I've searched for an answer to the issue here and elsewhere without finding anything similar, so I'm asking here now since I'll want an answer before I start replacing parts.

My 1994 850 estate is sagging very low when anything is loaded into the back. Even having people in the back seat is enough to raise the (otherwise well-adjusted) lowbeams above meeting cars.
According to Haynes and common sense, that means the suspension should be changed.
However, there are no visible signs of worn or broken suspension or springs. There's no shaking, the steering doesn't fight back, the car doesn't bob, bounce or shake during acceleration or deceleration. Even hitting speed bumps going 10 miles over the limit doesn't affect the car all that much.

Is this normal behavior for worn suspension? Are the front and back suspension worn equally enough to cancel each other out? Is there a completely different problem which can cause the car to sag?

Basically what I'm asking is, can I safely spend money on a new suspension and know the problem will be fixed, or is there something else I should check out first.

Thanks in advance for any help. =)

 

If the rear sags when you add weight it's likely you have springs that are worn out. The springs are the part of the suspension that hold the weight. The struts or shocks only control the bounce.

"there are no visible signs of worn or broken suspension or springs."
The springs are part of the suspension. When you say "suspension" you need to know you're talking about a system that is composed of many individual parts.

 

Thanks for the answer. =)
And I apologize for mixing up the terms. I'm new to speaking car in english, so I got the terms confused. Hope it didn't cause any problems for anybody reading my post. (=

 

Not a problem. English is my first language and I'm still terrible at it. Thank heaven for spell check or you wouldn't be able to understand anything I wrote unless you are good at reading phonetic spelling

With a wagon remember if purchasing springs or trying to find some in the salvage yard that the wagon rear does have a stronger spring than the sedan.