First proper test of suspension, and it sucks

[All that jazz]

So I've finally got my 28k Puma on the road now and been out for a proper good blast in it this morning. I thought these things are supposed to have won awards for how well they handle etc? I dunno, maybe it's because mine has been in storage for years but seriously my previous Astravan Sportive handled better ...

First thing I did was check the tyre pressures before I set off. Put them all at 30 psi as I had a long stretch of motorway first. It sort of corners okay if you don't go into one at a stupid speed, but if you do it just slides (dry road) and rolls quite a lot, rather than cornering "like it's on rails" as the saying goes. :| All 4 boots are about 50% worn (195/50/15s).

The worst thing is on a motorway though, or anything above 70mph. It wallows and bounces about all over the place at the slightest ondulation in the road and the steering seems overly sensitive around the centre point which makes steering-with-right-hand-and-elbow-resting-on-window pretty much impossible to do. It gets very annoying very quickly having to constantly hold the wheel with both hands. Does any of this above sound familiar to anyone? :? The tyres are all wearing evenly and it drives more-or-less in a straight line when I take my hands off the wheel - very slight pull to the right but that might have been the wind/road camber.

I'm somewhat reluctant to accept that the suspension and bushes are shot with it only have 28k on it (2000 model). Of course I am aware that rubber perishes quicker when it's not in regular use but everything else works/feels like it should; no cracked/split hoses, tyres etc. :|

So what to do guys? Can't go on like this . Getting a brand new suspension kit and lowering it has crossed my mind but I really don't want to lose ride quality. I'm getting on a bit now and I'm not sure my bones (or patience) would tolerate being jarred about every time I drove over a pebble.

Btw, are the 195/50/15s the right tyre for the standard 8 spoke alloys wheels? They seem to balloon out noticeably wider than the wheel itself, like they should be on a 205 width or something? :?

Thanks for any help.

 

[martinthrapston]

its not the mileage it is the age of the components,are the tyres all the same make,or cheap budget 1's,front wishbone bushes might be shot,along with the rear bushes,,have you had it up on a ramp and checked over???

 

[Y0ungn1ck]

Does not sound like any of the Puma's I have owned.

 

[martinthrapston]

and i bet it is still on its original cambelt too :shock:

 

[All that jazz]

and i bet it is still on its original cambelt too :shock:

How much do you want to bet? And why the negative/patronising/unfriendly comments from you? Save them for someone else please.

 

[martinthrapston]

they wasnt unfriendly at all,can you please tell me in which part it was,

its not the mileage it is the age of the components,are the tyres all the same make,or cheap budget 1's,front wishbone bushes might be shot,along with the rear bushes,,have you had it up on a ramp and checked over???

i for 1 cant see what is wrong with the above,all normal questions that are asked,unless its because im 43, owned 2 puma's and dont know nothing at all,
and if you have had cambelt changed then its not a problem,its just what you quoted in the original question,
"I'm somewhat reluctant to accept that the suspension and bushes are shot with it only have 28k on it (2000 model). Of course I am aware that rubber perishes quicker when it's not in regular use but everything else works/feels like it should; no cracked/split hoses, tyres etc."

is that rubber perishes with age,mileage means nothing,its like having your car at 28k over 12 years old and not having the cambelt done because it hasnt done 80k miles,

 

[All that jazz]

they wasnt unfriendly at all,can you please tell me in which part it was,

its not the mileage it is the age of the components,are the tyres all the same make,or cheap budget 1's,front wishbone bushes might be shot,along with the rear bushes,,have you had it up on a ramp and checked over???

i for 1 cant see what is wrong with the above,all normal questions that are asked,unless its because im 43, owned 2 puma's and dont know nothing at all,
and if you have had cambelt changed then its not a problem,its just what you quoted in the original question,
"I'm somewhat reluctant to accept that the suspension and bushes are shot with it only have 28k on it (2000 model). Of course I am aware that rubber perishes quicker when it's not in regular use but everything else works/feels like it should; no cracked/split hoses, tyres etc."

is that rubber perishes with age,mileage means nothing,its like having your car at 28k over 12 years old and not having the cambelt done because it hasnt done 80k miles,

Martin your help is appreciated but your tone does not come across well. First you patronise me by suggesting that I "don't know how to drive the car" and then you talk about me/my car like I'm not here "I bet the cambelt hasn't been done either" which comes across like you think I'm some know-nothing idiot that doesn't know one end of a car from another simply because you're 43 and have owned 2 Puma's.... In fact what exactly is your justification for that comment anyway? It makes no sense at all. You know nothing about me nor the car other than it's a 2000 model 1.7 and has done 28k. Why would you "bet" that the cambelt hasn't been done?

For your information the cambelt was done in November last year so it's a good job your bet was only empty words eh? Furthermore, you only have a couple of years on me re your age and whilst I have next to zero knowledge/experience with Puma's, I did do all my maintenance and repairs on my numerous Nova SRI/GSI/GTEs back in the day so am well versed with how they work and strangely enough, yes I do "know how to drive" thanks. :wink:

Now getting back to the matter in hand, I've not yet paid any attention to the make of tyres so will check that and report back when I have. Unfortunately no ramp or jacking up possibilities here so would need to go to a garage for the bushes to be checked. Would be interesting to drive one with them in good order just to see how it compares actually.

 

[Cherie]

If you feel like you're driving a blancmange, it could be the dampers, especially if the car has previous been stood for a while, and some of the fluid has leaked. Budget tyres, with less reinforced sidewalls, and/or shot bushes will increase body roll.

Unfortunately, age can have a greater effect on some parts than mileage alone. As painful as it may be, you might need to renew more parts than you'd hoped for with low mileage.

 

[evilrob]

Whereabouts are you? There's a list of garages in a link in my signature below which people on here have used and been happy with. I personally use Steavie in North London and Tremona in Southampton.

 

[Ginger Tom]

I'm with Cherie on this one, have you tried "bounce" testing them?

 

[All that jazz]

Guys (& Cherie) thanks, useful. Yes I did do the bounce test but they all rose and returned to where they were, just as you'd expect from working shockers. Admittedly I didn't really plan to be replacing this stuff so early on as it seemed to drive okay on the test drive (never ease to judge properly though, as you're not used to the car and its quirks at that very early stage), but I did get it for a fairly sensible price (£1500) with full history and bodywork wise it's minty, so I'm much happier paying out to replace 'consumables' such as the suspension than fighting the battle against rust on a high miler that has working suspension. That sort of reads a bit weird, but it makes sense to me :grin: :grin: .

I'm top side of Leeds so I guess my nearest Puma "specialist" would be the gaff at Wakey just off J39, can't remember the name of them off top of my head. Unless of course someone knows somewhere in Leeds to get it sorted? And if anyone is in Leeds area on here I'm happy for you to take it for a drive to compare it to yours just to make sure I'm not just imagining it. :lol:

 

[evilrob]

I'm top side of Leeds so I guess my nearest Puma "specialist" would be the gaff at Wakey just off J39

Are you talking about Pumaspeed? Can't go wrong with Pumaspeed... not cheap though. I can't think of any garages people have mentioned actually in Leeds off the top of my head... Probably because anyone within reasonable distance goes to Pumaspeed.

I'm sure someone will pipe up with a suggestion at some point if there's a good one nearer to you.

 

[Kidders]

Original P6000s?

 

[XIIVVX]

From the fact it slides (see OP) my guess is that along with all the other stuff the tyres need chucking.

Storage for years with the tyres inflated, or even not, (Was it on axle stands or blocks?) will do a world of no good for the rubber compound.

By now, well beyond hope. New rubber all round would be my first move.

 

[Rollcage]

Does sound a bit like the rubber has gone off and hardened. Both of my Pumas have done nearly 140k and have odd tyres, and stick to the road like glue.