My 97 obw is pulling to the left, and has uneven bald spots on the outside of the left front tire. Before noticing the bald spots I had suspected the wheel bearing, but upon inspection that SEEMs fine.

 

Any input is appreciated.

Edited September 23, 201114 yr by sario

Also, the struts also appear to be ok. They are about two years old, but i do have king springs installed.

at the very least you need an alignment. maybe some parts are worn out. take it to a reputable front end shop and have it aligned.

 

did you have the alignment done after the springs were replaced?

at the very least you need an alignment. maybe some parts are worn out. take it to a reputable front end shop and have it aligned.

 

did you have the alignment done after the springs were replaced?

 

Yeah, i had an alignment done February of 2010, right after doing the springs and struts.

 

I would like to know what the problem is before i get an alignment and new tires. I'd hate to ruin those too.

if it's pulling to the left then like he said and alignment sounds in order.

 

the scalloping, uneven balding, if that's what you have - is often caused by struts. i have scalloping on my rear tire of my OBW and wasn't sure for a long time what was causing it. struts *appear* fine, but i have ordered new rear struts for it based on reading/talking to people.

 

i would suspect the struts....they don't need to be leaking or fail a bounce test to be old and warn out. i ran across some other folks that had bad struts with none of those "typical" signs. upon removal they say they won't have much spring or extension to them.

if it's pulling to the left then like he said and alignment sounds in order.

 

the scalloping, uneven balding, if that's what you have - is often caused by struts. i have scalloping on my rear tire of my OBW and wasn't sure for a long time what was causing it. struts *appear* fine, but i have ordered new rear struts for it based on reading/talking to people.

 

i would suspect the struts....they don't need to be leaking or fail a bounce test to be old and warn out. i ran across some other folks that had bad struts with none of those "typical" signs. upon removal they say they won't have much spring or extension to them.

 

we'll I guess I'll take to a shop and have checked out. I'll post back with the verdict.

we'll I guess I'll take to a shop and have checked out. I'll post back with the verdict.

awesome, report back what happens. it confused me for awhile as i didn't have bounce/return, noise, or leakage of the struts which i thought were indicators of a weak strut. but others were having it too so i'm assuming that's what is up with mine. at 180,000 miles and rough roads, they're due at least

 

some people are posting, and i'm not going to be surprised if this happens to me - that the car gains a little "lift" with new struts on it - mine *seems* lower.

 

mine doesn't feel as solid around turns/cornering as my other subaru's (i've got a few), so i'm wondering if struts will help that too. but it might just be the H6 wagon and twisty steep mountain roads i drive, they're not normal.

 

i got KYB GR2's off thepartsbin or advanced auto for like $52 online.

The alignment checked ok, and they said the front suspension is in great shape. I'm told the tires are separating, causing them to go out of round.