My wife hit a curb in our 16 forester yesterday during the snow storm, but I don't see any physical damage. She said it hit the driver side rear pretty hard. Today I took it to the grocery store and something is obviously bad. There's a loud growl at speed coming from the driver side rear now. Anyone experience something similar? I already booked an alignment at morries Minnetonka on Wednesday. I'm crossing my fingers and praying that's all it is... worst case scenario though, what kind of repair do you guys anticipate? Like everyone else we are short on cash because of the holidays etc but the noise is terrible and I love our car!
First, it's highly unlikely that it is just the alignment. If it is a loud growl, it is probably a bad wheel bearing. There could be other things that are wrong with it, but it's hard to say until you get the wheel off and check everything out. Which btw, the wheel is probably bent as well. I'd recommend Jeff the Alignment Guy. He does alignments and is a suspension guru. The best way to get in contact with him is via email: http://www.thealignmentguy.com/contact.htm He does excellent work, and charge very reasonable (aka, low) rates. Jeff does all of my alignments and tire mounting and I've been going to him for years. The labor and parts at the dealership is going to be significantly more expensive. Hitting curbs happens to the best of us...slow down! I have had the misfortune of hitting a curb myself (although I did it on dry pavements...yikes) and Jeff was the one that analyzed the damage and fixed it. After fixing two bent wheels and replacing a front knuckle (which is cast iron...still surprised that I bent that and no other suspension components), I was back on the road. Damage will be different in every situation, so take it in and get it assessed.
Yes, after I drove it again I think it's a wheel bearing too. I emailed Jeff since that's what his preferred contact is, hopefully he can get me in asap and get this fixed! Thanks for the advice and I'll let you know what happens.
And if you want to save yourself some money, you could always stop by Morries Minnetonka parts department and pick up the wheel bearing before your appointment with Jeff and ask for the 20% off MNSubaru discount. Worst case, you can always return it. Also, since it is a relatively new model and wheel bearings normally take awhile to wear out, they might have to order in the part...so I'd call parts first.
Another great idea, ordered and picking it up at lunch they had some in stock. Waiting to hear from Jeff still though, thanks!!!
Jeff will get back to you, If he has a full booked day he will get back to you in the evening time. He is a one man shop so his time for checking emails and such during "normal business hours" sometimes is difficult for him.
No problem, I've always had great experiences with the Morries Minnetonka parts dept...very thankful for those guys. Truth...he usually responds within 24-48 hours...either mid morning or in the evening. Jeff is a "quirky" guy, but treat him with respect, and he will treat you well as well.
Unfortunately since I drive 50miles a day I couldn't wait, plus I have not heard from him yet so I took it to a different shop. Wheel bearing was bad, wheel perfect other than cosmetic, and no other suspension damage. I'll be taking the foxbody to Jeff in the spring and give him a try with my coil overs!
So I have to update this again. Car exhibited some bad shimmy at high speed on icy road. This time I went to Jeff... and he fixed me up right. He's definitely the guy to go to for alignment. Plus he's cheaper than the guys that do it wrong!
