QUESTION. Suspention sag on 1 side, causes?

T

TK-421

Joined
5 Dec 2007
Messages
11
Reaction score
0
Location
Ayrshire
Country
United Kingdom
Having trouble with my Picasso.
last week i clipped a kerb lightly ( passenger side) while avoiding a stray.
brakes seized so i took it home took apart brakes and cleaned it all up, wee bit of copper ease and bobs your uncle. no squealing.
But then i noticed my wheel was slightly rubbing off the bottom of the coil springs on the McPherson strut.

i figured dampener gone, went to scrappy's got a strut and hub. fitted it after much heartache and 3 sheered bolts! it was on, ( weak cheer ).
took for run. no rubbing but it was only 1 cm off top of wheel. other side was an inch..
tested it on all roads., sounds and feels better, and still not rubbing but still only 1cm gap compared to an 3cm on the other side.//

I'm trying to figure out what could be causing the sag..
i have looked at other Picasso's and they are all fine.

so far my train of thought is, looked at wishbone, ballpoints ect. all new.
changing the droplink in a few days..
maybe rear gas suspension?

any ideas people. im a wee bit stuck:)
 
Sponsored Links
Your suspension spring has been damaged, shortened or work-hardened by the impact?
 
If you cannot see anything visual, probably a different spec strut. For example. out of a petrol? You might get away changing your springs, I take it the donor strut had a spring attached?
 
the one i got from the scrappys had everything from the hub to the springs, it was a complete strut. i measured it before there was 3cm on the driver side clear and it was resting on the wheel on the passenger side. after swapping i still had 3cm on drivers side and 1 cm on the passenger side. im just not happy that i only have a 1cm gap from base of spring to the wheel.
 
Sponsored Links
Mursal said:
probably a different spec strut.
Click to expand...

Yup I agree 110%

Options are

1. Get other side replaced with strut from other vehicle.
2. Get correct strut for damaged side
3. Replace both front coil springs

I'm never a lover of fitting second hand parts from scrap yards and had many a bad experience over the years with duff gearboxes, engines that smoke and even a diff that whined like an old pig.

Might pay to take vehicle to garage and get them to stick it on a ramp and inspect it. You may have a slight bend in lower arm as well.
 
it may be worth taking it for a wheel alignment check, sounds like the camber angle has changed. ive no experience of the picasso so cant comment on why.
 
Scrap yards (or the more preferred term, Independent Breakers) are a really really good place for parts. But not steering or brake parts and you need to know a bit about the failure pattern of the parts involved.
But as long as its for your own car and not a safety critical item, breakers are fine. We have a network of good breakers in our area that save the environment on a daily basis. We even have a slate with one or two. Oh, and they are cheap.
 
If the wheel is rubbing on the strut, then either its bent somehow or the spring thats fitted is too short.
Sometimes its not that obvious when a spring has snapped, if the end of the coil snuggles back in its shoe.
John :)
 
before i replaced the strut it was rubbing at least not its not now, ( might last a few months). i think ill save up for a complete front and rear suspension change to see if that fixes it.
 
It sounds like when you biffed the strut, the spring broke at that point, so the wheel started rubbing the spring, not the bottom of the strut as the distance between the wheel centre and strut bottom is fixed.
The petrol Picasso has a different spring spec to the diesel version, so thats maybe where the replacement was from.
John :)
 
No, I'm afraid it wouldn't......its only the self levelling suspensions that do this.
The shock absorber (damper) only controls spring rebound.
John :)
 
TK-421 said:
would a duff rear suspension gas dampener be the cause of 1 side being low?
Click to expand...

Assuming your Picasso is not a Xsara Picasso and one of the C4 Picasso with air bag dampers then it "could be"...

There is a significant failure rate of these at the moment and parts are becoming hard to come by as a result.

Typically two things happen. The air bags get small pin holes in them and hence leak air - (Part one replacement bag). As a result of the leak the compressor works overtime to maintain pressure and eventually expires. (Part two - replacement compressor).

Some dealers are offering spring conversions which given you've changed the front is an easy job you could do yourself. The most difficult part is finding somewhere for the redundant wiring.
 
mine is the Citroen xsara Picasso desire 2ltr diesel.
i think its gas struts at the back.

well i changed the entire stron strut, let it settle for a few days and its stable with 1cm clearance. im not happy with that so ill look at other problems.
I'm wondering if my anti roll bar is fubar. as ever since i replaced the strut its a smoother ride but now its knocking a bit. and clicks when i reverse( bt i think that might be the brake caliper)
ill jack it up and see if the antiroll bar bushes need replaced and all the bolts are tight..
Just got a new drop link as i damaged the boot on my one.
 
2 issues with this IMHO:
1) using anything from a breakers is risky, especially safety related stuff like suspension parts; and
2) I have always been taught to replace both sides when dealing with anything steering/suspension/brake related.

In short, the cheap route often costs more in the end - time and money.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Sponsored Links
Back
Top