damage to the running gear of the car. Signs and causes

The main components of a car part are wheels and suspensions connected to the body. To soften the impact of impacts on the body and other components of the car, as well as the people in it, there are elastic elements in the chassis - tires, springs. To dampen vibrations and swaying that occur during movement, damping elements () are used.

In general, the chassis is designed to ensure the movement of the vehicle on the road with the appropriate level of controllability, safety and comfort. This is a critical part of the car, especially in our country, where the roads leave much to be desired, and often do not differ much from off-road. Due to the poor quality of the roads, it is the chassis that is the most vulnerable while driving. breakdowns can appear gradually, as parts wear out, or occur suddenly as a result of falling into a pit or, for example, a sharp collision with a curb.

If you notice that the handling has deteriorated, the car pulls to the side, there are swaying, subsidence or a significant roll in corners, squeaks, knocks or other extraneous sounds appear, then it's time to think about the condition of the suspension and diagnose it. The sooner you do this, the less likely it is that it will come to an accident or serious damage.

Start with the simplest - make sure that the same tires are on the right and left side of each axle. Diagnose the pressure in the tires, it is possible that it is precisely because of under-inflated tires that the car behaves incorrectly.

Let's consider some symptoms of uncharacteristic behavior of the car due to possible problems with the chassis.

If the car is pulling left or right, there are two simple things you need to do first:

• make sure that the pressure in the tires of the right and left wheels is the same;
• diagnose and adjust the wheel alignment angles (the so-called wheel alignment).
• If everything is fine with this, but the problem remains, you should look for another reason. These may be the following:
• the parallelism of the axes of the front and rear axles is broken;
• twisted;

have different stiffness;

• the gap between the brake disc and the shoe is not adjusted, and the wheel slows down as a result;
• the bearing in the hub of one of the front wheels is worn out or too tightened, which can also cause braking;
• the wheels are out of balance due to varying degrees of tire wear.

These symptoms may occur if:

• damaged spring or ;
• have insufficient elasticity;
• defective anti-roll bar (most often worn out).
• These breakdowns are often accompanied by a noticeable creak.

In some cases, suspension problems can cause the vehicle to roll from side to side when driving at high speeds.

Possible reasons:

• poorly tightened wheel;
• deformed rim;
• the wheel is out of balance;
• unevenly inflated tires;
• damaged double ;
• damaged or weakened;
• worn out ;
• shock absorber defective.

A car can vibrate for many reasons. The main ones are:

• wheel balance is disturbed (beating);
• weakened wheel mount;
• wheel disks are deformed;
• low or uneven tire pressure;
• broken or incorrectly clamped wheel bearings;
• shock absorbers are faulty;
• worn springs;
• problems with suspension or steering joints.

Very often, the suspension makes noise or knocks, indicating the presence of the following problems:

• a significant degree of wear and / or lack of lubrication in swivel joints;
• broken;
• out of order;
• levers are worn out;
• there are defects in;
• the wheel rim is deformed;
• the bearing in the hub is destroyed or weakly clamped;
• wheel unbalanced;
• wheel disks are deformed.

The knock that occurs in the front wheels is often felt on the steering wheel. It is likely the appearance of a knock is also due to the fact that the mount has loosened somewhere. diagnose and tighten, if necessary, the bolts and nuts that secure various suspension elements.

It may occur for the following reasons:

• the shock absorber is deformed or has served its purpose and needs to be replaced, knocking may be accompanied by oil leakage from it;
• worn supports or mounting bushings;
• weakened shock absorber.

First of all you need:

• make sure the tires are inflated evenly;
• diagnose whether the wheels are installed correctly - installation angles (alignment), balancing the center of gravity.

Other possible reasons could be:

• damaged disks;
• worn suspension bushings;
• worn rubber-metal hinges ();
• deformed suspension arm;
• poor performance of shock absorbers;
• uneven braking.

An aggressive driving style with heavy braking and cornering at high speed has a significant impact on the degree of tire wear.

It happens that they talk about the so-called "breakdown" of the suspension. This usually means a sharp vertical impact on the suspension at the moment when its elastic elements are maximally compressed. The springs and springs are not able to absorb the shock, and the suspension as a result can get serious defects. Such an event is usually accompanied by a rather loud sound.

If you're lucky, everything will do without serious consequences. But silent blocks, a support bearing and an upper one can fail, a spring or a shock absorber break. It is possible that the tires will be damaged, the disks will be deformed, the suspension arms will be bent.

The most sensitive to such effects are suspensions with a short compression stroke, stiff shock absorbers and soft springs.

After the “breakdown”, the car will most likely remain on the move, but driving it will probably not be very comfortable, and even unsafe. Therefore, if such a nuisance happened, it is worth visiting a car service and conducting a full diagnosis of the chassis.

It is possible to identify specific problems in the suspension with the help of a thorough inspection and verification of its components. To do this, you can contact a car service, where there is everything you need for a detailed diagnosis. But with some experience, you can defect the chassis yourself.

The front suspension is the first to absorb shocks in adverse road conditions and is therefore more vulnerable than the rear. Therefore, it is logical to start with it. To do this, raise the car, but rather put it on a lift.

First, diagnose the rubber protection (anthers). If it is damaged, then dirt has got inside, and then the protected elements may need to be repaired.

next inspect the shock absorbers. They may have an oily coating on them, which should not be a cause for concern. But if there are oil smudges, then the shock absorber is faulty or close to it.

Diagnose the springs for breaks or cracks.

Spin the wheel. If you hear a rumble or rattle, then you need to urgently change. If no noise is heard, touch the spring with your hand - the presence of vibration on it when the wheel is spinning indicates that the bearing is no longer in order.

Rock the wheel left and right. If there is play in the steering rack or tie rod end, you will hear a tapping sound.

Rock the wheel in a vertical direction. If there is an extraneous sound, then the ball joint is worn out.

With your hands or with a pry bar, shake the lever near the ball joint in a vertical direction to diagnose the presence of play in it.

Next, inspect the silent blocks. They should not have cracks or deformation. using the mount, shake them in the longitudinal and transverse direction. There should not be a significant backlash, although a small one will be present, since there is a rubber element in the design of the silent block.

Finally, diagnose if there is any play in the stabilizer bar bushing. To do this, swing the stabilizer by inserting a pry bar between it and the subframe closer to the bushing. Do not forget to also diagnose the condition of the stabilizer struts.

During the check, check the fastening of the suspension components and tighten the bolts and nuts if necessary.

Although many cars that are imported and sold in our country have a reinforced suspension, this does not always give the expected effect. The condition of the roads is often such that neither the increased ground clearance nor the springs with increased elasticity can save. And if a person who professes an aggressive driving style drives a car on such roads, then he is guaranteed frequent troubles with the chassis.

Parts of dubious origin and low qualifications of auto mechanics who perform maintenance and repairs will not add reliability to your car's suspension.

A simple conclusion follows from this - if you want to have as few problems with the chassis as possible, get used to a restrained driving style, avoid bad roads if possible, carry out maintenance and repairs in reliable service centers, and choose spare parts not so much by price as by quality.