Adjusting non adjustable rear axle tracking?

[rcx132]

My daily drive went in for wheel alignment after I did the steering rack and the garage told me that one of the rear wheels is out of alignment and it's non adjustable.

This is a worthless car but everything works on it so I want to keep it a few more years.

I was thinking the quickest solution is to chop the bush off the wishbone and weld on a Johny joint, which is an adjustable kind of heim joint designed for suspension use. I've done this kind of thing before on 4x4s when doing suspension conversions but I've never seen this done on a road car.

Or am I better off trying to figure out what's bent? Or use offset bushes? Or adjustable cam bolts on the bushes? Or use a hydraulic ram to adjust the suspension mounts like they do when straightening chassis' after an accident?

 

[Ashley Burton]

I would just replace whats bent & move on with life

 

[pondy]

How far is it out? Is it causing any issues when driving? If not I'l would be inclined to leave it. Used the to see this alot when I worked in a garage even on newish cars, advise customers but no one ever did anything. Could be the tracking gauge isn't quite right if been knocked about abit or just mounted incorrectly, tyre pressure incorrect etc

 

[Spark plug]

If it’s not scrubbing the tyres off and goes in a straight line I wouldn’t worry.

 

[RonA]

Your car insurance is the most exacting form of the law of torte (contract).
Any changes you make to the original design would need to be communicated to the insurance company, which might prompt the need for a vehicle inspection.
If you have an accident & fail to notify them of the mod, they might legitamely turn down your claim.
RonA

 

[cheb]

Your car insurance is the most exacting form of the law of torte (contract).
Any changes you make to the original design would need to be communicated to the insurance company, which might prompt the need for a vehicle inspection.
If you have an accident & fail to notify them of the mod, they might legitamely turn down your claim.
RonA

You can't have your cake and eat it?

Pedantic note: It's tort, not torte.

I'd go for the if it's not scrubbing the tyre badly then leave it alone.

 

[Ruffian]

What vehicle is it and how far out is it??

Lots of cars have a large tollerence if rear wheels on a front wheel drive car.
(Ie all mk4 golfs and bora the axle is actually not centre in the car.

 

[8ob]

I would be asking a piece of string for a second opinion, the "man said" would not do it for me. Its on bushes at the end of the day so unless they are all renewed at the same time how can anyone be sure any adjustment is necessary

Bob

 

[rcx132]

Thanks! So basically I'll check how far out the wheel is and take it from there.

Your car insurance is the most exacting form of the law of torte (contract).
Any changes you make to the original design would need to be communicated to the insurance company, which might prompt the need for a vehicle inspection.
If you have an accident & fail to notify them of the mod, they might legitamely turn down your claim.
RonA

I appreciate some people are very by the book. But I do know the basics of type approval, construction and use and the IVA test. I'm pretty sure that this mod would not require an IVA test and you can modify your vehicle so long as the mod does not break the original type approval (other rules do also apply). Whilst modifying the wishbone to an adjustable one is a change of specification and should be communicated to the insurance company, that is a civil matter and not criminal, so long as the modification is legal (ie done by competent person, maintains original type approval, and is adequate). I don't think the insurance company can refuse to pay out on the basis of a minor modification which had no bearing on the claim, eg if your car is stolen that had nothing to do with the mod, so they have to pay out. Declaring such a mod basically results in a "computer says no" response from insurance companies, because most insurers are just not equiped to assess any kind modification beyond adding a tow bar. So in practice you have a choice: stick to the book, give up half your hobbies and interests, and drink lattes, or ignore the insurance company's minor rules and get on with your life.

 

[RonA]

You can't have your cake and eat it?

Pedantic note: It's tort, not torte.

I'd go for the if it's not scrubbing the tyre badly then leave it alone.

Pedantic retort . Whether its spelled with an e or not it could be a very expensive lesson in the law of the land.
RonA

 

[stuvy]

Jack it up stick a pry bar in there and see what bush is worn

As mentioned are the tyres scrubbed at all?

 

[rcx132]

Jack it up stick a pry bar in there and see what bush is worn

As mentioned are the tyres scrubbed at all?

Difficult to say. The last set of tyres were worn. All four were worn, but then again the wheels were being rotated so who knows. The garage said they couldn't find any play in the bushes, but I get your point that they can still be worn.

I'll probably check the alignment myself using old fashioned method of running a mark down the tyre tread, if it's within a few mm then I'll leave it.

 

[Gritineye]

I appreciate some people are very by the book. But I do know the basics of type approval, construction and use and the IVA test. I'm pretty sure that this mod would not require an IVA test and you can modify your vehicle so long as the mod does not break the original type approval (other rules do also apply). Whilst modifying the wishbone to an adjustable one is a change of specification and should be communicated to the insurance company, that is a civil matter and not criminal, so long as the modification is legal (ie done by competent person, maintains original type approval, and is adequate). I don't think the insurance company can refuse to pay out on the basis of a minor modification which had no bearing on the claim, eg if your car is stolen that had nothing to do with the mod, so they have to pay out. Declaring such a mod basically results in a "computer says no" response from insurance companies, because most insurers are just not equiped to assess any kind modification beyond adding a tow bar. So in practice you have a choice: stick to the book, give up half your hobbies and interests, and drink lattes, or ignore the insurance company's minor rules and get on with your life.

Some caution should be exercised here, as most proposal forms ask if the car has been modified from the original specs, and terms say you must declare any subsequent mods however small.

Ombudsman he say:

• We’ll also look into why someone gave the wrong information. If we decide someone made an innocent mistake, we might tell the insurer to pay the claim. But if it looks like someone deliberately gave the wrong information - or was "reckless" in how they answered - we’ll usually say it’s fair for the insurer to cancel their policy and keep the premiums.

https://www.financial-ombudsman.org...insurance-misrepresentation-case-studies.html

If the tyres aren't badly unevenly worn just carry on..

 

[CompoSimmonite]

The rear De-Dion beam on my Smart is slightly bend after an altercation with a wall. It puts the steering wheel off to one side when being driven in a straight line. When measured the wheelbase differs by under 10mm from side to side. Whilst I could try using my Porta-Power to tweak the beam I'm not going to risk that as a complete, secondhand, replacement is so cheap.
IMO replace rather than repair suspension components is the safest way to go.
BTW you should see the differences in alignment on Land Rovers. You measure in inches - not fractions

 

[cheb]

Pedantic retort . Whether its spelled with an e or not it could be a very expensive lesson in the law of the land.
RonA

I wasn't meaning to be picky, but if you search for 'torte' you'll get lots of info on cakes and not much on law, hence the possibly funny aside.

Mispellings aren't usually that important but can make a difference if you want to search for something on the internet or in books.

 

[pedrobedro]

We had similar on a Corsa rear and it was a bent stub axle, held on with 4 Torx bolts, took some finding but it was an easy enough fix and only cost a few quid from a scrapyard.

 

[brightspark]

providing the bushes aren't worn out and its not rubbing the tire off I wouldn't bother about it

 

[rcx132]

BTW you should see the differences in alignment on Land Rovers. You measure in inches - not fractions

So I've heard. But wouldn't a pair of adjustable trailing arms fix that?

 

[octo0072000]

take it to someone else to get the tracking checked again first
and as said if it drives OK and not scrubbing tyres leave it alone

 

[ajlelectronics]

Love a bit of torte with cream, me!