Jim_Cross Posted February 12, 2007 Report Share Posted February 12, 2007 Does anyone know how hardy the R32 steering and suspension components are? Last night I was driving through London, and suddenly hit a very big kerb. It turns out the kerb is the edge of a raised cycle lane, which suddenly starts halfway down a road, right next to a junction. As a result of the heavy rain, mud from a building site opposite had washed right across the road, which along with a lot of standing water made it impossible to pick out the kerb. Oh, and the cycle lane is painted a nice dark green colour, so you can't pick that out either. I was probably travelling at around 25mph and guess my front nearside wheel hit the kerb at around 30 degrees. I now have very serious kerbing over half of the wheel (from the edge of the rim to halfway up the spokes). At first I though I would be looking at some fairly serious damage, as it seemed to a big jolt, but it seems to drive fine, although I've only been up to around 35mph since. I think the impact may have seemed greater as it threw the car sideways, but I think that was largely down to the mud on the road. So is it likely just cosmetic damage to the wheel plus tracking, or could I also be looking at a new wheel/suspension/steering components, geo alignment etc? I'm going to try to get some photos of the location tonight and, if the kerb is as hard to pick out as I think, will be taking it up with the council. Normally there are bollards put up on kerbs like this, for exactly this reason. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brisel Posted February 12, 2007 Report Share Posted February 12, 2007 Get it down to your local dealer/tyre fitter/whatever. Do it NOW! You could have done untold damage to the suspension which might be waiting for the next pot hole to collapse completely. You might have got away with it but it's just not worth taking any risk with IMHO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rs32 Posted February 12, 2007 Report Share Posted February 12, 2007 Definitely get it properly checked Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim_Cross Posted February 12, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 12, 2007 It's already booked in for Wednedsay (when they can check out the noisy fuel pump whilst they're at it)...fingers crossed... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mlhj83 Posted February 12, 2007 Report Share Posted February 12, 2007 Sorry to hear about your problems. The road markings are terrible in london especially when the orange street lights reflect off the wet road and everything looks the same. It's hard to judge the damage and although the MK5 is pretty resilient, I would strongly suggest taking it to VW or any trusted specialist to have it looked at just in case. You would need to have the wheel rebalanced or a new wheel if buckled. Tracking would be also be recommended. Whether or not you need replacement parts very much depends on the results of the inspection. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rs32 Posted February 12, 2007 Report Share Posted February 12, 2007 oh and a picture of the offending road area will do you huge favours when comnplaining to the local council - without pictorial proof they would be unlikely to consider any sort of claim. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theshadow Posted February 14, 2007 Report Share Posted February 14, 2007 Well...I've personally (and unintentionally) tested the .:R's suspension durability and it IS very tough. Was out hooning around with a mate in a Clio182 late at night last august and hit a *very* large speed bump (I'm guessing is was at least a foot high, trapezoidal shape, about 1.5m wide at the top with 45 degree slopes on each side)...doing about 80km/h! Didn't see it coming at all... .:R32 literally flies through the air, full pucker moment as all 4 tires eave the ground for a split second, a moment of utter silence as the horizon tilts to a funny angle right before the car lands again with a huge BANG. "Proper airborne!" as the Clio driver (right behind me, of course) put it. Apparently there were some sparks upon landing too! Car drove pretty terrible after that due to 3 bent alloy rims and messed up alignment. Took it straight to the dealer the next day to get it all checked out, completely gutted and fearing the worst but in the end they said everything omportant checked out OK! Replaced the destroyed Zolders with 19inch BBS CHs and new rubber, got the alignment done, car has been absolutely peachy perfect ever since (not to mention never raced on public roads ever since...track is another story though). Only lasting thing from that night is that the front bumper is ever so slighty misaligned vertically (tilts downwards in front by a millimetre or so if you look at the leading edge of the panel gap between the body and bumper at the front corners of the car) even after fitting a new one (due to a parking curb incident a month later). According to the dealer though, the alignment of the front subframe checks out perfectly, I've just bent the bumper mounts ever so slightly. Anyhow, the car is tough as nails; even after all that suffering it tracks straight and true as ever at *all* speeds, turns in and handles perfectly etc. especially with the new wheels and tires and alignment. An expensive lesson though! I'd get your wheels, alignment and suspension checked out thoroughly at the dealer to make sure. If anything, your alignment is likely off a bit and you might well have bent an alloy (the Zolders aren't that strong on the inner rim) but on the plus side I sincerely doubt that there is any permanent suspension damage to your car. Mine's a MKV though, MKIV's could be more sensitive! Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vagabond Posted February 14, 2007 Report Share Posted February 14, 2007 Always a pleasure to look at your car, shadow. I love the fluffy dice too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim_Cross Posted February 14, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 14, 2007 Thanks guys. Mine went into the dealer today, was expecting them to phone by the end of today but they didn't. I tried calling them, but they didn't phone back. Looking at it again this morning, even the cosmetic damage to face of the wheel wasn't too bad, so I'm hoping I'll get off quite lightly. I think what made it feel bad was catching the kerb with the front wheel at an angle - that naturally turned the wheels outwards in an instant which, when you're not expecting it, feels pretty serious! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim_Cross Posted February 15, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 15, 2007 BTW, how much should I pay for a geo alignment? I think my stealer quoted £180 last time I asked, which sounded a bit steep to me... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim_Cross Posted February 15, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 15, 2007 Phew! Got away with just a wheel refurb at £75 + VAT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theshadow Posted February 17, 2007 Report Share Posted February 17, 2007 Hope it turns out happily for you, Jim! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrakeSnake Posted February 18, 2007 Report Share Posted February 18, 2007 Expensive lesson shadow, glad the sub frame wasn't fooked, i've done that before when i drove over a bollard that had broken in two and was lying on the road near the kirb. Did it in my VR6 Corrado, and the car pretty much went into a 2 wheel wheelie, dukes of hazard style. The subframe, alloys, wishbone and a few other suspension bits were bent, and was a costly mishap. With the bent subframe, even after they put it right, the car never felt right afterwards... Which wasn't a problem in the long run as I managed to write it off a year later Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theshadow Posted February 18, 2007 Report Share Posted February 18, 2007 yep mine still feels peach perfect, luckily! lesson number 1: always be prepared for the worst on unfamiliar roads! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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