bent front suspension?

[void_kp]

hey folks... I have a problem.
I was inspecting the front left (driver side) tire as I found it flat yesterday when I drove to a cars n coffee and I found a nail in it. not a big problem.

But there are 2 more concerning problems:
1/ before lifting the car, the front left suspension was very low, I could barely fit the jacks below . The other 3 points were all higher by a couple of inches.
After lifting the car and lowering it down the height was good again. My suspicion goes to a shot ammo, but:
2/ But while inspecting I also noticed that my front left tire is too close to the front bumper, compared to the right tire. You can see the detail in the picture 1 and 2. The 3rd and 4th picture are a front and back shot of the front left suspension. I don't see any leak or anything broken but I'm no expert.

Any ideas of what can be happening here?

[void_kp]

update, that problem only arise when the car is jacked up. when it's on the ground that gap doesn't exist.

[void_kp]

update: I've did some road tests and nothing seems out of ordinary, the issue is only when jacked up, I suspect there's too much caster on the front left suspension. tomorrow I'll go to an alignment shop and see

[Goebel734]

Yes, I was gonna suggest take it to the alignment shop first, get a good baseline and then inspect. If something is bent, they will be able to at least narrow it down. In the collision business, we see lots of bent control arms, bent struts, by very few bent spindles any more. They are so big and beefy they normally just break/crack.

[void_kp]

(probably) final update.
Interesting findings... let me start from the front suspension. Everything is good. What probably happened was that the shock absorber got "stuck" and when I jacked the car up it unblocked. There's no leak and everything is working normally, I've also tried some hard braking and cornering... zero problems. I re-did alignment and everything is ok.

There's one exception, on my last track day last year I started hearing a "Clank" sometimes from the back but we were not able to find out what it was... well, we did this time. Old(ish) sway bar rubber bushing got too hard and with track usage one bushing per side broke and I lost them while running. This means that the sway bar is not locked in position and can move, when the torsion reaches a certain force, the bar will move and cause the "clank" that I heard.

Ordered new bushings (non rubber) and today I'll go to shop to install them.

[void_kp]

tested the sway bar with new bushings on the track, on a wet trackday.
quite boring videos but there's always the good sound from the LS7:


This is my best lap of the day (nothing special), made in the rare sunny portion of the day. rest of sessions were (very) wet.
I appreciate how the stability control works... it is really cool, especially in sport mode, where it gives you more agency.

[Indian_Mack]

Nice troubleshooting!

I had the same clunk from the rear sway bars after install. Didn't torque them enough

We're in the same general area. Haven't been to pacific raceways yet, but love the track Night in America events at the ridge motorsports park in shelton. Doing it again in June

[void_kp]

Originally Posted by Indian_Mack

We're in the same general area. Haven't been to pacific raceways yet, but love the track Night in America events at the ridge motorsports park in shelton. Doing it again in June

keep me posted, I love the ridge, I've been there quite a few times and I'd love to be able to meet there. Having a session with 2 Z/28 would be fantastic

[1JEWLDSSRS]

Like you said, it might be boring around the corners being on a wet track, but when you get her straightened out and go up through the gears, music to my ears!! Nicely done..

[Indian_Mack]

Originally Posted by void_kp

keep me posted, I love the ridge, I've been there quite a few times and I'd love to be able to meet there. Having a session with 2 Z/28 would be fantastic

I'll be going to the ridge on June 18th for the night run with a bunch of guys from work. Hope to see you there if you can make it! I don't have a z/28 though

[void_kp]

The photographer of the event ( https://www.facebook.com/BOUCHEZphotography/ ) took this AMAZING picture of my z/28.

https://www.bouchezphotography.com/C...2025/i-f5pMSCN

I think this pic captures the dynamics of being on track in a way that is quite rare.
It's not a perfect picture from a technical standpoint but it's a masterpiece for track photography in my opinion.

[Indian_Mack]

Might have been the same guy that took photos last time I was there. Love track photos!

[chevy pilot]

Btw.You have a screw in your tire.

[void_kp]

Originally Posted by chevy pilot

Btw.You have a screw in your tire.

lol yeah, that's why I was inspecting the tire