toe rod issue. We offer a few solutions from a few different manufacturers. Feel free to call, PM or email me if you have any questions.

Best regards,

Tyler
888-308-6007

Here is Firestone alignment sheet:
http://imageshack.us/a/img138/5227/0bns.jpg

http://imageshack.us/a/img703/576/80ps.jpg


Here is the alignment sheet from the collision shop:

http://imageshack.us/a/img694/3559/x61l.jpg

Let me know if these help understand the issue. The collision shop tech was suggesting me to swap all rear control arms on the impact side because according to him nothing looks bent to natural eye so it's hard to tell which one is really bent. I'm very confused.

From that alignment sheet I can definitely tell that you have a bent right rear toe rod, especially since those are the specs they got after they did the alignment. I am surprised the alignment shop couldn't tell you that was the issue because from the pictures and alignment spec sheet it is very clear what the issue is. The toe rod is that highlighted yellow part I have in the picture I posted previously. I bet if you physically pulled the toe rod off the car you would see that it is bent.

If you are looking for a good aftermarket replacement our BMR non-adjustable toe rod (TR002) would be a good, affordable option for you. Here is a quick picture of them:

BMR non-adjustable toe rod (TR002)
http://bmrsuspension.com/siteart/pro...R002_small.jpg

^^ I have these... great upgrade!

Thanks for the good words! :nod:

I am very much in agreement that it is the toe rod. I got all of the body work done.
I'm going to Canada to attend a wedding this weekend so the car will be parked at home and when I come back next week I will be picking up on this alignment issue and ordering the parts. Kyle once again I really appreciate your feedback.

Not a problem, that is what we are here for. If there is anything else we can help you out with let me know.

I was speaking to a mechanic at Firestone about the installation of this part. He doesn't know it as "toe rod" he said maybe it is called "rear suspension link rod" is that the same thing? I think he wants to compare the photo of the toe rod to the GM part to make sure he knows what I am talking about. Does anyone have the equivalent GM part photo/number? I called 3 dealers & they are being assholes about giving out the part number and I can understand that people go and buy them elsewhere and that's always going to happen. I spent thousands of dollars on buying a car from you and now you wont give me a part number? What a shame!