i just went over an on ramp to UPS and didn't see it (dark) but it dipped way way down after you were over it. One of those stupid designs, but anyway I hit the bottom of my car really hard

so looking under my car, everything looks fine.

The cats (I have crawford) are the lowest thing sticking down and are right after the front tires. I've had some scrape/bash marks on the bottom of them forever now. I'm assuming that's what hits a lot of the time. I don't understand why they dip down so far , but whatever

So what happens when you hit? I know the Y pipe has the flex joint so that obviously bends, but what about up towards the headers and engine? Does the engine end up moving a bunch? Does this have to do with the rubber engine mounts cushioning the impact or allowing the engine to flex? I have the stillen engine damper, so I'd imagine the engine doesn't move too much.

I worry a little about pipes - especially my headers cracking if they're taking a lot of the forces


Anyway, just wondering - I'm sure many of us with lowered cars have hit bumps here and there

 

Ive went over a pretty high speed bump before and bottomed out. When I installed test pipes later, I checked the whole undercarriage for damage. Only thing I found was both cats had been dented in and scraped.

 

My subframe connectors (the crossbrace shaped like a V that runs across the Y-Pipe) were RUINED when the guy before me bottomed out.

 

i usually swear first is what i do. luckily no real damage yet, just scrapes. but at the moment, my test pipes had the 02 sensor bungs welded at the wrong angles, leaving one 02 sensor and my aem wideband 02 sensor hanging just below the exhaust. if i scrape now before i get a new 3" exhaust made, well it won't be cheap thats for sure. and mine is dropped about 3 inches too!!!

 

I put a small ding on my exhaust piping (probably the size of a quarter) when I bottomed out somewhere.

 

I am just thinking this, I could be wrong, I think your pipes would take the blunt force and just dent and scrape, I think there is too much distance between the motor and your pipes for them to be pulling/moving your motor, your pipes are going to dent and break before any damage would occur to the motor, imo....Someone got an under shot of our cars?

 

http://liljerk.morpheus.net/350Z/images/zbottom.jpg

 

Nice pic.. gonna save that one...

 

i f U CKed up my y pipe

 

I bottomed out in ATL at around 80 MPH and shot sparks out from underneath the car. After this, I had a horrible rattling sound. So, whne CP Racing retuned my car, I had them check this rattling sound and it turned out that when I bottomed out, the "M" shaped cross support under the rear half of the car had taken the hit. The area of it directly about the 2 exhaust pipes had been bent upwards forcing it into the exhaust pipes which was causing the rattle. It took about a 400 pound man to hang on it to pull it away from the pipes.

 

Your car is probably fine. There are a bunch of areas that will take the hit...well before your engine (oil pan or tranny) would be affected.

There is the K-Member in the front, the cross member in the middle of the car, and of course your exhuast.

 

You guys think thats bad... bumps??? thats nothing....
I ran over a skunk (had no choice, cars in the other lane) and it still smells weeks later!!!!! I only wish I had ran into a bump!!!!!

 

Damnnnn....that's bad bro, i feel your pain...you won't be picking up chicks for a while

 

Thanks man, look at the thread I started (Type skunk in the seach engine)...... It really screwed my dating scene.... and still is... the smell is better, but still there....

 

I hit one of those invisible dips witha C5 vette in california couple years ago (40mph). Hit was so hard the car bottomed out and jumped 2 feets off the ground!!! It was at night and I saw a ****load of sparks fly all around

It was a rental and I was ****ting my pants I would be forced to pay for some odd broken stuff. So went to garage to have it checked on a lift...

Car had nothing... just a couple of barely visible scratches

 

I hit my custom y-pipe all the time lol usually 4 to 5 times a week on campus, its not a big deal.

 

my 90 300zx ran over a quart of motor oil dropped from a pickup truck ahead of me on the freeway...the smell of burnt oil lasted for three months. i finally sold the damn thing.

 

It might break your brackets on your Crawford cats = leak. I've been through that, check my last post.