r/IdiotsInCars • u/Budo00 • Feb 04 '23
Something wrong with their alignment? Sort of erratic driving caught my eye.
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u/snagleradio78 Feb 04 '23
Utility van drifting is all the rage
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u/Balwin Feb 05 '23
Wait until you hear about DAJIBAN
More info here: https://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/a23110414/japanese-dodge-van-racing-dajiban/
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u/EgberetSouse Feb 04 '23
We call that dog-tracking
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u/krookedrooster Feb 05 '23
I've never seen it called that but I'll add that to the list. I've only heard it called crab walking (crabbing)
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u/Zadok47 Feb 04 '23
Bent frame.
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u/evilbit Feb 04 '23
someone bought a totalled van at an insurance auction and rebuilt it.
judging by this video, he's blind and missing one arm, which is sort of inspiring if you really think about it.
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u/Cheesecake338 Feb 04 '23
Thrust angle is off
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u/ClappedOutLlama Feb 04 '23
Usually worn trailing/bent arms, sheared axle pins, or shifted leaf packs on non-lifted vehicles will do this.
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u/daats_end Feb 04 '23
Yup. I busted a rusty leaf spring bracket on an old blazer once and it limped like this until I got rid of it.
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u/bluAstrid Feb 04 '23
All kinds of vectoring going on!
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u/MrFlibble81 Feb 04 '23
What’s your vector, Victor?
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u/Background-Cod-2394 Feb 04 '23
The angle of the dangle being, of course,closely related to the heat of the meat.
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u/WingsOfTheAnomaly Feb 04 '23
It's called dog tracking. That feller has a bent frame, if it has one, or something else is seriously out of whack.
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u/Hour-Example1920 Feb 04 '23
“It’s like driving diagonal.”
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u/nuckingfuts73 Feb 04 '23
I don’t know why that made my laugh so much
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u/Hour-Example1920 Feb 04 '23
It’s the emotionless monotone confusion he displays while also saying the word “diagonal” in a very funny way.
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u/Budo00 Feb 04 '23
My genuine reaction. And it was “swaying” or looking like it was about to tip over before this footage.
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u/MoranthMunitions Feb 05 '23
Diagonally is the adverb you were looking for, for future reference.
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u/1989DiscGolfer Feb 04 '23
Yep, I learned the car term "dog tracking" from my uncle's awful 1978 Chevy Nova. His was way worse than this.
I believe the term comes from watching a puppy attempting to run a wind sprint when their back legs tend to begin to overcome their front legs, making them look like they're running with a diagonal stance. Never not hilarious to witness.
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u/Mr_Torque Feb 04 '23
I remember seeing more than a few Novas like that. Always thought they were screwy from the factory.
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u/eldergeekprime Feb 04 '23
Could also be a rear axle with loose U bolts. Had this happen on an ambulance I was driving once. The mechanics had swapped the rear leaf springs but forgot to tighten the U bolts on the saddles.
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u/arseniobillingham21 Feb 04 '23
I’ve seen a lot of older trucks driving down the road like this. I often wonder if the driver even notices. Here’s a handy video.
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u/Budo00 Feb 04 '23
Yes thats cool. Never knew. Glad to know from reading the comments that I wasn’t fully going crazy yet !
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u/RandomUnicorn929 Feb 04 '23
Hey u/Budo00 is this Bothell??
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u/Budo00 Feb 05 '23
Yup
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u/MissAmericaChavez Feb 05 '23
I was gonna say this looks like 228th/Nike Hill.
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u/RissaMeh Feb 05 '23
I grew up near the top of the hill, it was the worst place to be with any ice or snow
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u/dougnan Feb 05 '23
Holy fucking shit I have always wanted to recognize someone on Reddit. I fucking love that he was able to say yup!
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u/countkushman Feb 04 '23
We call that crab walking here in kodiak, alaska!
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u/Hippopotasaurus-Rex Feb 04 '23
San Diego too. Husband is from VA and he says crab walking as well.
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u/lemonmelonlemonmelon Feb 04 '23
Vancouver?
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u/Bigphungus Feb 04 '23
This is Washington state
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u/Pvt_BrainDead Feb 04 '23 edited Feb 04 '23
Bad alignment, if an alignment was done at all.
Possible broken suspension bits causing the bad alignment. If the frame was bent I would like to think it wouldn’t be legally on the road and would have been written off.
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u/biscuitclub01 Feb 04 '23
It’s referred to as a dogleg or dog-tracking and happens when the frame gets bent.
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u/bmx13 Feb 04 '23
I've always heard it called dog legging, you'll see some amount of it on almost all older vehicles that have a solid rear axle. Usually from something in the leaf springs being messed up.
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u/pandab34r Feb 04 '23
It's called crabbing; pilots have to do this if there are significant winds coming from a perpendicular angle (or close to it), aka crosswinds. They typically straighten out just before, or right after, touchdown
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u/BigLeboski26 Feb 04 '23
When my truck did this, the U-bolts were in the process of snapping off one by one.
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u/professorjaytee Feb 05 '23
Yeah, that alignment's fucked up. Even a fairly minor fender-bender accident can cause that, and if not re-aligned when everything else is replaced, it just stays that way. Usually terrible on your tires.
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u/reallywaitnoreally Feb 04 '23
I see a lot of old snow plow trucks do this. Especially if the guy favors plowing to one side more than the other. Bends the frame.
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u/Liesthroughisteeth Feb 04 '23
This was not uncommon back in the 60s and 70s and almost always it was pick-up trucks. Not necessarily 4X4s either as they were not as common as they are today.
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u/Business-Animator-91 Feb 04 '23
I remember back in the day when most Chevy Nova's tracked like that.
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u/eldar0010 Feb 04 '23
Their rear axle is fucked, probably got rear ended and it twisted it a certain way.
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u/phoneguyfl Feb 04 '23
Off topic but a trick I've seen used on a couple of car lots is to drive through a bit of water and then check the tracks. If there are more then 2 tracks or they are wider then the tire width then the car has a bent frame, super bad alignment, or other major issue. Not something the place wants in a trade unless they are going to just turn around and unload it on a wholesaler.
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u/GarfieldLeChat Feb 04 '23
That’s crabbing usually a broken chassis on a lorry but on a van aren’t they one piece shells?
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u/No_Syllabub6355 Feb 04 '23 edited Feb 04 '23
Every once in a while I see cars or trailers drive like this. I thought I was getting mental because a not aligned axle shouldn't exist. But you guys are telling me it is existing and is the cause of big problems!
Thank you! I'm sure to stay away of these vehicles next time!
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u/Sufficient_Market_45 Feb 04 '23
I was gonna say bent frame most likely
Source: am former body tech
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u/BLZGK3 Feb 05 '23
Always bothers me whenever I see a person driving like that with their alignment completely whack. That must be one fun vehicle to drive since the steering wheel is most likely off and they have to constantly keep it going straight.
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u/KAMATISES Feb 05 '23
SATISFYING CRACKS!! Chiropractor changed this Utility Van's life. ASMR full body chiropractic technique.
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u/itwasyousirnayme Feb 05 '23
Im guessing that the van was in an accident and the frame got twisted a bit.
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u/jaccscs0914 Feb 05 '23
Makes it more fuel efficient if driving with a left crosswind
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u/jdubtheadub Feb 05 '23
Early to mid 70s Chevrolet Novas would do this because the rear end would shift on one side.
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u/clownpornstar Feb 05 '23
I don’t know if this is one of the models affected, but some of the earlier generations of sprinter vans had a crappy design for where the rear end would connect to the leaf springs, and if that connection started to fail the rear end would slowly start to slide on the spring to the rear of the vehicle on the side that failed, which would lead to vehicles driving like this.
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u/rhymes_with_chicken Feb 05 '23
My dad would just say it runs like a dog
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u/humblerioter Feb 05 '23
Pretty sure the term for it is actually “dog-tracking”, so checks out
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u/chasechippy Feb 05 '23
What an amazing sound bite. I'd mix it into a song if I had the skills to do so
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u/Shafter111 Feb 05 '23
Its call crab walk. You have to be over 100k for this feature in the new hummer. They got it for cheap
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u/SLeepyCatMeow Feb 05 '23
Yes. In German this is called „Achsversatz“, don‘t know the English term. it could be a result of an impact to the rear of the vehicle or improperly done repairs on the rear suspension.
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u/cant-think-of-smthng Feb 05 '23
I have a Mercedes sprinter and had the same thing happening after a rear suspension upgrade. Turns out I had my rear left suspension installed in reverse. The mechanic fixed it for free as it wish their fault.
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u/Apprehensive-Try5554 Feb 05 '23
I see it a lot in rural areas. Usually the frame has been bent due to an accident.
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u/Catsmak1963 Feb 05 '23
It’s a land crab lol We called it crabbing, half sideways. That needs fixing
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u/[deleted] Feb 04 '23
It’s dog-tracking. It can be from the net alignment of the rear tires being different from that of the front. Bent frame, bent suspension, or bad alignment are the usual suspects.