Boom bang slide

[Ren Dao]

Some comments if you please.

Thursday night coming home in the "S" and just about to turn right and there's one almighty bang - the steering stops functioning and the car slides to a halt without any brake application - Mmmm

Turns out the driver's side shock absorber has decided to go AWOL, spits out the upper casing and drops front of car on to tyre and road.

Phone AA - erm HELP!!! - so 45mins later big tilt and slide truck arrives - OH! says the driver can't move that its too low down at the front sorry and bye bye -
AA - erm we will send a specialist - give us an hour - one hour passes and lo and behold one big tilt and slide truck..OH! says the driver can't move that its too low down at the front sorry and bye bye -

AA - erm we will have tosend a specialist hang on there - and it will cost you £225 because its a specialist pick up - after much argueing about this and realising my balls are in a vice I have no option and agree to pay - the car is picked up and away to the garage it goes.

So

First question

The suspension was all fitted new about three months ago as some of you will know - I have been informed by the repairer that this just sometimes happens and it can be the result of small stones getting caught between the spring and the cap - which leads to the cap splitting and the whole thing collapsing. I am really concerned - I was doing 90 mph down the motorway only two hours earlier - I have lost a lot of confidence in the safety of the car and would like to hear some of your opinions - at the end of the day when I drive the car from now on I will be thinking is it going to happen again - the car had the whole supension fitted brand new not four months ago - and its been off the road for a month of that due to a break in

Secondly - opinions please on being charged £264 incl VAT for towing the buggar away.

Many thanks in advance

[haggishead]

Where in the AA membership contract does it talk about "specialist pick-ups"? I'm not a member any more but IIRC it does say "we won't be responsible for getting the car back onto the road after an accident" and a few other exceptions, but nothing about charging extra if they don't have the necessary recovery at hand.

I'd go for them (but i'm a complaining git so i might be biased)

[pies]

Fcuk that get on to the AA not your fault they dont have the correct equipment to tow your car

R.E dampers "shit happens" but i would be writing a letter of complaint and take it from there

Glad your ok

[alans]

I had my cerbera picked up by low loader with the AA no problem.

[GreenV8S]

Had something very similar happen to a Spax shock absorber a few years ago, the top end fitting came off the rod, the spring went 'kertwang' and folded out against the wheel, jamming the steering, and the front collapsed on the ground. I had the same luck as you, I was only doing 20 mph when it went. A few minutes earler I'd been doing several times that - lucky escape. It sounds like in your case the top spring seat has broken, hard to believe since the ones I've seen (Spax, Avo, Koni, Gaz, Nitron, Leda) look over engineered if anything. If this is really what has happened, I suggest you have strong words with the damper manufacturer! On the tow truck thing, two minutes with a spanner would have taken the bonnet off and a couple of planks would have protected the chassis on he way on to the flat bed. Lack of initiative from the AA I think.

[Rozza!!!]

I`m with everyone else here. You pay the AA to get you sorted, you dont pay the AA so that you can pay the AA to get you sorted. I would also get back on to RT (you got them at RT didnt you?) for replacement at no cost, up to him to sort out with manufacturer over faulty goods etc.. (are they Redline shocks? mine are redlines fitted by RT :worried: )

I would try not to let the fact that it happened bother you, I know its VERY hard (I had similar feelings too when I came off the road for apparently no reason once, I later found out that it was deisel on the road but you still have the same feelings of doubt about the car). This has got to be an extremely rare occurance to the point where you have to be VERY unlucky for it to happen once never mind twice.

Chin up.

Roy.

>> Edited by Rozza!!! on Monday 13th October 09:06

[Tripps]

There a far lower cars on the roads than S's, so would they charge for all of those too?

[Psychobert]

I can't see how they can justify that kind of a thing.. Best check the contract paperwork carefully and then get onto them. Just not on..

Similar thing with the shocks. Feel sure there must be some kind of guarantee.. Scary they can fail that easily when so new..

[Podie]

Tripps said:

There a far lower cars on the roads than S's, so would they charge for all of those too?

Interesting point... S is that low as STANDARD, what about those things on huge "rums" that have been "slammed"...

(innit)

[rustoni]

Podie said:

Tripps said: There a far lower cars on the roads than S's, so would they charge for all of those too? Interesting point... S is that low as STANDARD, what about those things on huge "rums" that have been "slammed"... (innit)

Thats why you need a low rider so you can jack it up when Mr. AA Man comes.

[sjgardner]

The AA pickuped my S3 about 2 years ago when my rad sprung a leak with no problems at all

[shnozz]

I have the 5 star roadside, relay home-start package from the AA. They cant fix the chim with gearbox probs and its sat outside on the drive. They wont low load it to a Tiv garage, only a local one within 8 miles. Is that right? Anyone know of a better recovery service to join that might actually prove slightly helpful for £131 a year?

[Podie]

shnozz said:

I have the 5 star roadside, relay home-start package from the AA. They cant fix the chim with gearbox probs and its sat outside on the drive. They wont low load it to a Tiv garage, only a local one within 8 miles. Is that right? Anyone know of a better recovery service to join that might actually prove slightly helpful for £131 a year?

Write to the MD or summat, and give 'em some

[keirangrogan]

shnozz said:

I have the 5 star roadside, relay home-start package from the AA. They cant fix the chim with gearbox probs and its sat outside on the drive. They wont low load it to a Tiv garage, only a local one within 8 miles. Is that right? Anyone know of a better recovery service to join that might actually prove slightly helpful for £131 a year?

I used to be with Green Flag, who use independants to pick you up, whilst working in Eire I suffered a snapped throttle cable twice, picked up both times by a standard recovery truck and dropped to a garage of my choice just happened to be a Ford dealership which was run by my Boss' brother in law. (in fact fixed for free second time as it had only lasted 6 weeks)


I have been until recently using Green Flag for over 10 years, even with them when they were called National Breakdown, I have never had to wait longer than 40 - 45 mins. and only ever came across 1 grumpy sod.

I think they charge around £75 a year including free European recovery and also offer discounts for second and third cars.

I now get free recovery thrown in with my Insurance £315 pa with Footman James, they also use independants and the guy lent me his tools to allow me to do a temp fix when my throttle cable snapped in the summer.

I HAVE now learnt my lesson and carry a spare cable !!!!

P.S I have just remembered that when my RS Turbo had a disagreement with a patch of Ice in Scotland, they recovered me back to a garage of my choice which was near Manchester at no additional cost, and I know they did not bill the Insurance Co because I paid for the repairs myself.

[HarryW]

shnozz said:

I have the 5 star roadside, relay home-start package from the AA. They cant fix the chim with gearbox probs and its sat outside on the drive. They wont low load it to a Tiv garage, only a local one within 8 miles. Is that right? Anyone know of a better recovery service to join that might actually prove slightly helpful for £131 a year?

, blimey Phil has the golf cart let you down already. If you need a tow give me a shout.

Harry

[pies]

shnozz said:

I have the 5 star roadside, relay home-start package from the AA. They cant fix the chim with gearbox probs and its sat outside on the drive. They wont low load it to a Tiv garage, only a local one within 8 miles. Is that right? Anyone know of a better recovery service to join that might actually prove slightly helpful for £131 a year?

Possibly they have "relay plus" takes you to wherever you want and get a car if not fixed in 48 hours

[alans]

shnozz said:

I have the 5 star roadside, relay home-start package from the AA. They cant fix the chim with gearbox probs and its sat outside on the drive. They wont low load it to a Tiv garage, only a local one within 8 miles. Is that right? Anyone know of a better recovery service to join that might actually prove slightly helpful for £131 a year?

They took the cerb to fernhurst when my clutch went (had to tow it to my mums (about 1/2 mile away)cause they wouldnt collect from my house.
My membership is roadside relay (the cheapest)

>> Edited by alans on Tuesday 14th October 18:23

[joospeed]

The AA thing is a poor do I have to say .. I stuck my S against a kerb one night at 1am, they sent out a truck no probs but said because it was my fault I'd be chanrged. No charge yet (2 months down the road so to speak) so might have got away with that.
On the spring seat thing, the failure sounds pretty rare to me, I've never seen a seat collar break unless it's gone coil bound (std TVR Cerbera spring seats break after the front springs have sagged) or some other spurious thing has happened which the damper designer couldn't reasonably foresee.
I can well imagine a small stone lifting a collar and the forces from a spring on the seat may well cause it to exit stage left. I've also seen suspensions set too low by owners where the spring becomes loose on it's seat which then drops out if they've gone over a hump backed bridge, or have jacked the car up and not paid attention to whether the spring has come loose on it's collar or not.
Certainly bearing in mind what CAN happen to suspensions I wouldn't be too quick to jump on the original fitter if that is your plan, if it's a true breakage then I'm sure they'd be only too pleased to sort it for you as any retail outlet should, but it could also just really be "one of those things" 'cos sometimes it just happens like that! If you drive enough miles you'll eventually see alot of weird stuff happen, this might just be yours!

[plewis66]

I was with Ren when he picked up the car. The collar hadn't broken, it had, as joospeed says, been thrown off.
The collars have been wired onto the springs now, something which is done on several of the Tasmin racers, I believe.

[joospeed]

plewis66 said:

I was with Ren when he picked up the car. The collar hadn't broken, it had, as joospeed says, been thrown off. The collars have been wired onto the springs now, something which is done on several of the Tasmin racers, I believe.

That sounds like a good idea.