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Does your car travel when the wind hits it?


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Like others have said, the crosswind push seems worse on this car then all others I have owned - including a minivan. I would like to get to the bottom of this, so I can fix it. Must be a combination of things because there isn't one thing that sticks out as the cuplrit...
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Ditto ditto ditto - my LGT seems more sensitive to the wind than any other similar sized car I've driven. That includes my old Contour SE, which was even lighter.

 

What alignment parameters might help out with this?? One of the comments mentioned increasing camber... is that the trick? Any other ideas?

Seek first to understand, then to be understood.

 

In other words: SEARCH before you post!

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Wow just posted this yesterday and got a few responses with most of you feeling the same thing I was feeling. It's been windier than most days here recently and I've really been noticing the car travel from side to side from the crosswinds. I am lowered on tein springs, have 18s with proxes and was wondering if it was an alignment issue.

Again I am a car dealer and I drive all kinds of cars all the time and have never experienced this in any car I've driven. I've had much lighter cars in the past and I've pushed them up to 140mph without any worries. I would be scared to do so with the LGT if it gets pushed around when going 80mph.

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Mine does it as well...but my 02 WRX was much worse and the worst car in the wind I have ever driven. So, overall, I look at the LGT as an improvement in this area :lol:

05 SWP Legacy GT Limited (aka "Pearl")- 5MT AP - Stage 2 Protuned (238/284) - wife driven

07 BMW 335xi

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Question:

 

Is cross-wind sensitivity an issue of alignment/suspension, or one of aerodynamics?

<-- I love Winky, my "periwinkle" (ABP) LGT! - Allen / Usual Suspect "DumboRAT" / One of the Three Stooges

'16 Outback, '16 WRX, 7th Subaru Family

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Have to ditto most of these statements. I feel the crosswinds more so than my last car a Contour SVT which was the same weight.

I'd like to see what lowering and wider tires would do. then again I'd just like to lower it and get new wheels... hehehe...

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Funny thing....I drove about 100 Km today in gusty windy conditions on the freeway...All at about 120 Kph...winds about 20-30 Kph and swirling....ROCK steady and straight!!! I run 225/45/17 Kuhmo ASX and 17X7.5" Enkei wheels on stock suspension except for a Whiteline rear swaybar??:)
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Anything could be a contributing factor.

 

I see what you're saying. :) But aren't we combining two distinct problems?

 

Wouldn't tires/suspension more have to do with tramlining (with its potential for lane-wandering) - also tire-pull - and alignment (i.e. incorrect thrust-angle)?

 

And meanwhile, wouldn't strong gusts of wind, impacting on the vehicle sheetmetal and greenhouse, be more the cause of complaints regarding cross-wind induced vehicle motions?

 

But then again, I can also see how one might influence the other....say, a strong gust of cross-wind hits the car broadside, which leads to both aero-induced wandering and also causes the vehicle to slightly load its opposite-side suspension, which, if incorrectly set, would then exacerbate the problem.

 

----

 

I'd like to see what lowering and wider tires would do...

 

Lowering is my next step. I wonder, too, if this will help the aero side of the equation. But this is a great-unknown to me, as with all of my past vehicles, lowering did nothing appreciable to cross-wind resistance since these vehicles were all pretty well managed in that respect to begin with.

 

As for wider tires, I feel that my 225s do tramline quite a bit more than the stock 215s. It actually surprised me how much difference such a small contact-patch increase made, but then again, it could also be due to both my tire-choice as well as the use of the 225s on our stock 7"-wide rims.

 

This, of course, has not helped in terms of general "wandering" at highway speeds.

 

For this summer, I will be going to a 225-width setup mated to an 8"-wide rim. That, along with increased sidewall stiffness of the tire (as well as a softer compound; the ones I spoke of above were a true "all-season" tire, my summer setup will be a dedicated "summer" set), will prove interesting to me in terms of seeing how it may react to road ruts and other irregularities.

<-- I love Winky, my "periwinkle" (ABP) LGT! - Allen / Usual Suspect "DumboRAT" / One of the Three Stooges

'16 Outback, '16 WRX, 7th Subaru Family

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Is it just me or are the people outside of the USA saying its not a problem?

This could point to an alignment issue. Can someone in Canada find out what the alignment specs are North of the border?

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I have also noticed that in high wind situations my LGT is more difficult to keep on track than other cars I've driven in the same situations (SVX & Outback included). That's with stock tires and suspension.

phoenix96

2006 Legacy GT Ltd · 2011 Outback 3.6R Ltd · 1992 SVX

2006 Outback 3.0R VDC · 2009 Forester 2.5X

2002 Outback VDC · 1996 Outback 2.5L · 1986 GL-10

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Is it just me or are the people outside of the USA saying its not a problem?

This could point to an alignment issue. Can someone in Canada find out what the alignment specs are North of the border?

 

Here it is right out of the owners manual....I doubt if it is any different than the US model....Sorry for the large image...easier to read?:lol:

 

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b375/RM-RS/Alignmentspecs.jpg

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I notice it on mine, but my company truck, Dodge Dakota, is much worse! :icon_lol:

 

I do notice me grabbing the steering wheel with both hands, on a very windy day. There is some definate S.P.F. "Seat Pucker Factor". :icon_surp

"You poke it, You own it" - Man law supporter
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I've only got 5K miles so have not experienced anything severe, though occasionally noticeable, just yet . Anyone got sucked into the vacuum when a large semi passes at hi speed? I know, embarrassing (being passed) but it does happen

 

I had a Sentra and was able to draft behind large trucks - not too often it took nerves or stupidity.

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We get pretty hefty winds out in Montana sometimes, but I can't say that I've ever had a problem with it in my 'barus and I've owned 2 Outbacks. Trucks yes, but not in my car and the Outback is a good deal taller than your Legacies...?

 

BTW, unless your car defies the laws of physics, it will always move sideways *some* in the wind. How much is the question. Mine never drifts out of lane, but it's up to the driver to compensate a bit for strong gusts too... ?

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