Suspension query
Discussion
Hi all
Noticing over the last 1k miles or so the driver's side rear appears to be riding noticeably lower than the passenger's. Also, the rear end feels a bit 'floaty' over uneven surfaces and making clicking sounds over bumps (?damper valves).
Now, the problem is this exact same thing happened just before xmas (9k miles ago) and it turned out to be worn shocks on the rear (car had done 50k). Had them replaced with oem bilsteins - believe original springs were fine and retained.
So a few Q's
1. Can shocks wear out this quickly? car not tracked. Anybody had experience like this?
2. Am I likely to see them replaced under part warranty?
3. Should I be fitting Bilsteins at all having read lots of other threads re: better units? Only reason I chose these as the replacements is one of the fronts collapsed a month earlier and the dealer the car got flat-bedded to had Bilsteins which could be fitted same day (Chim my only car).
4. In that case, is it unwise to mix dampers front and rear?
P+J going in for service tomorrow with well-respected indie (who also fitted last pair of shocks).
Any help much appreciated.
PS sorry to ramble!
Noticing over the last 1k miles or so the driver's side rear appears to be riding noticeably lower than the passenger's. Also, the rear end feels a bit 'floaty' over uneven surfaces and making clicking sounds over bumps (?damper valves).
Now, the problem is this exact same thing happened just before xmas (9k miles ago) and it turned out to be worn shocks on the rear (car had done 50k). Had them replaced with oem bilsteins - believe original springs were fine and retained.
So a few Q's
1. Can shocks wear out this quickly? car not tracked. Anybody had experience like this?
2. Am I likely to see them replaced under part warranty?
3. Should I be fitting Bilsteins at all having read lots of other threads re: better units? Only reason I chose these as the replacements is one of the fronts collapsed a month earlier and the dealer the car got flat-bedded to had Bilsteins which could be fitted same day (Chim my only car).
4. In that case, is it unwise to mix dampers front and rear?
P+J going in for service tomorrow with well-respected indie (who also fitted last pair of shocks).
Any help much appreciated.
PS sorry to ramble!
The only function of shock absorbers is to damp the action of the springs, so they should not be able to make the ride height lower.
All sorts of other shock absorbers get a good write-up on here, but mainly by people who regularly take their cars on the track who are looking for specific handling characteristics. Having said that, some of those characteristics may also be desirable on the road. For some reason, Bilsteins don't seem to get a good write-up, despite TVR fitting them as original equipment and them being a quality product.
One of the rears on my car was completely shot at 16,000 miles when I bought the car. It had leaked and was providing absolutely no damping at all, but I've no idea how the car had previously been driven. But it had no effect on the ride height of the car.
Mixing shock absorbers on a car front-to-back during normal road use should cause no issue, but they must never be mixed on the same axle.
All sorts of other shock absorbers get a good write-up on here, but mainly by people who regularly take their cars on the track who are looking for specific handling characteristics. Having said that, some of those characteristics may also be desirable on the road. For some reason, Bilsteins don't seem to get a good write-up, despite TVR fitting them as original equipment and them being a quality product.
One of the rears on my car was completely shot at 16,000 miles when I bought the car. It had leaked and was providing absolutely no damping at all, but I've no idea how the car had previously been driven. But it had no effect on the ride height of the car.
Mixing shock absorbers on a car front-to-back during normal road use should cause no issue, but they must never be mixed on the same axle.
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