Suspension spring / broken spring: everything you need to know about repairs!

A problem that comes up again and again is that Chassis spring / spring break at the vehicle. But what are the symptoms, how does the repair work and what are the costs? More on that in the next post. Yes, first the most important thing briefly mentioned. The shock absorbers and chassis springs are responsible for compensating for bumps in the road and ensuring that the wheels always have contact with the ground. They are therefore important for both driving comfort and driving safety. Most suspension springs are extremely durable and can last the life of the vehicle. However, replacement is required when a crack or break occurs due to fatigue or corrosion. Since such a fracture is often obvious, it can also be easily diagnosed by laypeople.

Symptoms and Warnings

• the vehicle is crooked
• a crack or break in the spring (visual inspection)
• Impact or rattling noises when driving over bumps (possibly also when steering)
• Squeaks and croaks from the broken spring area

Is it actually possible that Main inspection survive despite a broken suspension spring? If at least one landing gear spring is broken, that's one serious deficiency, which prevents passing the main inspection. So the new HU badge is there not!

Continue driving with a damaged suspension spring?

If a spring is broken, it should rinse be replaced. Otherwise there is a possibility that the steering and control of the vehicle may be impaired in certain driving situations. In addition, driving comfort is minimized. On top of that, a broken spring can scratch the tire or damage it to the point of puncture/slit, which is a safety issue and leads to additional material costs.

repair or replacement

The following information relates to Coil springs, which are present in most passenger cars. If the spring is broken, the component must be replaced essential. The repair of the broken spring is no option. Springs are wear parts, so buying used car parts is not a promising idea. If the mileage and age are precisely documented, then a used part can be an alternative. Since both components are always exposed to the same loads, the springs should ideally be per axis - so in pairs - be replaced. Depending on the vehicle model and the built-in design, the amount of work involved in the change varies. The work on the front axle is often more difficult than on the rear axle.

The process of the individual work steps!

Since work on the chassis affects the traffic safety of the vehicle, they should always have by a professional be carried out in a car workshop! In addition, after completion of the work should always be a Wheel alignment be performed. Info: Additional work may be necessary if, for example, the screws on the shock absorber cannot be removed due to rust, for example. There dust boot and suspension strut bearings are dismantled or exposed anyway, they should always be included when replacing the shock absorber change. Springs and shock absorbers are particularly common on the rear axle side by side instead of assembled together. Then the change is much easier, because it is often enough to loosen the shock absorber so that the broken spring relaxes and the change can take place.

In order to remove the wheel on the affected side, the vehicle must first be lifted onto the lifting platform. After that, solve them Coupling rod, the brake hose and the management of wheel speed sensor. Then you can journal and strut separate. If the strut is removed, the spring with a Spring tensioner curious; excited. The Suspension strut bearing / suspension strut support bearing can then be dismantled in the next step. After dismantling the suspension strut bearing, the broken spring can be replaced.

The cost of replacing the suspension spring!

The following information again refers to coil springs. If your car has leaf springs, the cost is difficult to quantify as individual layers can often be replaced. The material prices for a new spring are usually between 30 and 200 euros each. The cost of replacement parts depends on the vehicle and the manufacturer of the replacement part. Monroe, Sachs and Bilstein are among the well-known manufacturers of spare parts.

Replacing suspension springs takes time between 30 minutes and 3 hours. The time required primarily depends on how many additional components have to be dismantled and replaced. Based on an hourly rate of 100 euros, this results in a workload of 50 to 300 euros. The total costs are therefore between 80 and 500 euros per side. However, since the exchange should always take place axis by axis, the sum must be multiplied. Added to this are the costs for Wheel alignment, with which any (negative) changes in the chassis geometry are detected and corrected. The costs can vary between €50 and €200 depending on the amount of correction required. As already mentioned, it is advisable to use the Suspension strut bearings and dust boots to replace. The costs per wheel are between 30 and 150 Euro.

 Meaning & different types of feathers

Depending on the design, vehicle springs have a significant influence on driving comfort, body height and driving safety. There are four different types of suspension springs:

• Coil springs
• Gas or air springs
• Leaf springs
• Torsion bar springs

In today's passenger cars Coil springs the most common form. The spring wire has the shape of a screw and is wound in a circle. Coil springs can be installed as a fixed unit with a shock absorber (strut), or they can be installed separately. Since gas or air springs are much more expensive to produce, they are only found in luxury vehicles. They offer more driving comfort than simple coil springs, since the spring behavior and the body height can be adjusted separately. Leaf springs are rarely used in today's vehicles. They consist of several layers of springs that are stacked on top of each other. In addition to the traditional steel leaf springs, leaf springs made of fiber-reinforced plastic are sometimes used today. Of course, rusting is then no longer possible. The suspension of torsion bar springs is provided by a bar that rotates in a tube. This type of suspension was previously only available on the VW Beetle and the VW T4 (produced until 2003).

The following note is essential: For safety reasons, tuningblog recommends all repair, inspection and maintenance work exclusively to be carried out in a specialist workshop! Although our information is summarized to the best of our knowledge and belief, we cannot assume any liability for the content. All information is therefore "without guarantee".

Of course, that wasn't the end of it!

In this tuningblog category there are guides and instructions for common defects/repairs on the vehicle and for installing accessories/tuning parts. Our articles explain in a simple way common defects and the corresponding repairs, as well as explaining how the first signs of a defect become noticeable. In most cases, we also have initial clues to the repair instructions in our repair instructions approximate The costs of the pending repair are listed. The goal of our subcategory “Auto Repair Guide“ is to create a head start in knowledge for the next visit to the workshop with initial tips. This may save you from tedious troubleshooting and small things can perhaps be done directly on your own. The same applies, of course, to the installation of accessories/tuning parts. Here, too, we would like to help with the implementation with instructions and tips. There are many other posts on this as well. Below is an excerpt of the last and HERE there are all previous instructions:

"tuningblog.eu" - we keep you up to date on the subject of autotuning and car styling with our tuning magazine and present you with the latest tuned vehicles from all over the world every day. It's best to subscribe to ours Feed and will automatically be informed as soon as there is something new about this post, and of course also to all other contributions.