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Sagging corner, Negative Camber S70 1998

1998 c70 Coupe, 209000 miles.

Here is one of the last, and possibly most concerning issues with the car.
My driver's side rear wheel has a very obvious negative camber and that corner of the car sits noticeably lower than the rest of the car.

The top of the passenger side rear wheel is a full two inches (2") below the top of the wheel arch. The top of the driver's rear wheel, by contrast, is sitting at or slightly above the the top of the wheel arch.

I measured the front wheels and found those to be sitting at identical distances from the fender arches, but overall the whole car looks tilted to the driver's side because the rear wheel is so bad.


I figured that something was damaged or seriously out of adjustment to result in this sort of difference. I initially blamed the wasted front spring and strut mounts, but I've replaced both sides now and if anything the tilt is now worse.

I've crawled around under the car, checked for worn out trailing arm bushings or a bent-up IRS components and found nothing. Shocks and mounts look good, springs look good.

One interesting thing here is that the driver's side suspension arm is new. Still has the OEM volvo stickers on it.

Seeing a new part on an older car makes me thing accident, replaced suspension after being in a wreck, but I can't find anything bent or damaged that would explain why the wheel is tilted and why the driver's corner is sitting so low.

So I'm left with springs, maybe a bad rear shock? I'm thinking of swapping the left and right springs, or grabbing a set from the junkyard before the donor s70 gets crushed.

Cany anyone weigh in on what could be the source of my problem?








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    Got - problem was probably a fat man S70 1998

    my usual inspection mechanic was going over the car for my biannual safety inspection and checked the undercarriage for me.

    Me measured the springs and found that the offending corner spring was compressed a full 2" with no sign of any sort of body damage. He said he usually sees this on older car, but a high mileage car with a single owner could do it too.

    I'm going to replace the springs this weekend and hopefully solve the problem.








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      Got - problem was probably a fat man S70 1998

      I sure hope that does the trick. I (and I presume others) were silent in response because there wasn't a good explanation without gross and obvious deformation from a big hit to that corner.

      Replace? Or get out the torch. Heat up the others to compress them too and you'll be stylin'. :)

      -Will
      --
      854 / 244 / Mini








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        Rear Spring Removal S70 1998

        I'm gonna visit the donor s70 at the PnP tomorrow and get the rear springs.
        If I am *really* gung-ho I might get the front's too. In either case, I think I should at least pull the passenger side springs, but a pair might be a good idea.

        Thing is... I'm not quite sure how to do it, so I'm gonna bring a set of spring compressors and a full socket set. I've only removed springs from the 120-series before. For the old ones, you just remove the limited straps, jack up the frame and lower the rear axle. This lets the springs fall out.

        I'm guessing to remove the springs from a wheel-less s70 on a rack, I will need to:

        1- compress the springs
        2- remove the shock absorber
        3- remove the lower spring retainer
        4- remove spring and release compressors.

        If I can just knock off the absorber and stand back, it would make the whole process faster - although not especially safer...

        Any Advice here?







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