Potholes - chassis damage?

[GT3meupbaby]

Due to the state of the 'post cold snap' roads and despite trying to look out for the craters at all times I have on two occasions now been caught out and hit potholes large enough to elicit a horrible cracking noise from the front of my Exige, it's not come from the wheels, it's more like suspension/chassis and it has on both occasions (one nearside and one offside) sounded like something snapping!

Doesn't seem to be anything amiss to the way she drives, still tracks straight and the suspension/steering seems fine afterwards but it's a horrible noise, anyone else had this?

Could it be the dampers bottoming out or something to do with the anti roll bar?

GT3

[EK993]

Can't comment on possible damage, however wanted to agree with you - the streets of London have become more akin to Africa over the past year. Been driving for 20 years now and have never known anything like it. I can't drive anywhere now without the car crashing through pothole after pothole, some of them so severe I've shouted an expletive out loud. Can't be good for the suspension.

[Monkey boy 1]

My only suggestion would be check the upper damper mount bracket. Had a similar issue with my mates Mk1 Elise, The upper damper mount bracket had some slight movement in it where it bolts through to the chassis. The bolt holes had become elongated in the bracket.

[cyberface]

Pothole knocks *do* make a bloody horrible noise (and even worse in earlier, less sound-insulated versions of the car) but normally you'll buckle a wheel or put the tracking out before you damage the chassis.

If the tracking is still true, there are no bulges in the tyre, and the wheel is not buckled, then you *should* be OK.

The roads around Sevenoaks are like central Africa after the snow we had, but I know where the potholes are and have luckily so far not hit any with my new Exige. However with my last one, I did hit a pothole once and, even though I didn't think it'd permanently damaged the car, a month or so later when I swapped my winter tyres back to the A048Rs, the tyre fitters couldn't balance the wheel and said it was buckled. The car then drove with a horrible vibration at any speed above 65 mph. I sent it back to Lipscomb for a new front wheel (assuming the worst, a buckled wheel) but they managed to sort it out without renewing the wheel.

But I'd assume that wheel / tyre damage would occur first, followed by alignment, and only then would chassis damage result.

If chassis damage resulted from a pothole (and therefore the car is a write-off) then I'd be suing the council for the full purchase price of the car... one nasty trait about the Elise / Exige is that front chassis damage means you have to throw the entire car away, even if in normal cars it'd be a grand's worth of new suspension arms, and a new wheel and tyre

[mrdemon]

you can get a new tub for 2.5k

So not a right off.

but 60 hours labour to swap it all over

[RichyBoy]

The roads around London were bad before but now especially heading toward SE they are a disgrace, they should call them craters not potholes.

[TarmacT]

Yep, all the shoddy repairs the nations councils have done over the last ten years have come back to haunt them... The road across from me at work even the speed humps have pot holes in them...FFS

Wouldnt like to be out on a motorbike atm some of the holes out there will spit you off no problem....

Edited by TarmacT on Monday 22 February 18:46