Car keeps moving around

So when I'm driving on the freeway my car seems to sway left and right all the time? Can this be my alignment or something else?

At your mileage/age, you should see my suspension link. (There's clues in there as to what causes wandering) and we get this question 4x a day. Is everything untouched?

Everything is stock on it, what do you think should be changed first?

Originally Posted by hitmanre

Everything is stock on it, what do you think should be changed first?

How much money do you have to spend?

A car has wheels with an engine attached to it. It's supposed to move.

Originally Posted by 330iPilot

A car has wheels with an engine attached to it. It's supposed to move.

FCAB's, RTAB, shocks, endlinks, bla bla bla. Most likely FCAB's and RTAB's if it feel like the car is in a crosswind all the time and if the steering feels wrong.

Depending on your mileage if those are the original components they're probably shot. Bottom line: physical inspection of your suspension is needed. Take it to a shop if need be to find out what all is toast.

Best to do it all at once.

Originally Posted by hitmanre

So when I'm driving on the freeway my car seems to sway left and right all the time? Can this be my alignment or something else?

Just throwing my 2 cents in (literally). I have two cars; my hybrid with skinny tires and my bimmer with wider tires. Because our state allows studded tires in the winter, our roads develop ruts over time requiring re-pavement after only 5-7 years. My hybrid (front wheel drive) goes where I point it. Mind you, it has 206K on it and I've yet to change any suspension parts; it's all still original. My bimmer on the other hand will want to wander all over the place depending on which side of the ruts I'm on. On recently paved surfaces, it simply goes where I point it with no wandering at all. I also experienced the same issue with a 2004 Acura TL which was new and had wider 18" wheels/tires; that was also front wheel drive.

I believe the width of the tires has a lot to do with the wandering issues under the conditions described above. That's not to say you don't have a problem as the roads/freeways in your area are probably always rut-less.

I'd start with getting your air pressure in tires perfect. A local once had a few pounds difference in diagonal tires...back was pushing one way and the front another way...it felt like it was wandering to him.

Wrong psi will also lead to increased tramlining...and an alignment being off would also lead to a wandering feeling. Start with getting tire pressures exact to what the door jamb says they should be.

The best advice, and question you should be asking is to check all the possible causes rather than just replacing parts.
Get a knowledgeable experienced mechanic and have him go over the car.

I have like 500 dollars saved lol I need another job bad lmao and I have 109k miles on it

Originally Posted by hitmanre

I have like 500 dollars saved lol I need another job bad lmao and I have 109k miles on it

Ok, so can you work on it yourself or are you bringing it to a shop?

Originally Posted by hitmanre

I have like 500 dollars saved lol I need another job bad lmao and I have 109k miles on it

That won't get you very far at a shop. replace rtabs, fcabs, and get an alignment. you could also have busted balljoints/tierods

dmax is suggesting a good start, tire pressures, make certain same brand, type and size tires all around, tread wear the same side to side (and close front to rear)

then put car in the air and inspect all rubber components - visually and placing leverage on them to check for excessive movement or hidden tears

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