Broken coil spring question.....
Discussion
How long can you drive with a broken coil spring? I've just spent £700 on a service inc new pads, discs etc and afterwards noticed the rear drivers side spring is rattling and creaking - which suggests its broken. Always seems to happen after its been up on the ramps! I could really do with not spending another £300 to fit new springs this month....so how long can I get away with driving on a cracked spring? Is it likely to cause any other damage to the car or be dangerous? It doesn't feel like the handling is affected....but I'm no engineer.......
My old astra 'passed' an MOT with 1.5 coils missing. It actually failed on rear brakes and I noticed as I was adjusting hand brake. I happened to have GSi spings and shocks in a box so fitted that. The MOT man was extremely offhand when I asked him to explain how he missed that. In fact quite rude. Must have been like that for months and there was a fair bit of surface rust on fracture point.
There again - friend of mine had broken spring, it had turned and twisted a little so that the broken end was sticking out. Didn't take long to rip the sidewall out of the tyre...
"What's that funny rubbing noise?"
Couble of seconds later - Bang!
"Ooooer, my car's gone all wobbly... and now the scenery's going past in different directions... I wonder if I'll stop before I reach that ditch and hedge?... Oh evidently not..."
Get it fixed!!!
"What's that funny rubbing noise?"
Couble of seconds later - Bang!
"Ooooer, my car's gone all wobbly... and now the scenery's going past in different directions... I wonder if I'll stop before I reach that ditch and hedge?... Oh evidently not..."
Get it fixed!!!
I'll get it booked in.
Quick question on springs though.
What are the tell-tale signs that the spring is broken or needs replacement? The wife's Golf has a bit of a ping sound from the front of the car when you turn the steering. I thought it would be something that is rubbing, but I guess it could be the spring. Any clear and simple way of telling?
What are the tell-tale signs that the spring is broken or needs replacement? The wife's Golf has a bit of a ping sound from the front of the car when you turn the steering. I thought it would be something that is rubbing, but I guess it could be the spring. Any clear and simple way of telling?
AdamMX-5 said:
Do you have to replace all 4?
I asked this question of my mechanic when he spotted my NSF spring was broken and he advised just replacing the one was fine. Certainly helped with my wallet after having spent £300 at service time as it only meant a further £50.
I'd definately replace them in pairs. Knowing what I know about manufacturers supply chains I'd like to see the same batch number on the incoming material but hey that's not going to be possible. I asked this question of my mechanic when he spotted my NSF spring was broken and he advised just replacing the one was fine. Certainly helped with my wallet after having spent £300 at service time as it only meant a further £50.
off_again said:
Quick question on springs though.
What are the tell-tale signs that the spring is broken or needs replacement? The wife's Golf has a bit of a ping sound from the front of the car when you turn the steering. I thought it would be something that is rubbing, but I guess it could be the spring. Any clear and simple way of telling?
From my experiences the first telltale sign is the car making creaking noises when you get in and out. Other than that you probably wouldn't notice a thing. Until that is, it goes up on garage ramps (or gets jacked up) with the wheels hanging unsupported....after that the broken part of the spring will probably become dislodged and you may start to hear the loose spring bouncing up and down on bumpy roads, making the pinging noise you've described. Thats the noise I've been hearing for the past week....until today. Possibly I've hit a bump and the loose broken part of the spring has wedged itself back in, as there has been no noise and no creaking at all today. In fact you wouldn't have the slightest clue anything was wrong.What are the tell-tale signs that the spring is broken or needs replacement? The wife's Golf has a bit of a ping sound from the front of the car when you turn the steering. I thought it would be something that is rubbing, but I guess it could be the spring. Any clear and simple way of telling?
And yes, they need to be replaced in pairs.
I could do with some titanium ones or something! The roads I have to commute on every day are unbelievably potholed.
Mr POD said:
My old astra 'passed' an MOT with 1.5 coils missing. It actually failed on rear brakes and I noticed as I was adjusting hand brake. I happened to have GSi spings and shocks in a box so fitted that. The MOT man was extremely offhand when I asked him to explain how he missed that. In fact quite rude. Must have been like that for months and there was a fair bit of surface rust on fracture point.
thats probably why he missed it. there are several designs for spings, pigtail & such. a compressed broken spring will look ok unless you can see the very end.tvrgit said:
There again - friend of mine had broken spring, it had turned and twisted a little so that the broken end was sticking out. Didn't take long to rip the sidewall out of the tyre...
"What's that funny rubbing noise?"
Couble of seconds later - Bang!
"Ooooer, my car's gone all wobbly... and now the scenery's going past in different directions... I wonder if I'll stop before I reach that ditch and hedge?... Oh evidently not..."
Get it fixed!!!
Wot he sed"What's that funny rubbing noise?"
Couble of seconds later - Bang!
"Ooooer, my car's gone all wobbly... and now the scenery's going past in different directions... I wonder if I'll stop before I reach that ditch and hedge?... Oh evidently not..."
Get it fixed!!!
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