Car rolling & bouncing alot.

[Tony Robinson]

Hello all,

I have a March 2009 1,9 tdi Golf Plus that's done 37000 miles. Just lately it seems to be rolling from side to side and bouncing more than usual when going straight ahead, even on what appear to be newly tarmaced roads.

When I bought the car, one year and 7000 miles ago the suspension seemed quite hard and all seemed quite tight. I'm the sole driver and haven't gone down any potholes or up any kerbs.

Any clues or is this normal?

Tony.

[Kar Krazy]

Hi Tony,

It sounds like one or more of your shock absorbers need replacing. They are supposed to damp out the kind of bouncing that you described. They are filled with oil that is forced through small valves as the suspension moves up and down. The valves let the oil flow quickly when the wheel drops (eg. into a pothole), but slowly when the wheel rises. The rely on a seal around the piston rod to keep the oil in. This seal eventually fails, letting the oil leak out and so the shock absorber stops do its job.

Although before you go to the expense of new shockers, I'd check your tyre pressures first.

[Tony Robinson]

Hello Kar Krazy,

I took the car to a friend's garage. He checked the front suspension & that looked ok so he went to the back. He spotted a bulge going across the tread and around the tyre (c8cm wide x c20cm long) and that was the problem. I've seen bulges on tyre walls before but not across the face.

I took it to the tyre garage and they said it was known as an 'half puncture'. There was a glass cut on the tyre corner that had allowed water to get in with the metal and swell the gap!
Had the tyre replaced and a full wheel alignment check carried out. There were 6 toe and camber errors that had to be fixed, for £96.

Tony