"Bump-Steering" and general wobbliness.

alibob

Liskeard Classic Cars
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May 13, 2004
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Nr.Liskeard,Cornwall
I have replaced every suspension component including the shox on the front of my 99tdi apart from the lower track control arms and the anti roll bar rubbers. I have checked and double checked for any play and yet can't find the reason why the car hops on the front over rough ground. It also tram-lines rather badly on certain roads.

It feels for all the world as if the whole front end moves around and yet it never really veers off course.

Any ideas anyone?
 
Hi,

Sounds like you have thought of everything...

How about the mountings of the front subframe? (clutching at straws, there)

Steering from the rear (say, by soome worn component) will often feel like a front end problem....maybe check suspenson arms, bushes etc...

tramlining on mine was eliminiated after I changed the Top Control Arms, but I guess you've already checked these......
 
Horrah! Not only have the mighty O's avoided relegation but I have sorted the A6. In desperation I changed the bottom main arms - the only ones I hadn't done and discovered that the inner bush was shot/soft but also discovered that the offside shock had sprung a leak. That has been changed under warranty (Monroe Radial-Matics) and the car is as good as new although it looks like the tracking now needs doing as the tyres are feathering badly on the front.

What is strange is that on the floor and on a wheel-free ramp I couldn't find any play in the lower front control arms. I wouldn't have realised they wee soft if I hadn't been going to change them anyway.

Squeeky /rumbly cooling fan next....
 
I found that on my Allroad. The sterring was very vague for the last 20k miles. I had the track rod ends and upper control arms done, but that made very little difference. I then did the front lower control arms and drop links. All this improved it somewhat, but it still wasn't great.

I had a mechanic check the remaining rear lower control arms and he said they were fine. The ball joints were fine, but I wasn't happy with the bushings. They seemed soft and there was too much movement. I replaced them and the steering is tight and accurate again.

The bushings were still in tact so I've seen a lot worse, they they were noticably softer than the replacements. I find with the A6/Allroad that it's generally not the ball joints that go, it's more likely to be the bushings on the other end of the control arm.
 
And finally.....I took the car to my local tyre place (Geoffrey Harris in Liskeard - Mention me, Liskeard Classic Cars and get a decent discount!) and even though I hadn't touched the tracking/track rod ends since they were set up when they were replaced, The toe-in was miles out.

So a word of warning - Replacing suspension parts WILL affect the settings. Don't think you can count the turns on a TREnd and end up in the same position. I have replaced every single arm and bush on my A6 and the net result was a toe in of plus 10 degrees!! I have had the P6000s swapped round on the rims and should hopefully get another 5000miles out of them.

I reckon with the mods on my car that I am running close to 145 bhp (Allowing for the wear since it was last tested at Alan Jeffries in Plymstock) and for the first time I can confidently drive "Gerty" with some loud pedal enthusiasm. I may not buy myself an Alfa or kit car to play with!!