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To add to earlier concerns about the quality of European springs my car (2000 clk 3.2) failed on a broken rear spring. Had the job done at a local indies and he said they did quite a lot of business changing them. The springs were made of poor material but the Asian ones were much better and were seldom in need of changing.
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>>The springs were made of poor material
How did you determine this?
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The chap who did the mot spoke of many springs failing these days, especially on european cars.
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The chap who did the mot spoke of many springs failing these days .........
Many sounds like an exaggeration for a start.
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Well, joined the Rattle Car Club this morning. SWMBO set off in the Citroen C3 to do a little retail therapy. 2 minutes later, she's at the front door telling me the car made a bang and something's catching the wheel.
It was only 50 feet away, she'd done her usual U turn at the junction of the road opposite when it happened. Broken spring...I thought. Put it down the drive, took the wheel off...front N/S, of course...to have a look.
Jacked it up high, took it apart and took the spring out....broken on the lowest coil, the one in the 'cup'. the body of the spring had fallen and was fouling the brake pipe and the ABS cable, as well as catching on the wheel....could have been dangerous at speed but fortunately these things tend to happen on full lock at slow speed.
Ordered a spring from my spares guys, arrived by van at 1330. Assembled it all and was back on the road at 5pm.
I wonder what caused it at 16,000 miles....oh yes, it must be the potholes in the road we use every day, the speed bumps in our road and the dropped grids on the nearside, plus, of course, the 6 new 'triple ' speed bumps they've just added to the journey.
Thanks, Manchester City Council........repair only cost me £31 so I'll not bother you about it, cos I know what the answer will be !
Ted
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you dont say what year
has it not got the additional spring cup to stop the tyre being punctured then?
my old motman got these delivered free from citroen last time he had one of these delivered on a transporter
sure it was a c3
ring dealer int morning :-)
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BB, it's a 54 reg. It doesn't have a second spring cup.
It's going soon, anyway, SWMBO doesn't like the Sensodrive box and I won't drive it unless I have to. I had to lift the bonnet today, obviously. I noticed that the inside panels seem to be just finished in primer...no body colour. If the rest of it's like that it'll probably start rusting soon. Perhaps we ought to get summat a bit tougher, seeing as the roads are getting worse ! Maybe another Vitara Auto...mine seems quite rugged.
Ted
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Very odd. Ted I will email you tomorrow to tell you the full story with that garage I couldn't mention on here, been meaning to it but not got round to it.
I say its odd because without saying exactly where we live I often come down the that long road near where you live and sometimes I cut through your road but the last few times I have avoided because of those speed bumps and the fact I have four brand new springs.
It will be interesting to see if my dads Fiesta fails on a spring as its due for its MOT soon. Every garage I been too round this area are now mad busy fitting springs it has become beyond a joke and it seems to be the last couple of years.
It is worrying that a car can fail its springs after 16k but I suspect a lot of wear is age related due to corrosion. It was the bottom part of my two front springs which snapped on my Corsa so it sounds like exactly the same thing.
I went over a massive pot hole today near the cemetery just couldn't avoid it and my first thought was my springs.
Certainly my next car I will be thinking on the lines of leaf springs at the rear! Maybe a converted Transit van but I would not be able to park it!
I will have a word with Paul Ankers who is already on the case about our drains because they keep flooding constantly. My car ended up in a 6" flood the other night :(.
Edited by Rattle on 17/07/2009 at 01:19
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Hi Rats
Nell Lane, through the cemetery, has been potholed for months now, it is a road we have to use most days, sometimes 2 or 3 times. They can spend the money on re-jigging the junction with fancy new traffic lights and knobbly paving stones, etc.
My spring was in perfect condition, visually. There was no rust and the plastic sheathing was fine. It's quite a big break, not at right angles but along the length of the metal, diagonally for about 3/4 inch.
Going to bed now, knacurd by today's spring wrestling.
Ted
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I remember when they resurfaced Nell lane in around 1995 was lovely and silk, I almost think its now so bad on purpose as a traffing calming measure. As for the new lights they seem to be exactly the same as the old ones so rather pointless.
Maybe broken springs will have to cause a few deaths before something is done about the road surfaces.
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I remember when they resurfaced Nell lane in around 1995 was lovely and silk.
If you're only 26 now, I doubt whether you'd have been interested in the smoothness of roads in 1995. Unless, of course, you're a lot older than you try to have us believe!
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> Certainly my next car I will be thinking on the lines of leaf springs at the rear!
Sorry Rattle, that may not be the answer. I've never had a coil spring break on me but I have had a leaf spring break! And that in the days before speed humps.
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Maybe a Vovlo Estate or something then, surely their coils have to be strong to cope with the weight they may have to carry?
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Last time I drove a proper Land Rover it had leaf springs. Now they have coils. I wonder if they break?
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The only spring I've ever had break was a leaf spring.
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Last time I drove a proper Land Rover it had leaf springs. Now they have coils. I wonder if they break?
We used to have a couple of proper Land Rovers in Ireland donkeys years ago and never had a spring break but they did collapse or sag, I always assumed that it was from the combination of lousey roads and the fact that we most cerianly did overload them. After replace a few I eventualy took a pair to the local blacksmith who reset them. The reset springs never gave any problem so when I think back on it now I wonder if some went through the manufacturing process beinf badly tempered?
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I too have never had a coil spring break, had a few leaves broken over the years on trucks and bought a mk2 cortina once that had a broken leaf.
Have to admit one of the many reasons for buying the pick up is the state of the roads, having had old school 4x4's before they can usually stand anything a normal driver can throw at them, the driver usually breaking before the vehicle.
A lot of this problem i'm sure is just poor driving (no offence to those here), on our route home there is nasty pot hole better described as a road depression that lies approx 3 ft from the n/s kerb...almost every car we follow down the road drops into this hole at 40mph or so (40 limit) one after another causing a massive heave to every car both SWMBO and i manage to straddle thing without fail.
Some driver's still think speed humps should be able to be taken at the speed limit for the road...fine so long as they don't mind paying for the rpivelidge.
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