what is the consequence of bent trailing arms or rods?

Question

they are in the rear on my 2001 Malibu. i got bumped on my rear bumper by this woman who was tailgating at about 10 mph while trying to feed her baby in the car seat in the backseat everything looked ok at the time so i let it go, recently my mechanic told me about this development.
it seems to ride ok, steering is alittle stiff, i keep a good watch on my alignment

Answer 1

bent arms will usually throw the rear alignment off, and wear out
your tires. doubt they were damaged by 10 mph accident. could have been damaged by someone jacking car up wrong or being towed on a flat bed truck by someone who does not know how to hook up chains correctly. i see both of those things all the time at the chevy dealership i work for. check to see if tires are starting to wear on edges, if so, you need alignment and arms replaced.

Answer 2

I will have to agree with Know it All, It would take more of an impact than 10 mph on the rear bumper to bend the arms. If the arms are bent it usually is from the side or from the bottom, such as running over a rearend housing in the middle of the road, been there, got the merit badge!

Answer 3

in the experience that your trailing arm bushings are lengthy previous or worn the axle is basically bouncing in there and would wreck the arm and fee you so a lot extra to fix. and it really is technically no longer danger-free to be driving with that problem because you could appropriately are expecting what's going to happen in case you go away it on my own. the interior tie rod bargains with an finished different component of your suspension and would damage your motor vehicle if it fails. they are diverse issues. the tie rod is extra important to fix yet you truthfully do not favor to ignore the trailing arm issues in case you want to shop your motor vehicle for a lengthy time period.

Answer 4

I REALY doubt you trailing arms are bent.
Unless of course you sideswiped a barricade at 60 mph.