New to MX-3 - Suspension questions

[Spike Speagle]

Heyyy0000!

I just picked up a Precidia last night, the engine and tranny seem really quite peachy Acceleration and front handling are good, there are some minor body niggles - things like the bottom of the front facia is being held on with "the bra"! (it is a girl car isn't it?) and bumper sag, but something is off in the rear end.

What I would like to do is diagnose it with your help, if it sounds like a routine issue, and fix 'er myself. I should mention that I'm only going to have this car for a couple of months, so I'm also fine with leaving it - but if it's something simple like a linkage, or something that you, the knowledgeable, know about - then I'd love to take care of it. Funny thing is that I paid much less for this sweet ride than I have on beaters in the past.. and they were boring (94 protege in dark grey with black "rims" - c'mon..)

It is a GS with 155K on it

What kind of answers do I need to give to get a better idea on the suspension? What I can describe right now is a noticable "squishyness" in the rear when hitting bumps and turning - like the car slides out a little and unpredictably and almost a banging noise.. I've had bad ball joints on the front of mazdas and it doesn't sound like that. I flicked the muffler around, and it doesn't appear to be that either.. I'm not sure if perhaps.. well, it doesn't appear to be a blown strut, because they all seem to respond fairly well to the push down test..

Any help is appreciated, but I'm not looking for a handout, or to exploit the community at all, understand that I won't have the car long, I'd just like to take care of it if I can, or at least know what the issue might be.

Thanks all!
(oh, I'm in Edmonton, Alberta!)

[fowljesse]

Sorry you have to give the car up. Many of us on here have enjoyed ours for years, through
all kinds ofsituations, and upgrades

If you hit a pothole with one rear wheel, does the whole rear end wiggle a little?
It sounds to me like you have bushings going bad in the rear "Twin Trapezoidal linkage", which gives it passive all wheel steering. When the bushings go bad, it all gets loose.
Any more description, however unscientific will help. If it is the linkage, you most likely don't need to fix it within a few months, and could sell it to someone on here, who could fix, and take good care of the car.

[Spike Speagle]

Jesse,

Thanks for the advice, I will see if I have the guts to hit a pothole! Just kidding, Edmonton is so dang full of them, it's not even funny..My Subaru eats them up and it's not even a thought, but with this little guy.. I'm a little more hesitant!

I will see what you are talking about when I drive it next, but when I hit something - like a bump it does get wiggly - so I bet you've hit it on the head there.

Is that something that's relatively easy to fix? I'll do some searching on here, because I'm certain I'm not the first one to have this, and if this board is anything like the Subaru boards, I'm sure many have described how to go about it.

thanks again!

(oh, and when I'm ready to sell, I'll definitely post er wherever appropriate - always better for a good car to go to someone who knows what they've got!)

[Spike Speagle]

Okay, I see the FAQ at the top of the page - AFTER I looked through a bunch of threads and pages of threads to see what I could find.. D'oh! I think I'll likely leave this for now, because it's not too bad, but I do get some clunking noises.. but, the process is a little more involved than I want to get for now.

[onlytrueromeo]

You could always buy new poly bushings for a decent price that will tighten up the back end by getting rid of the old rubber ones! We're having a GB on them, and although we already submitted the money there MAY be a possibility to still get in on this

Why will you only have the car for a few months?

[wytbishop]

Bushings can still be had. I will continue to take orders however at some point I will have to place the order for the first batch of poly. At that point any new orders will have to wait until a large enough order can be put together to run a second batch economically.

[Spike Speagle]

Romeo,

What would the cost be on the bushings, if I could get in? I really am not into putting any money into this guy as I am selling soonish.

Why? Well, to be honest, after I drove my first Subaru, nothing else satisfies me. I have a 99 impreza wagon, and I'm getting a WRX, but I have to wait for it.. perhaps up to 6-8 weeks. My wife needed a second car for us, as she's often home with the baby, and I ended up with this MX3 almost by accident, I like it a lot, and wish I hadda gotten one earlier before my first Subie.. because its safe to say that it's my second favorite car I've owned. But.. honestly, I can't get off Subaru!

[wytbishop]

PM me and I'll fill you in. Though honestly it sounds like you're not lookin to invest in this car my GB probably isn't going to appeal to you.

[Spike Speagle]

Bishop, I've gone through the thread and yeah, I think I'm not really down with that - If I was keeping this guy, I would for sure - especially as you're going almost local for me! Good luck on the fab/buy though - I hope it works fantastic for all 'yall