12+14 = Total Toe Out, or the Strut Top Scenario

[addo]

Xantia was busily eating $350 worth of new front tyres and I knew the toe had somehow become way out.

My checks showed the lower stuff to be good, but for certainty's sake I took it to the workshop and threw it up on the hoist. The trick here, is you position the lift pads under the car, lift it slightly to be sure, then lower right down and with motor running and suspension in low, crack the reg bleed and let it run for a minute. Then lift the car - with some effort you can now push the axle pairs readily upwards. Try doing that with a Pug!

Anyhow, with all load (except gravity) off the front end, we checked subframe bolts (perfectly tight), wishbone bushes (fine), wheel bearings (OK), ball joints (likewise). I lowered the car to an inch off the floor. Now I discovered the front struts could be grasped and twisted readily, with some resistance of rubber but not a whole lot. Putting the car back up, I eyeballed what appears to be stress cracking of the strut rubbers at their forward edges.

My theory is that the strut rubber has ripped, and it's riding on the "catcher rings" they built into S2 cars. Remember my car has had a hard life, including getting air on the front a couple of times (once popped a sphere doing this). Metal-metal action would also explain the clunkiness in some cornering situations, and the sudden bilateral change of toe.

I took it back to 2mm total toe and so far it is a vast improvement! However the strut tops will have to come into the worklist ASAP...

[citronut]

i would have thought even though the strut top being alowed to move as it wants could possibly affect the tracking a bit, but this would put the caster/camber angle out more than the track,

so maybe the tracking had also been way out for some time as well,

regards malcolm

[addo]

I'm sure tracking was wrong before, but it has definitely got worse. Some pretty awesome knocking sounds from the front suspension at present.