Suspension repairs
Worn suspension does not announce itself. It just quietly ruins your tyres.
Service One Automotive repairs suspension at Factory 9, 266 Osborne Avenue, Clayton South VIC 3169. Shock absorbers, struts, springs, control arm bushes and ball joints, plus the clunks and the uneven tyre wear that come with them. Ring 0434 949 091 to have it looked at. Please call to confirm current opening hours.
The slow failure
A shock absorber rarely dies in one go. It fades over years, and because you are in the car every day you adapt to it without noticing. Then you drive a friend's car and wonder why yours feels like that.
The giveaway is usually the tyres. A shock that has stopped controlling the wheel lets it skip, and skipping wears the tread in patches rather than evenly. Cupped or scalloped tyre wear is a suspension message, not a tyre problem.
Noise, and what it usually means
A clunk over a speed hump is generally something with play in it. A bush, a link, a ball joint, a strut top. A creak when you turn the wheel at low speed is different again.
We put the car on the hoist and load each joint by hand until the noise shows itself. That is a more reliable way of finding it than driving around listening.
Why it matters beyond comfort
Suspension holds the tyre against the road. When it stops doing that properly your braking distance goes up, and it goes up most on exactly the bumpy, wet surface where you need it.
It is also a roadworthy item, so worn suspension is the kind of thing that turns a sale or a re registration into a delay. We look at it as part of a roadworthy inspection, and we can look at it on its own.
Signs worth a look
- Clunking or knocking over bumps and speed humps
- The nose dives hard under braking or the tail squats under acceleration
- The car keeps bouncing after a bump instead of settling once
- Tyres wearing in patches, or worn on one edge only
- The steering wanders and needs constant small corrections
- Oil or wetness visible on the body of a shock absorber
Questions about suspension repairs
Do shocks have to be replaced in pairs?
Yes, across an axle. A new shock on one side and a tired one on the other gives you a car that behaves differently depending on which way it is leaning.
Will I need a wheel alignment afterwards?
Usually. Anything that changes the geometry, which includes most suspension work, wants an alignment after it. Skipping it puts the cost straight back into your tyres.
My car is old and I just need it to pass. What is the minimum?
Tell us that on the phone. We will separate what is a genuine safety item from what is a comfort item, so you can spend where it counts.
Book suspension repairs
Six short steps, or ring the workshop.
Open weekends by booking only, at the same rates. The booking has to be confirmed before the day, so ring or text ahead.