How To Tell If Your Vehicle's Suspension Is Damaged
Do you have a suspicion that your vehicle's suspension is damaged? Try the following things to identify a potential problem that can require suspension repair or replacement.
Give The Vehicle A Visual Inspection
There are a few ways to tell if your vehicle has suspension damage just by looking at your tires. Start by looking at all for wheels and how close they come to the body of the car when the vehicle is parked. What you should notice if the suspension is in good shape is uniformity when it comes to the gap, with all tires being equally spaced from the body of the car. Be concerned if one of the tires is very close to the car body since it means the suspension is damaged and the tire is not positioned correctly.
You can also look at the vehicle head-on and see how the tires are skewed when the steering wheel has the tires turned perfectly straight. You'll ideally want all four tires to be sticking out the same amount from the body of the vehicle. You should have concerns when a tire is slanted inward or sticking out more than the other.
Give The Vehicle A Test Drive
Sometimes you can tell if your suspension system is damaged by taking a car for a test drive and seeing how the vehicle reacts. An easy way to tell if there is a problem is to brake quickly and see how the vehicle handles. If the suspension is in good shape, the vehicle should remain level throughout the entire braking process. A problem with your suspension is actually going to cause the vehicle to nosedive. The front of the vehicle is going to go toward the ground, and the rear of the vehicle is going to lift upward if the suspension is bad.
Another thing you can do is observe how the vehicle reacts when you go over a bump. The purpose of a vehicle's suspension is to stabilize the vehicle when it hits a bump so that your ride is smooth. However, a bad suspension is going to cause the vehicle to bob up and down until the vehicle finally settles back down again.
You can also test the suspension when you make a tight turn, such as when getting on or off the freeway that has a circular on-ramp. Does the vehicle tend to sway a lot when you are making that tight turn? This is an indication that the suspension system is damaged and in need of repair or replacement.
Contact a tire suspension repair service in your area to learn more.