Uh Oh! I need help!

[ZR2truckin]

Hi all.

I am asking for any help that I can find. First off, my name's John, & I have a 2000 S10 ZR2 with a 6" superlift suspension-lift, & a 2" PA bodylift.

I recently had a minor accident with the ZR2, while driving down a gravel road. The water running thru a tunnel under the road had washed out the dirt around the tunnel, which caused the road to collapse over the tunnel. Because the gravel was intact, & the dip (which turned out to be about 1 1/2 feet deep and 3 ft wide) was running east to west, there was no sun-shadow or other indication that it was there, so I was too close to slow down when I realized how big it was. Therefore, I hit it at 25-30 mph, & the entire truck 'bucked' throwing everything off the seat into the floorboard, cutting deep gouges into my new 35" Nitto Mud Grapplers, bending my front inner fenders/flares, etc. etc.:shake_125

On the way home, I realized that the truck was driving 'loose', especially on corners, where it under-steered badly. It also seemed to be having clearance issues with the front tires/fenders. When I got to look it over closely, the front tires were 'toed-out' in the front, & on the bottom. I took some pictures & posted a thread on ZR2USA, where I received some excellent insight & ideas, but nobody thought anything really looked bent. I took it to the alignment-shop & had the guy look at it. He said that I needed to replace my front bearings, & had a 'weak' lower ball-joint on the driver's side. So, I replaced them all.

Now, the problem: When I returned to the alignment shop, the guy said that the upper A-arm adjustments (is that caster?) won't move far enough to bring the top of the tires out to where they should be. So, maybe something is bent?

I am hoping to get the truck to KC next week (though I hate to drive it 45 miles, like this) & into Chux Trux, where they actually install the Superlifts, & let the suspension man examine it. Until then, I am hoping to gather any information possible, in an effort to get my truck fixed.

Has anyone out there encountered this type of a problem, before? Is it possible that the upper A-arms may be bent (more than they are supposed to be) where the ball-joints mount? Can ball-joints bend? Can the torsion bars be 'un-sprung'? Does anyone have a 6" Superlift on their ZR2 that could send me pictures of the front-suspension? Anything?:confused:

I can send pictures to anyone who might help. And thanks in advance for any input!

John

[T Man]

one thing at a time. Not being entirely knowledgable about the superlift setup, but having my fair share of alignment/suspension experience heres my take.

First off, the upper control arm has 2 adjustment cams/eccentrics for both camber and caster. It sounds like he was referring to the camber angle. Does the SL kit require a huge t bar crank to gain part of the additional lift? If so, you may have been living with this problem all along, what was your previous tire wear like? T bars can become broken, but without removing them, not unspring. Most likely not the cause. Im thinking if something is bent, it is more than likely part of the superlift kit. Im not saying the factory suspension is indestrucatable, but to me bolt ons are always the first weak point no matter how strong they are built to be. Take it back to your alignment guy, have him set it up get both sides even, so you dont have a pull on your drive. Same with toe. Dont eat up tires anymore than you have to. Have him do a SAI sweep. That will generally show if there are any bent parts in the steering side of things. Ride height will show the suspension bends. Also have him measure wheel setback. This may indicate a bent frame or control arm. And no, balljoints break or get slop in them. they dont however bend. Who might I ask are you taking it to for alignments up in the KC area. I know some excelent Alignment techs up there I can refer you to. Pm me for more information