I had my 88 GT up on rear jack stands for several months, with the stands placed on the correct points on the frame. I finally took it out a couple of weeks ago but something doesn't seem right. The rear end feels "wrong" somehow. I get a faint impression that the rear end wants to keep coming around in the corners and the whole car seems to want to wander a bit and is more sensitive to minor changes on uneven road surfaces.

I didn't do any work on the suspension, or anything else. I had it up to check and possibly swap out the motor mounts due to a persistent "clunk" when going into drive. I never actually got around to removing or replacing them before I had to finally pull the car out of the garage to work on my other GT when the alternator had to be replaced.

Could this long term (several months I guess) time spend up on jack stands have affected any of the suspension components? It never had these issues before now. (it's the red GT in the signature below...)

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John Wayne as John Bernard Books in The Shootist...
" I won't be wronged. I won't be insulted. I won't be laid a-hand on. I don't do these things to other people, and I require the same from them."

My rides...
1988 GT with a 3.4L V6 automatic
2006 Harley Sportster
'cause I love the twisties on two wheels or four.

Ahhhh....The 88 RED GTs; Those are the ones that have that problem with the rear suspension......Just kidding!

Actually, there are a couple of things you can check; One is the ride height- Make sure it is sitting at the proper level in the rear(Front too) and then, check your shocks.....One of mine started to leak- I didn't know it until I was coming home on a bridge and I gave it throttle- It lurched a bit to one side...and then when I backed off it went the other way. I inspected the rear suspension and saw some oil on the lower end of the shock. Pulled it off and found I could compress it and it would not extend back up; Although only oil had leaked, since it was gas charged, the internal pressure was effectively zero.

If you still have the problem but haven't found anything, make sure that the jack stands and jack were not improperly positioned- they could have bent/damaged something.

Check rear wheel alignment. Find a reputable shop that will actually do the alignment. I took one of my Fieros to a tire shop twice for an alignment, and they never touched the rear either time. I wound up fixing it myself. The rear had been squirrelly - it tried to follow ruts, if you know what I mean.

Based solely on my own experience, I'd suspect the rear struts, too. One of my cars was so squirreley that a friend was driving it at about 35 mph when the rear felt like it was coming around. I assume he corrected and it snap-steered the other direction, coming around and leaving the roadway.

Yep, alignment, struts, motor mounts, these are my first thoughts.

Stock tires, suspension, swaybars?

I agree on alignment being the first thing to check. The toe was off by 2" on the rear of my 84 the first time I drove it and anything above 30 you couldn't keep it on the road.

Here's a typical reason that I didn't see above: what are the tire pressures?

I also haven't seen the long bolt that holds the toe links in place mentioned. If that is loose, it will cause the symptoms you have....but, I also don't see why they would suddenly be loose if you hadn't messed with them.

Don't forget to check that the cradle bolts are all tight.