Suspension Problems

[Mal]

I've got a standard 4 year old Ibiza 1.9 tdi (100). Its covered just under 25,000 miles & has a full Seat service history.

Last year I had uneven tyre wear on the inside of drivers side front tyre. I just about managed to get this done under warranty before it ran out. The wheel bearing was replaced and I was told this should be an end to the problem.

This year prior to servicing and MOT the same thing has happened again on the passenger tyre - very worn inside edge.

I had it serviced at a different SEAT garage as their service costs were lower, but they have informed me that the problem will require a new anti roll bar and silent running bushes. They mentioned replacing them with "solid" bushes.

The total cost of that work is £550.

I'm obviously pretty annoyed that the total bill for servicing & repairs is going to run to something in the order of £1800 if the cam belt is done this year too.

Do I have a leg to stand on in suggesting that SEAT ought as a good will gesture put something towards the cost of the suspension problems given the low mileage and age of the car?

I appreciate in roads littered with speed bumps and potholes these things can happen but it seems rather odd this wasn't sorted last year.

Has anyone else had similar problems?

Any help / suggests would be appreciated.

Cheers

 

[Torquemonster]

I wouldn't hold out much hope.They seem to have a thousand excuses for getting out of in warranty repairs-never mind out of warranty.
By the way.My 4.5 year old Ibiza has the same faults as yours.Bushes cracking and splitting.Anti roll bar rusting at bushes.

 

[diss_50]

Ive got the same problem with my tyres - Down to the metal on the inside toe of the front tyre - Apparently all ibiza have this problem???

 

[Mal]

I actually managed to find out just after I posted from a mechanic that called back from a SEAT dealership that this problem "isn't uncommon" on Ibizas. He's done a couple under warranty apparently. So if you are still in warranty I'd get it checked as it appears to be a known problem.

Apparently the standard fix is to replace the bushes and roll bar with more rigid ones such as those fitted to an FR or Cupra model.

Dealerships / Servicing Depts vary so much. Just shows you how important it is to get one you can trust.

 

[Fuzzy123]

Is it not just caused by incorrect wheel alignment? any curbing? have one done and ask for the printout, ask for it after its been done. My Ibiza's tyres are down to 2mm but almost level wear wise. Im a tech for Porsche and even the top spec ones running lots of negative camber wear their tyres fairly evenly. Im not saying the garage is wrong but unless they have said there is excessive play in the ARB I can't see how they would diagnose it without a geometry.

 

[Mal]

Thanks for that advice. Thats well worth doing I think.

I haven't curbed the car but have hit some nasty potholes that may have put the wheels out of alignment.

May be a less expensive fix.

 

[RUM4MO]

I actually managed to find out just after I posted from a mechanic that called back from a SEAT dealership that this problem "isn't uncommon" on Ibizas. He's done a couple under warranty apparently. So if you are still in warranty I'd get it checked as it appears to be a known problem.

Apparently the standard fix is to replace the bushes and roll bar with more rigid ones such as those fitted to an FR or Cupra model.

Dealerships / Servicing Depts vary so much. Just shows you how important it is to get one you can trust.

I think that you are getting a bit confused here, the "old style" ARBs did have a problem that disappears when the modified one is fitted - not uprated just modified, its the TCA rear bushes that are voided on all non-Cupra cars, so the best fix long term is to replace the original ones with Cupra ones. BTW all the Fabias and Polos have these problems as well - these are all Skodas in these "early failure" areas and yes they do cost a lot of money to fix these areas, its best to bit the bullet and get all this work - ARB + TCA bushes - done at the same time as four wheel realignment is needed to really sort the car out afterwards. Check the ARB stops with a magnet, if they are not cracked, you culd be lucky and a previous owner might have had to pay to replace it - original stops were plastic, modified ARBs have metal stops welded or pressed on - old and new use different sized ARB bushes though.