Slight dive when braking

[nutonsx]

Today at freeway speeds I noticed when I applied the brake modestly or hard the car nosed a bit and dove to the right slightly. It did not seem to pull the wheel and I did not change directions that I could notice. Is this some loose suspension part or worn bushing. My car is a 91 and has 26,000 miles and does not have signs of hard use, but I know bushing fail with age as much as use.

Does anyone have an idea what is going on?

Thanks in advance.

Bill

 

[nsxtasy]

It's normal for ANY car to pitch forward (nose down) under braking. More so with cars with a softer suspension, less so with a stiffer suspension.

However, it shouldn't pull to either side. There are a number of things that could cause the car to pull to one side or the other. The brake pads could be worn on one side and not the other, the slides on the caliper could be sticking and need lubrication (which could cause the aforementioned uneven wear), or it could be an alignment problem.

 

[nutonsx]

Yeah I expect to nose a bit under braking, but this action is not normal. It is hard to describe as it sort of just twiches to the right without a change in the line you are on. Maybe a sticking caliper could make this happen. I will pull the wheels and check this out. (It is almost like very light torque steer in reverse.)

Any other ideas?

 

[Larry Bastanza]

I recommend you have the alignment checked. Particularly the caster settings. There are not alot of cars that have a caster adjustment, but the NSX is one of them. That could definately cause this sort of thing, if I understand what you mean. Sometimes it is hard to understand the exact symptom via e-mail!! Anyway this is not an expensive thing to have a look at. Although the NSX has this adjustment, the NSX is a VERY easy car to align compared to many other cars. I take mine to a Porsche shop here in NYState and they charge me $60 for a complete 4 wheel alignment since they usually do it in less than an hour.

HTH,
LarryB

 

[vnrtc526]

I would have the shocks checked. I bought my 91 Jan. 00 and it only had 36,000. Left front shock was totally gone. Shocks that old (10 years now) the rubber seals can just go and leak all the oil out. Just feel around on the shock and see if you feel an oily dirty substance all over, don't even need to put it on a rack. Nose dives are mostly contributed to worn shocks on any car.