Shock problem?

After 18 momths of ownership, something has finally shown itself not to be right, and your collective advice is sought

Going over the plethora of local speed bumps, I have noticed a noise coming from the OSR, a rubbing noise. I had to buy a replacemebt tyre for that corner last week, so had a look for something obvious, which to my horror, I found rather quickly.

My new tyre has worn like a grinder has been taken to it where the curvature of the outer tread meets the wall. Pressure on the rear wing produces neither noise nor excess travel,but it is blatantly obvious that the noise is that of the tyre scubbing on the inside of the arch.

The new tyre is exactly the same as that fitted before, 265/40/18, which performed faultlessly.

Would I be right in thinking that the shock is knackered, or should I investigate further? It really has made a mess of the tyre..............stereo systems have much to answer for:d

Shocking.

Whats the offset on your alloys? What wheels are they?

Whats the offset on your alloys? What wheels are they?

Unsure of offset, but they,re Kei D1, 10x18. They were fitted (new) 8 months ago.

You say you fitted tyres of the same size, but you don't say if they were the same brand or model... Unsurprisingly, tyres vary quite a bit around the shoulders despite being nominally the same size, so going from say Pirelli's to Dunlops can show up an arch rubbing issue.

As it's a single tyre replacement I'd *hope* it was exactly the same brand and model so things are still balanced

-Ian

You say you fitted tyres of the same size, but you don't say if they were the same brand or model... Unsurprisingly, tyres vary quite a bit around the shoulders despite being nominally the same size, so going from say Pirelli's to Dunlops can show up an arch rubbing issue.

 

As it's a single tyre replacement I'd *hope* it was exactly the same brand and model so things are still balanced

 

-Ian

Yes, the replacement was exactly the same brand/type as the former. Update: had the car on ramps yesterday, my mechanic mate checked over everything and found nothing amiss, no play, nothing broken or leaking.

I can comfortably get my fingers over the tyre on the nearside, yet it is tight on the offside, therefore it sits lower. However, it looks ok from behind. I have noticed that the car in general is not as good as it felt, it also pulled badly to the right on a rotted road last night.

I had exactly the same issue. Scraping on the inner fender when turing and scraping just above the wheel when going over bumps. This was due to failing dampers in the front. Changede the dampers and the inner fender front, right and problem solved.

Test your dampers by pressing the car down by hand in front. Can you move it more than a centimeters you have failing dampers. Especially if you dont have a "dampening" effect and the car just keeps goin up and down a few times.

Test your dampers by pressing the car down by hand in front. Can you move it more than a centimeters you have failing dampers. Especially if you dont have a "dampening" effect and the car just keeps goin up and down a few times.

There is definitely more than 1cm of travel when pushed on the rear panel. New shocks to be ordered me thinks..............

Thanks to contributors:)

Update:

Have fitted new shocks-same issue

New springs- same issue

Can anyone suggest where to go from here......?

I'd go to a suspension specialist. Seems like an odd issue

You have had the alignment checked to make sure the camber isnt bonkers? Bad camber can make the tramlining worse as well.

sounds to me like its rubbing on the arch lip, a slight Arch roll should sort the problem, as to why it is doing it now and wasn't before, I can't really answer that, it is probably down to a worn bush somewhere.

You have had the alignment checked to make sure the camber isnt bonkers? Bad camber can make the tramlining worse as well.

JB, I will endeavour to have this rectified when this issue is sorted.

The main issue seems to be, at the mo, the difference in tyre to arch height, ie. normal clearance nearside, inability to insert two fingers offside:search:

sounds to me like its rubbing on the arch lip, a slight Arch roll should sort the problem, as to why it is doing it now and wasn't before, I can't really answer that, it is probably down to a worn bush somewhere.

As above, an arch roll has not been required before, so why now?

Can a worn bush cause the car to drop?

Just been to see avery old school mechanic.

He used to race Mk2 Jags in the 60s, so he's well acquainted with IRS and live axle set-ups.

He said to get it in the air and take some measurements to pinpoint the fault. Any pointers here?

Tyre makers occasionally change their tyres shoulder design. Maybe the later tyre (or you may have bought an earlier "style") has subtle differences. Once you start putting ten inch rims on a car not designed for them clearances can be become very critical. The correct answer is a narrower tyre, and / or wheel. A wheel with the correct 50 mm offset and ten inches wide won't work, so you are immediately compromise things by going that wide. Raising the car from stock height to keep the clearance is a bad move, it may well still rub when heavily loaded. If the car is already lowered you are just asking for rubbing with ten inch rims and 265 section tyres.

and god has spoken

Thanks for the input,CW.

If it is the new tyre, then I could change the rear wheels around FOR 5 MINS ONLY, and the problem would then exist on the nearside? Not Rocket Science, but it has just occurred to me!

To reiterate, have had NO problems at all with this wheel and tyre combo, and anecdotally, the rear width is 9 1/2, not 10.

Doubt this makes little difference, though!