Y87bird00

iTrader: (6)

My 2000 firebird has a very impressive amount of front wheel tuck. I just had an alignment recently and they said it couldn't be done perfectly because the k member was dented, the frame was bent (cannot find where), the tierod end was bad, and I had a bad hub. Now this is all on one side of the car, the driers side. It is probably an inch further in than the passenger, but the passenger side is also tucked. Obviously I need to fix the parts mentioned (tierod sand hubs are waiting to be installed) and I need to get the car looked at by a frame puller, but what is causing the wheels from being tucked so much on both sides? Only the drivers side has the small amount of in noticeable damage from a previous owner. Would adjustable uppers help?

leadfoot4

iTrader: (1)

Know anybody who can run a Carfax for you, and try to find out the extent of the "damage by a previous owner"?

Y87bird00

iTrader: (6)

The carfax is spotless. It looks like the front right has been pulled on before because the hole inside the fender is notched like it has been used.

The front bumper was covered in spider cracks and the headlight cover was dented and bondo'd when I got the car. The bumper support was twisted, and it was cheaply sprayed with paint because the hood has clear coat peeling.

SparkyJJO

iTrader: (11)

Further proof carfax isn't always that useful... My old car was carfax spotless but one look at it and you would have known it had a few run-ins with stuff in its life!

I wouldn't use adjustable arms to get the alignment in spec unless I had no other choice. Just a band-aid for the problem.

Start with getting the chassis squared up and the K member replaced, then go from there. Entirely possible the stock upper arm or the spindle is bent, but don't go buying parts for that until you know the chassis is up to par.

Y87bird00

iTrader: (6)

Is the k member that big of a problem? Here is a picture



The dent is just below the steering shaft input on the rack

Undertow74

iTrader: (45)

what's wrong with the kmember hard to tell in that picture. is the bottom side of it dented in a little bit? that's all I think I can see. Doesn't look bad enough to cause both wheels to tuck. Seems like it would be a A-arm/spindle issues to me. Unless you are running some skinny tire with a crazy backspacing up front that is tucking the tires.

SparkyJJO

iTrader: (11)

It just sounded like the K member was bent up more than that. That doesn't look bad.

If it is just a dent in the middle then it should be fine. But once you get the frame straight the K member might not line up anymore if it is actually bent somewhere, so just keep that in mind. Can't say for sure until the frame is squared away.

14k

I had a similar issue on my car. Alignment Tech said my whole passenger side was pushed in.. I replaced the spindle and it fixed the problem.

Y87bird00

iTrader: (6)

The k member, control arms and spindles are off a donor car (ls swap). Both the v6 k member and v8 k member (dented) match up perfectly. The wheels were tucked with all the original v6 stuff as well. Is there a way to get a frame 'estimate'? I'd hate to end up spending a grand or more to straighten it out.

SparkyJJO

iTrader: (11)

Hm, well if both K members fit properly then odds are that point on the frame is OK. Didn't realize you has LS swapped. Maybe something with the shock towers is off.

Has me a bit puzzled.

therealcreeper

iTrader: (37)

could you have accidentally installed an extra upper A arm on the wrong side? I read one guy on here had a one installed on the wrong side of the car, so the ball joint was not located in the correct position causing a funky upright angle

Y87bird00

iTrader: (6)

The upper arms are correct because I painted one set silver (with bad bushings) so I wouldn't mix them up. I recently did shocks in the front and they are correct.

It seems like the shock tower is pushed in on the drivers side, causing the shock mount and upper arm to be pushed inside the fender more. I installed my strut tower branch and had to use a hammer for it to go over the shock bolts.

Y87bird00

iTrader: (6)

Here's the front suspension to make sure

fixinitup

iTrader: (6)

Definitely more noticeable on the driver than passenger side. Do you have a pic of the drivers side spindle/a-arms. IF it is the shock tower bracing an adjustable upper may be your cheapest option.

Y87bird00

iTrader: (6)

I don't have a picture of the drivers side but I know it's not bent