accident/alignment problem

[dmh]

'02 Protege LX
Problem: My son hit a curb with the right front wheel. The impact bent the steel rim. We replaced the bent rim, installed two new front tires, and had the wheels aligned. The car pulled to the right after the alignment. Since then, it has been aligned by two different shops with the same result: They find the toe out of alignment. They get the alignment within specs, but the car still pulls right as soon as it is driven off the rack.

I visually inspected the front end components by comparing the damaged right side against the undamaged left. There is nothing obviously bent or broken.

What now? Should I replace the control arm, inner tie rod, hub, sway bar, and/or strut? Should I replace them all? Any suggestions?

If someone could please post a diagram of the '02 Protege LX front suspension with part numbers, I would greatly appreciate it. It will help me immensely in tracking down parts.

Thanks.

 

[mymp5]

he probally bent the control arm theres nothin to them they bend easly that would be my first route a friend hit a concrete wall at 45 and all he messed up was the control arm and a wheel

 

[mickeyreategui]

he probally bent the control arm theres nothin to them they bend easly that would be my first route a friend hit a concrete wall at 45 and all he messed up was the control arm and a wheel

you must be talking about me!!! yeah the body shop said i needed a lower control are, sturt, hub, bearing, rod. after just installing a new lower control arm it was ok and nothing else wrong with it. try the control arm first and go from there.

 

[mymp5]

howd you guess

 

[mickeyreategui]

howd you guess

sounded familiar!!!!

 

[dmh]

part numbers

Thanks for responding.

Does anyone have an exploded view of the front suspension for this car ('02 Protege LX) and/or a list of Mazda part numbers for the suspension components? The Mazda part number for the right front control arm would be especially helpful. I guess this is going to be a very expensive part.

Again, thanks for taking the time to help.

 

[mickeyreategui]

try car-parts.com and see what you could get one for. i got one that was about 15mins away from me and got it for $50

 

[dmh]

where?

try car-parts.com and see what you could get one for. i got one that was about 15mins away from me and got it for $50

Could you please tell me the name of the auto parts store where you got one? I have looked online and asked my local (very good) auto parts store with no luck. I don't want to go to the dealer or the junk yard.

 

[mymp5]

those are your only two options sorry its not that much

 

[shoughun]

You could try an aftermarket part... Mine had no problem whatsoever...

 

[red95_240sx]

onlinemazdaparts.com is what you want for the exploded view.