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Just wrecked rear suspension trying to jack up on it

W

Westwildcat

CEG'er
Joined
Nov 9, 2011
Messages
240
Ok so I bought new rims/tires for my 99 SVT and went to go switch them tonight. When jacking up on the rear suspension i had the jack with a board on top of it, near the wheel, and the board was both on the rear suspension and the thinner piece of metal that is towards the back of the car compared to the thick part of suspension. Had the car up in the air then went to change the tire and noticed it was back up the ground... WTF i think? Jack doesnt leak... Go back and look underneith... that thinner piece of metal is bent in an upward V like ^. Dont know if it was weak before or I was just totally stupid to have the jack jacking on both it and the suspension (my guess is me being a real f*cking idiot here. So I freak out for a minute then just shut the shop down for the night and come inside as I dont even want to look at that again its so heartbreaking....

Now what piece is this called that I wrecked? Can it be changed without changing the whole rear independent suspension? (I was so upset I didnt even look if it is welded on down there of if it is bolt on and I can just unbolt it and buy a new one to bolt on)

I was really looking to getting the car on the road as I just bought it a week ago and have been doing small little things on it since but it was pretty much ready other then tires were crap. Now I am obviously set back alot longer...

Please I beg for some help here... any advice is much appreciated.

Thanks
 
Last edited by a moderator:
its the rear toe arm. they are notoriously flimsy and should NEVER be used to jack the car (nor should any part of the suspension for that matter, always use the frame/body). they are bolt on units, although the inner bolt can be quite stubborn to remove. replacing the arm will require a 4 wheel alignment (which you should probably have done with the new tires anyways to help minimize wear).
 
Edit: Got part off

Does anyone have an idea how much a new one is? And also if ones off other non SVT contours would work?

Thanks
 
The good news is, you have numerous options ranging from free to $200.
-Free: Bend it back straight, reinstall.
-Cheap: post a WTB thread or find a local junkyard. Any Contour or 99-02 Cougar will work. (Or buy one of my spares I have laying around for $20+shipping)
DSC00848.jpg

-For around $100 and a little bit of homework, you can build a set of tubular toe arms yourself very easily.
-For $200, you can let these guys build them for you: http://www.massivespeedsystem.com/_..._adjustable_toe_arms/mass124970/i-414369.aspx
-striker2 was building them but since he didnt plug his own product...?

As mentioned, any one of these options requires you to get an alignment afterward.
As for getting the bolt out...lots and lots of lube and patience. Note that these are special fasteners so if you cut or break one, you cant just get it at the hardware store...needs to be these specific Ford parts.
 
Would ones off of a 95 contour work? I can maybe buy a whole 95 car that has the engine blown as a cheap parts car...

Also, off topic, does anyone know if the trunk and windshield are the same on a 95 as a 99?
 
The 95 parts should match right up. this is not one of the areas they changed. I do know the struts are different and use different springs.
 
Ok so I got around to taking the rear toe arms off the 95/96 to put on my 99. Are they supposed to be the same side to side? I notice the one I took off the drivers side has more bend in it than the passenger side? Is it supposed to be like this or are these rear toe arms off this car wrecked too?


Thanks
 
Run to the JY my passenger side one is bent and I got one at the pull a part near my house $12 with bolts ect. Then you can look and see which is in the best of shape.
 
Back in the summer, I found the ones on my girlfriend's SVT bent to hell. It looks like a tow truck used them to pull the car up on a flatbed before we owned it. It caused the tires to eat through almost all the tread in just a few months time. They ended up getting replaced with some SHO Shop arms.

It happened to my SVT years and years ago, as well as my brother's Mystique. I've never attempted to jack the car up on them though. I would be scared to death of doing any work on the car if it was held up by those arms.
 
Ah true - when I jumped a deer carcas with my car and bent that bar, I just pounded it back when the car was on the alignment machine because they said they wouldn't do it. They handed me the sledge and a block of wood - It's been great for 8+ years :laugh:.
 
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