ARB droplinks????? Update

S

stupot67

Member
 Milton Keynes
Hi,

My Zed has developed a knocking from the font end over bumps and poor road surfaces and after a good long hoon this afternoon and a particularly crap piece of B road I'm now noticing under steer when loading the nearside front in a bend (like suddenly driving on a patch of diesel).
Stopped to have a look and there's no obvious play anywhere else - fitted new TCA's and lollipops over the winter and had the geo set. So until I get a chance to have a proper look I'm thinking droplinks - What do you guys think?

Stu
 
Could be a couple of things I guess. I went through quite a few parts trying to eliminate a front and knocking on my 330d. Things I went through were:

Drop links
Top mounts
New suspension struts,
Wishbones/control arms with new bushings.

Ended up being the last on the list but I worked my way down the list from the top as the first few items are the easiest/cheapest to try first.
 
Sounds stupid but check the strut braces nuts haven't slackened off, that is a common cause for "knocking" from the front end.
Not sure about the under steer that sounds like something different.
If you Jack the car up you should be able to see any play in the drop links by loading and unloading the strut with a pole or bar.
 
Hi,

Strut braces are good and tight, the understeer is a new thing, only noticed it after being diverted up a crap B road that nearly shock my fillings out. No judder or knocking under braking and it tracks straight.

Stu.
 
Just a quick update for those that may be experiencing similar issues I.E the steering feeling going "Light" as if the car is understeering.

I thought I got to the bottom of it when I found that the front dampers were a bit tired - But apart from the Koni's making the ride a lot lot better, it didn't cure the steering issue. After a bit of elimination, I found that there was a very small amount of play in the rack, nothing that you would normally pay any attention to - When I removed the rack though there was 3 or 4 points were it felt very stiff and notchy (The teeth on the rack showed no signs of wear??). Changed the rack and all is well again :thumbsup: .

I'm assuming that when the steering angle coincided with these notchy points in the rack the torque sensor in the PS sensed the increased load and applied more assistance to over come it, making the steering feeling overly light :(

So if you have steering that goes "light" and feels as if the car is understeering at normal road speeds, have a close look at the rack (As well as the usual suspects of course!)

Stu.
 
Pleased you got it sorted! :thumbsup:
The steering on the Z can be a bit of an issue. I have had my steering alignment checked and changed to slightly "toe in" which has made the car feel a great more stable and less "dangerous" The alignment as found was grossly "toe out" causing the car to dart off in what ever direction the suspension loaded up first. Very twitchy it was, bearable on smooth roads but round the Borders quite a handful!
 
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