Coil springs breaking on a not very old Audi A1

pinkteapot

I have a six year old A1 on 50,000 miles. Owned it since new. 18 months ago a front spring snapped at 30,000 miles. That one was replaced by a main dealer and when I asked whether they should be replaced in pairs they said they were really surprised it had broken this early so not to worry about the other side.

Heard a loud bang at the weekend and just spoken to my garage (no longer main dealer) - front spring on the other side has snapped!

Add to that, a few months back I had a knocking sound at the back and they replaced a strut-top which resolved it, and on my MOT recently I've got an advisory for corrosion on the rear springs.

I know springs are a known issue on certain Peugeots but is this normal on an Audi? Just wondering if it is or if I've been unlucky... I know it's a long way out of warranty.

AdrianC

Springs are damn near a consumable these days, especially if you drive a lot over traffic calming or potholes.

Corrosion on the springs wouldn't exacerbate fracture unless and until it got REALLY bad.

daveyjp

Springs have been breaking on cars for years. Speed bumps, skinny tyres and and 'sporty' suspension set ups don't help.

Remember an Audi will be built using components also used in much cheaper VAG cars and fitting cheaper quality springs will be one way the company can save money.

pinkteapot

AdrianC wrote: »

Corrosion on the springs wouldn't exacerbate fracture unless and until it got REALLY bad.

Cheers - I'd just been wondering whether I should just get the rears replaced now given that they're corroded. I'll wait! (Spoke to the garage after the MOT advisory and they said not to worry)

Thanks for the replies. I've had older and higher mileage cars that have never needed springs so was just surprised.

jimbo6977

This used to be one of Honest John's bugbears (somewhere between his misunderstanding of the principles of insurance in relation to total-losses and his obsession with 98 ron petrol).

Coils nowadays are made cheaply and not tapered or tempered properly, so they snap sooner.

[Deleted User]

They don't need to replaced in pairs especially if money is tight. Although I had one replaced on my 207 then a few months later the other one broke. So I assume if one breaks then the other isn't far behind.

pinkteapot

Deleted_User wrote: »

They don't need to replaced in pairs especially if money is tight. Although I had one replaced on my 207 then a few months later the other one broke. So I assume if one breaks then the other isn't far behind.

Cheers! Well, this is the second of my fronts. If a rear one goes I'll leave the other one to break in its own time.

In December I went from doing around 6,000 miles a year to over 20,000 so I've budgeted for my car maintenance bill to shoot up. :eek:

I didn't mean to sound like a snooty Audi owner in my first post BTW. I only have this car because it was hubby's company car and then we bought it when the lease ran out because it coincided with me needing a new car. He had a company car even though he hardly ever travelled so its mileage stayed low. He wanted a Ford but they insisted on people having 'premium' brand cars - an A1 was one of the cheapest options for his tax. Do absolutely love my car but wouldn't pay the Audi price again as our other car's a recent Skoda and it's just as good, if not better! Big Skoda converts now.

The_Rainmaker

jimbo6977 wrote: »

......and his obsession with 98 ron petrol).

This made me laugh :rotfl:

[Deleted User]

They are more likely to break the older they are. Mine were over 8 years old and still original springs when they broke though.

reeac

AdrianC wrote: »

Springs are damn near a consumable these days, especially if you drive a lot over traffic calming or potholes.

Corrosion on the springs wouldn't exacerbate fracture unless and until it got REALLY bad.

Depends on what you mean by really bad.
1 Springs, almost by definition, need to be made from pretty hard steel which means low resistance to crack propagation once a crack has initiated..2. It's the worst corroded area that will cause the problem and an inspection may well not identify that worst point.

facade

reeac wrote: »

Depends on what you mean by really bad.
1 Springs, almost by definition, need to be made from pretty hard steel which means low resistance to crack propagation once a crack has initiated..2. It's the worst corroded area that will cause the problem and an inspection may well not identify that worst point.

My woeful [STRIKE]Renault[/STRIKE]/Nissan has the last half coil shrouded in a piece of plastic, carefully designed to hold water and promote rusting. Guess what breaks off?