noob making you all yawn!

[matthewk1971]

Hi all,
not new to driving cars, justto tinkering with them.
I just bought a 95 scoupe and have a couple of problems.
since i bought the car the back end seems to have no spring in it, every little bump or pothole make the back end bounce so hard i can hit my head on the roof. i am guessing this is susspension, but would you think its springs, struts, both? any comments would be great.
my second problem, so far, just started last week. as i bring the car to a stop theres a nasty crunching noise, not scraping, more like im squashing something. again, i huess brakes as its when i am stopping, but any help on wether pads or discs, or do i even have both?
also if you could gice some advice, could you suggest some decent replacements? money is, as always, tight, but this needs doing, so...
thank you!

[omgbossis21]

I believe your car has disc in the front and drum brakes in the back. Any oem replacement at any autostore should do the job ;-) If the car bounces that bad its probably the struts/springs (depending on the suspension setup on that particular car).

[picard]

I have the same year car.
I am no expert, but it has been in my experiences that you have to replace your shocks/struts. I got mine from like Autozone or something, and they worked as well as the original ones did (when they were new). Can't help ya with the crunch sound. Good luck.

[tdonnell]

Take a look at the rotors on the front of the car, the things that the brake pads press against to slow you down. They should have a nice smooth finish to them. Also, look at the thickness of the pads if you can, this may require you to take of the wheels. If the car was sitting around for a long time, the front rotors would have built up a layer of rust on the surface that the pads press against. That could possibly be what the crunching sound is from. If the rotors are rusty, then you either need to replace them, or have them turned by a local auto shop. Yeah, you definately need to replace at least your struts, but it would be a good idea to do both the struts and springs as repacing struts with sagging springs will ruin the new struts quickly. Good luck.

I am assuming that since you said the crunching just started last week that the rotors will more than likely not be rusty. Your pads probably need to be replaced. But make sure to look at the rotors to ensure that they are in good condition. If you put new pads on a set of crappy rotors, they will wear unevenly and quickly, resulting in even more problems. If you end up having to get the rotors turned (machined so the surfaces are perfectly smooth and parallel), or replace them, it should not cost too much. ($30 to turn, $100 to replace as estimates).

[Edited by tdonnell on Jul 6, 2005 1:19 PM]