My car is a 2000 Corolla…this past week I got brand new complete Gabriel ReadyMount struts which included the springs, struts, and mounts already assembled. These struts were direct fit and replacement of OE struts for my Corolla.
Now when I look at my car from a level surface…it looks too high. Like the space between the top of the tire and the arch of the quarter panel has increased by a lot. Also, the ride is somewhat rough…it looks like the actual strut itself never gets to “work” because the Spring is too high and stiff.
Will the increased height and stiffness wear out the other suspension components?
New shocks/struts, especially non-factory spec ones, often have different valving. I remember my father complaining about the new shocks I put on my mom’s Cutlass - I though HD would help it ‘handle’, just made it ride like a truck.
In your case the new ones might be a bit stiffer than the old ones, or just being new they will be stiffer. Similarly the new springs have not have sagged over the years as your old ones have, or they might also be a bit stiffer.
You did get it aligned, right? The should have checked the ride height.
Yeah got a complete four wheel alignment. After the alignment, the machine readout was that everything was aligned (all green) except the rear right wheel was slightly off 0.2 degrees camber (they said it was not a problem). Firestone did the alignment (took almost an hour but I think they were thorough).
I don’t mind as long as it doesn’t wear out the other suspension components. Scotty Kilmer said that some people “lift” their trucks which cause all the suspension components to work at a different angle than it was designed for wearing them out.
On a side note, if the alignment is set by adjusting the strut to the steering knuckle and tierods etc…and those components are held tightly by bolts…how can they go out of alignment? Does hitting a pothole actually move the strut from the steering knuckle?
Changed all 4 struts (complete struts with spring, strut, mount). I think the old struts were good…I just changed them to fix a creaking problem…which ended up being caused by a worn stabilizer link.
It could be at the correct height but since the vehicle is 14 years the springs may have settled from age. This is something you will not notice visually until after the fact.