Exhause hitting axle on corsa 1.0. Help,please

[Djtemeka]

I changed the mid section on the corsa and it's rattling on the axle when I go over bumps or the rear squats under acceleration. I know I need to twist it to make it fit a bit better. it was cold and dark when I did it outside last time but it did this before only MUCH less.

The exhaust goes over the rear axle and there is a 1cm gap. If I push upwards on the rear bumper a little the gap increases so...
Is there a cheap way to lift the rear suspension around an inch to give more clearance?
The car is a corsa 1.0 1999. The suspension is original but the shocks are very rusted. Springs look fine.
Mileage is only 50k.
Handling is awful though! Not sure if the basic corsa was st to begin with and I don't expect sport car handling but when my van comfortably takes a twisty on ramp at 40mph the corsa's rear wants to slide around at 25mph.

Could the shocks be on their way out and dropping slightly?

Thanks
Jaime

[Djtemeka]

no one?

[Djtemeka]

Thanks cambiker.

I fitted new rubbers to the rear exhaust but not to the centre section as they only had two.
I've ordered a new silencer and two more rubbers.

I do find that the tail piece rubs the bumper as you mention but the two rubbers are on the lower setting. (Oval shaped with 4 holes).
Is that right?

[Djtemeka]

Haven't driven it yet since the missus collected it yesterday. It seems the shocks were fubarred!
£350 fitted for 4 new shocks and tweeking the exhaust has fixed it.
Apparently 4 bounces after 1 push on each corner is rather too many
Car feels rock solid now no rattles apparently either
Didn't think it was the shocks as it was passed at the mot station 4k miles ago. No advisories.

[Djtemeka]

It is 15 years old and rocked like a kids playground. It did need shocks but I did measure the gap between the wheel arch and there is a small difference in height. The problem was that the car was almost bottoming out over bumps. The exhaust goes over the solid axle and everytime the car hit a small bump it hit the exhaust.
Part of my problem was the VERY poor handling. Low speed going around a roundabout, the car would buck and rock and felt like the rear wanted to skid out.

[Djtemeka]

Either way. 2 problems fixed

[Djtemeka]

andyiley said:

The only difference in the ride height will be down to where the shocks settled when the ride height was measured.

With stuffed shocks you could have lifted a wheel arch & got a very different measurement.

Personally, I find it hard to believe you didn't realise the shocks were that badly stuffed before-hand.

Having said this, as has been stated above, your original issue was your exhaust, which was badly fitted, and that was all that was the actual problem.

I thought the shocks were fked but as it pases an mot with no advisories only 4k miles ago and it was doing that before then, I just put it down to a crappy handling car.
I'm no mechanic