Did something kill my suspension mount?

So i'm under the hood tonight, goofing off. And I go to clean up one of the strut turrets. Then I notice some paint flaking....Then more flaking... UH-OH.

 

I don't recognize this, but my first thought is something nailed the shit out of this side of the strut (passenger) and pushed the spring/strut assembly HARD into the strut tower top... I dunno, the biggest pothole EVER?

 

Please take a look at the picture and let me know if you've seen anything like it.

I'd say you nailed something really, really hard.....

wow, ive never seen that before. normally you hit the bumpstop before anything like that happens.

Agreed. Looks like you pulled a Dukes of Hazard jump in that thing. Any valets lately park your car..... .

yeah - one would hope you'd know if you hit something hard enough to do that.

 

I've seen this before on the same side on a local LGT...dude thrashed a pair of Rota's on a monster pothole and did some rally-cross. We aren't sure which did the shock tower in, but the damage is done.

 

What you need to worry about is actually damage to the strut's tophat - hard to tell in your pics, but that forces tweaked the bolts on the tophat on the one I've seen. We need to swap a spare in to see of it's just the tophat that needs to be replaced, or the whole strut.

Ever install a strut-tower bar? Looks like scratches from the mounting/contact areas.....

And how about the rims, do they look like a D?

 

X

Ever install a strut-tower bar? Looks like scratches from the mounting/contact areas.....

 

nah...that's cracked paint from tweaking the whole mount. I know....I've seen the same in person and we both were like Dubya Tee Effe?

^ DAMN!

notice how the bolts go their separate ways? Yeah....they are supposed to be straight up and down, all parallel. That's a problem.

for reference:

 

http://www.gruppe-s.com/Subaru/subsus/sti_um.jpg

notice how the bolts go their separate ways? Yeah....they are supposed to be straight up and down, all parallel. That's a problem.

 

^ Oh snap!

 

*_Now_* I see it! Doh!

You know, I bet I even know what happened.

 

I was driving back from Pittsburgh, chugging along on the highway (~ 74mph), and I saw a pothole about .3 seconds before I hit it. I heard something that sounded remarkably like... Well something knocking the shit out of the bumpstop. I actaully pulled over and looked at the tire and everything because it was so loud. Waited a few minutes to see if the tire was ok, then drove on home. This was about 4 hours after I bought the car.

 

Ok, that's the bad news. So what are my options here? New strut and beating the tower back into shape? Having to re-spot weld another piece of steel into place?

 

I haven't noticed any drivability problems yet, no tracking or pulling or anything. I just ordered some new springs and swaybars, and I'm concerned about how this tower out of wack, might affect the rest of the suspension setup.

 

--james

you'll want to order a new tophat for sure...those bolts will be hard to re-align and retain strength. Cost is about $35-45 I think, so no biggie.

 

As for more extreme fixes....well, get an alignment after you do the swap to be sure that things are ok. I'd add a strut bar for some extra strength as well...the $50 eBay model is fine.

Patagonian you rock.

 

Wow, I guess I'll do that when I swap springs and everything.

 

As far as the strutbrace goes.... I swore I was done with mods for at least 6 months.... "I have to honey, Patagonian said if I didn't get a strut brace god would kill a kitten. That? Thats a calculator. I don't know why it looks like an accessport."

 

Thanks guys, super helpful as always.

 

--james

notice how the bolts go their separate ways? Yeah....they are supposed to be straight up and down, all parallel.

 

I doubt it is as bad as it looks. I think you're seeing an optical illusion in that picture. I think the pic was snapped with the camera lens way back into wide angle mode and it distorted the picture.

Perhaps you missed my comment about seeing this in person, on someone else's car. Trust me....we had a hard time getting the strut off the car because it too hitting the studs with a hammer to get them to clear.

5 minutes with a Dremel will solve that problem

I doubt it is as bad as it looks. I think you're seeing an optical illusion in that picture. I think the pic was snapped with the camera lens way back into wide angle mode and it distorted the picture.

 

No wide angle on my digicam, thats a pretty accurate representation of what they look like in person. Id'd say they're probably a good 10 degrees off what i think they're suppose to be.

 

It's pretty depressing. I havent even owned the car a month yet.

WOW! That was a hard hit!

Must have been the Mother of All Potholes if the wheel didn't skim right over it at 74mph! Perhaps you need some super stiff sways, as well, to help with that if you don't plan on avoiding future potholes. haha Actually, I'm amazed you could do that kind of damage without first destroying the wheel. The killer potholes around Detroit always seem to prefer eating rims and bending control arms. Good luck with the fix!

So...anyone want to venture a guess as to what the rear one looks like?

that does not look right. i sugest a frame shop. i bet the body had some tweaking too

So...anyone want to venture a guess as to what the rear one looks like?

 

 

Not really

 

I'll know in a few weeks when I'm back there for other things. I really really hope its not completely screwed. I can do a pretty good amount of work on my car, but straigtening the frame is not one of them.

Perhaps you need some super stiff sways, as well, to help with that if you don't plan on avoiding future potholes. haha Actually, I'm amazed you could do that kind of damage without first destroying the wheel. The killer potholes around Detroit always seem to prefer eating rims and bending control arms. Good luck with the fix!

 

I wish it was the rims, give me an excuse to buy some. I definitely didnt plan on hitting it. Actaully, I kind of froze up. First few hours in my new car, didnt know how well it would handle a quick turn to the side. By the time I got unfroze, it was to late. It was literally like 1.5 seconds from when I realized just how big it was, till I hit it.

 

*sigh*