Car suspension problem - need help

[hollerg]

Been having wierd tire wear and now failed shocks. Not sure the two are related.

I have a long winded story but to cut to the chase

Purchased a used car. After 7 K miles front tires had sharp edges when rubbed in one direction and not the other so lots of tire noise and not a smooth ride. Told I was not rotating them enough and that there were no other problems, not allignment & not warn parts, even at 140 K miles on the 98 mountainer, 5L V8 2wd stock rims and suspension. Bought new tires and edges showing up in 2000 miles. So frequent rotation not the answer.

Open to help. Also would like a copy of TSB's which may indirectly relate to the problem.
98-17-15 SEP 98 Steering - Drift/Pull/Tire Wear/Poor Ride Quality
99-9-8 MAY 99 Steering - Drift/Pull to the Right

 

[parad1mg]

the only thing i can think of are ball joints and poor alignment..

if you have a jack, raise up one side of the front end and tug along the tire on top and on the side (just like you're trying to pry it loose..) if it has play and moves from side to side and etc. then you either have bad ball joints or just check your tie-rod connection..

are the shock still oem? if they are then they are most likely shot from normal wear.. address your tire eating issues first then replace the shocks.. get a second opinion too from another shop..

Goodluck and welcome to the site!

 

[robertoa1a]

Yeah, No. I think you have an alignment problem or a loose suspension or steering joint. Try shaking the wheels real hard from top to bottom and side to side looking for loosness. It's normal for the shocks to wear out. You can find them for about $20 each.

Just guessing I would be willing to bet that it's due for alignment. That is after you replace any worn front end parts (not including shocks). You can get the alignment close at home with a tape measurer and some string but thats not good enough.

 

[ThePhoenix]

i was told two different things...that bad shocks can cause cupping on the tires...and that bad ball joints can cause it

I was getting cupping up front...changed my shocks and it hasnt done it since...even with bad ball joints

 

[robertoa1a]

Recently I had an interesting one too. An upper control arm bolt came loose throwing the geometry in and out. It had my head hurting for a minute.

I think most people just cant do a good inspection easily with the cumbersome factory jack.

I bought an aluminum jack at harbor freight and its awesome. It doesn't weigh much and you can get the front wheels off the ground in about 30 seconds.

 

[ThePhoenix]

as opposed to 17 minutes with the factory jack -off

 

[robertoa1a]

Exactly! It took me a while to come off of the $80 but It beats throwing my back completely out with that funky factory jack. I would hate to be in the rain on the highway with that thing. Most steel floor jacks are too heavy to lug around. This one is just right for an explorer and money well spent.