The rear end. There are four control arms. If bushings are worn on one side more then the other when put under a load it can cause the rear end to slightly track sideways which in turn can cause the car to pull.
You can change the bushings but I would just recommend buying a complete set of upper and lower control arms. Make job much easier and they are way stronger. Fairly cheap also.
Ok thx again.
I think I might remember a small amount of bushing looking as if it had small slithers on the side of it but didnt think much about it at the time.Didnt look bad but now with what you have said makes sense.
Hoping to get it done sometime this month but we will see how the weather goes,my one car garage isnt big enough to park and work on it in there.
Well got a couple more questions.
After noticing some green liquid on the ground yesterday and having to replace the pressure relief valve on the AC manifold lines I saw that the front stabilizer bar bushings were very dry and cracked.
Are those bushings suppose to have a split in them? I cant remember. And could this also cause my above issue with suspension?
I think within the month Im going to go ahead and replace shocks,struts, and grab a bushing kit for the suspension.
Anything else I could be missing here to look at or replace?
I have no problems working on motors,tearing them apart but when it comes to suspension I am completely new to it.Only thing I refuse to open up are trannies,did that years ago and was a major headache.
Also any good places and good prices online to get this stuff? Usually I use either AmericanMuscle or Late model Resto since LMR is about an hour away from me but their prices on some stuff isnt as good as they were a few years back.
EDIT Note: Over the weekend I went out to the gun range and to get there had to go down a dirt road and the Mach didnt like it,I mean just barely giving it any gas and it felt almost as if I was on ice.the backend felt like it wanted to slide out to the right eveytime I gave it throttle.The amount of throttle I was giving it was very very little.
Thought I would add this info since it might give more help to a pinpoint cause.
Yes the sway bar bushings have a split in them. It's there to separate to slip over the sway bar. I order alot of stuff from 5.0 resto, American muscle, and cj pony parts.
Well looks like I might have it figured out,I hope.
Took it to a shop this week and the guy drove it and immediately felt what I was describing.He looked every where under the car and at first he was stumped.He said he had over 40yrs experience.
Anyway he took me into the shop and was showing me that all bushings looked good.Well at first glance they were.Then I told him how on a warm day it would sound like hard rubber rubbing against metal.
So he got a really big ass bright light and a pry bar and then we saw it.Rear control arm bushings are almost non existent plus I have the driver side shock blown out.
Other than that he said it looks good and clean underneath,he was surprised at how clean a 10+yr old car was.
Got a set of KYB shocks and struts,complete rear control arm kit and a new quadrant on the way.He said quad shocks looked good but I still may order new ones.
I also had to order a new recovery tank since parts stores cant even order them.Didnt expect it to cost $100 though.Bought one this summer for the wifes Taurus and that was only $35.Went with the KYB's to keep in a budget,had them on my GT and were an improvement over stock.Not sure how these compare to the Tokico's that came on the Mach but working shocks are better than not.
That's good. Sounded like control arm bushings. They are fairly cheap so upgrade them you will b glad u did. Makes a big difference in handling and traction
Update:
I have the new control arms, bushings, and shocks installed.Wow so much better.Fixed the issues I was having.Havent done the struts yet but its coming soon.
The old bushings were so bad that the metal sleeve basically feel right out when I removed the arms.Only issue with the new arms is that the e-brake mount doesnt fit into the original position since it has small lip that prevents it from mounting.Easy fix,just get out the cutting wheel and should be good.
My old shocks must have been really bad,the car sat lower in the rear than what I though it should,now sits level.I thought the springs determined that.
Also did the quadrant and I really forgot how much difference it made.I had one in my 01 GT but I sold that in 08.Much smoother and feels more responsive.
Now I just have to replace the TOB that sounds like a stuck pig....again.
Really hooks now and feels alot more firm into turns and corners.
And my luck would have it,I went to get my alternator looked at since everytime I turned the car off my gauges would act weird,just started this week.Bad battery.At least it wasnt the alt,they arent that cheap anymore.
Yeah...I need to go through my front end as well. I just replaced the end links but I still get a lot of noise. Looking at control arm bushings, ball joints and struts soon.
i still need to get the struts in.My steering wheel isnt as tight as it used to be so I might need to replce tie rods and such soon.
Next on the list hopefully will be a new paint job,Texas sun is NOT forgiving at all on yellow.
Dont think Ill ever get another yellow.I had a black 88 IROC up until 2003 with original paint and it was hardly faded,this Mach the paint is like cracking on the roof and hood.
Wished my uncle still had his setup,would have only cost me materials and time.
Glad u got it all figured out. My 98 ran out of motor well before it did suspension. I planned on pulling the motor out of my super coupe t bird and dropping it in her but life got in the way and I had to sell her. Miss that car. Best mustang I've ever owned. That v6 took alot of abuse and kept on ticking. Owned it 13 yrs and broke down only 1 time.
Yeah these cars are a lot stronger than you might think or at least for me they are.
My 01 gt took a hell of a beating. Had it parked at my parents house and a drunk in a blazer came through and nailed it on the front passenger side,knocked it over the curb into neighbors yard about 25 feet. Destroyed fender,door,rear fender,front bumper and folded the wheel 90* sideways against firewall. Never touched the motor and still 9500 in damage.
His blazers front wheel was obliterated,tire was on the ground and his rim in 6 pieces.
I drove the car another 3 years with only a clutch job.my mustangs haven't left me stranded yet.
your cars handling sounds just like my car and I know what would fix it. I need a new power steering pump to fix that. also I can't keep a front end alignment on right side for more than a week.
No ,my issue was rear control arm bushings and a blown shock.I replaced the control arms with tubular style and its great now.
Alignment issue could be ball joint, tie rod, or maybe bad strut....?