Here is tips to saving on your car's suspension

Best Practice to Save on the Suspension

06 November 2015, 08:48

Every car owner should be aware of the simple fact that if you develop a problem with your suspension, then it is going to cost you a lot of money to have it repaired.

Indeed, depending on the issue with your suspension, there may even come a time where it is just not economical to then get it repaired at which point you would have to make do without your car.

However, even though that’s quite a bleak picture, it simply does not have to be that way. Instead, there are various things that you can do in order to save on your suspension and, in the process, prolonging its lifespan.

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Be Aware of the Roads

The main point that we need to discuss is your need to really be aware of the condition of the roads.

It is a known fact that hitting potholes and driving on bumpy roads will have a direct impact on your suspension as this is what wears down the shock absorbers and when that happens it puts excess pressure on the entire system.

You need to remember what happens when you hit a pothole. The idea of the shock absorbers are to soften the blow associated with holes and bumps on the road, but a pothole is a short, sharp shock that generates a lot of energy within the suspension that can push them to their limits.

The point of the shock absorbers is to disperse the energy that is created by those holes and bumps on the road, but if you hit them repeatedly, or are unable to avoid larger holes, then the amount of energy that is created is massive and can cause an issue.

The way that the car works is quite simple. The shock absorbers effectively work like a protective barrier for the actual main suspension system, so clearly if that protective barrier is being worn down over time, then it begins to expose the main system to a lot of extra punishment that it is not entirely designed for.

You can begin to see how repeatedly driving on poor roads will inevitably lead to problems with your suspension, so being more alert of the conditions is certainly one thing that you can do to help save your suspension.

Be Aware of Your Driving

It is also worth noting that your actual driving style will also have a direct impact on your ability to save your suspension. People that drive smoothly, which means speeding up and slowing down gradually and driving smoothly into and out of corners, will see that they have less mechanical issues than other drivers.

This is important because your suspension works hard especially when you are going into corners, so if you are a rash driver that pushes their car to the limit with cornering, then you will put extra pressure on the suspension and this, in turn, leads to the system wearing down faster.

Everything in the mechanics of a car is to do with energy and how that energy is either used or dispersed throughout the car.

The problem here is that when one area begins to get weaker, it ultimately leads to more issues developing and that in itself is a real disappointment when this weakness is caused by something that could have so easily been avoided and in this instance we mean your driving style.

So, what we are saying is to just take it a bit easier especially in those corners. Reduce the pressure that your suspension is being put under on a repeated basis and you will extend the lifespan of it quite considerably.

Finally, Take Care of it

The final point that we need to mention here is the importance of having your shock absorbers and suspension system checked out either at the first potential sign of something being wrong or simply as part of a general service.

The idea behind this is that you can get those shocks changed at the first sign of any weakness as it means you are, in turn, protecting the entire system and stopping things from getting any worse than they already are.

See this as being a preventative measure more than anything else; but the one thing that we can assure you is that it is a lot cheaper to change your shocks as they are just starting to deteriorate rather than waiting that bit longer when the entire suspension suddenly decides that it has had enough.

Your suspension is something that has to be cared for and you are the one that is responsible for doing that. Be careful with the roads, avoid those potholes, and improve your driving style and not only will your suspension fare better, but you will also see a reduction in the number of general mechanical issues that plague your car.

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