Left Front End lower than Right

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I had a small fender bender on my Lexus many years ago and though I didn't pay a lot of attention to it, the bearing was replaced 6 months ago.

A few weeks back the front end was scraping the bottom when going over a low crossing and the shock was clunking, I replaced the left driver shock with OEM shock.

Even after replacing the shock, the wheel well to the tire is about 3/4 cm lower on the left side.

I am stumped and don't know what could possibly be happening. The fender bender was coming off a stop probably at 5 MPH, there was nothing out of the ordinary back then but now it seems there must have been damage unknown to me.
 
yep replace shocks in pairs.

Shocks dont have much to do with ride height

springs do.
 
Are all the problems you are experiencing the same side as the small fender-bender? Perhaps it wasn't that small and the damage was more than superficial. What was replaced after the accident?
 
I had a similar experience when the top coil of the front spring broke last winter after letting the car sit in a snowbank for a week or so while I was on vacation. The neighbors kept piling snow from the sidewalk onto the car
mad.gif


When you replaced the shock, I assume you checked that the coil was in good condition? I'd agree with the previous posters that the coil would be the most suspect. Or the strut mount.

I am wagering a guess that the fender bender a long time back did not contribute to the current symptoms.
 
That is right replacing shocks in pairs but the right one is not broke, it barely has 50K on it. I replaced the left since it was acting funny.

Now, I don't have that kind of money to spend to replace the entire front end, spring and struts not knowing what could be the problem.

I may get the Lexus tech to understand the problem.

Springs rarely go bad, never ever had to replace springs.
 
I have this issue with my Genesis Coupe. When loaded the car ssts 7/16" of an inch lower on the drivers front than the rest of the car. The car pulls to the right even though the alignment specs are good. With Hyundais tire pull troubleshooting guide if all else is good then suspect ride trim height.

So how to fix?
 
I had an 03 Focus years ago with the same issue.
Drove ok, everything was fine but once parked, the car looked kinda lop-sided.

I took a tape measure and measured b/t the bottom of the hub cap to the edge of the fender. Sure enough there was about a 1 inch difference. Obviously this car was in an accident before my ownership.

I never bothered replacing anything, and sold the car shortly thereafter.

IMHO I think it's the spring, upper mount or a combination of the two

good luck!
 
Are you fat? I believe it's possible for an obese person to put extra stress and wear no the front left spring in such a way that that corner of the car would sit lower.
 
does reinforced sheet metal look bent UP from under the hood where the strut top mounts. Should be easy to measure. Also make sure all spring pigtails are sitting in their perches and isopads and cross caster is within 1/4 deg; camber same and toe is neutral.
 
Originally Posted By: MaximaGuy
Springs rarely go bad, never ever had to replace springs.


Who told you that?

What side of the car do you sit on? The left. It's always loaded more than the right. They do get weak over time.
 
I have seen plenty of cars that sag on the drivers side due to heavy solo drivers. And yes spring wear just like any other part. I have replaced a few over the years. It's more common than you think.
 
Springs go bad all the time. I just replaced the leaf springs on my grandpa's Jeep, it raised the whole rear end at least 4 inches.
 
Gen 3 Ford Tauruses are good for breaking the rear springs. Nissan and Hyundai have had recalls for front spring breaking.
 
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