Hi all,

Still having difficulty with this and have spent some more time trying to diagnose it through zero cost methods before throwing parts at it.

The issue is at around 75 - 80mph it's like the road is rippled and I can feel those ripples through the wheel and slightly through the floor as a vibration or judder. In terms of the amount of judder it's not loads to the point where it's shaking but more like a vibration and looking at the steering wheel you can just see it.

It's always the same stretches of road too that seem to cause it (A1M past Ferrybridge, M62 past J32 XScape). Also I can do those exact same speeds on other stretches of m'way (such as the concrete bit of the M62 by Goole and the A64 past York) and have no issues at all, possibly because the roads are flatter.

So in essence the car is transferring too much road surface vibration/ feel up into the controls for want of a better description. Having the car in neutral or taking my foot off the throttle as it's doing it makes no difference.

So far I've:

1. Had all the tyres replaced from worn Michelin PS3's to Eagle F1's. No change.

2. Had the front wheels balanced again. No change.

3. Rotated the front wheels to the back. No change.

4. Changed the front wishbone rear bushes to poly ones. No change but this is nice to have anyway.

5. Had the steering track arms replaced (due to different issue but hoped it might help). No change.

6. Had the steering rack replaced (again due to different issue but hoped it might help). This reduced the vibration by quite a bit but it's still there.

Additionally when the bushes were changed the front tracking was re-done, and then shortly after when the track arms and rack were replaced Skoda (or Wakefield Audi to be more precise) did a 4WA on both occasions.

I'm at a loss as to what could be the cause as it makes motorway journeys a bit unpleasant as this car used to be so settled and smooth at speed.

Anyone got any ideas for me? I was going to start replacing more parts as I've got ball joints and track rod ends left to look at - otherwise it's top mounts and maybe even hubs etc but a process of trial and error will get expensive.

Thanks in advance,

Chris.

Go a different road?

If it's just a certain stretch it might just be a bad mix between the car and the surface. VRS has pretty harsh suspension so any ripple are bound to be fed through more than a non-sporty car.

There is a stretch of the M90 that makes my car sound like there is something flapping around underneath. It the only bit of concrete motorway I've been on and it's the only bit of road that does it.

If you must do more maybe one of the coilover kits would do the trick changing the damping etc on the car. A bit drastic imho.

Edited 8 October, 201213 yr by Aspman

Is it on all lanes of the M-Way? Sometimes lane 1 which takes a hammering from all the HGVs can become slightly rippled before they resurface it. Try moving from lane to lane when this happens to see if it is lane dependent (traffic permitting of course)

"I've had the tracking checked" - I'm guessing that this means you've not had the front camber or castor, or any of the rear geometry checked?

"I've had the tracking checked" - I'm guessing that this means you've not had the front camber or castor, or any of the rear geometry checked?

I put this:

"Additionally when the bushes were changed the front tracking was re-done, and then shortly after when the track arms and rack were replaced Skoda (or Wakefield Audi to be more precise) did a 4WA on both occasions."

So the rears have been done. they also had to sort out the rear saw toothing as a separate complaint so it's definitely been looked at.

Re the other comments, I've lived in the same area for 10 years and used the same stretches of road, and had the car for over 3 years now too. It's only in the last 8 months or so that it's been an issue. as such I inclined to think it's not the roads but the car at fault and as I say it makes certain journeys seem less pleasant due to the steering wheel vibrating in my hand.

One other thing to note too is that it's normally worst when there's a slight bend in the motorway and as such there's "tension" on the steering due to me apply a slight bit of turn. Straighten up and it eases.

Is it on all lanes of the M-Way? Sometimes lane 1 which takes a hammering from all the HGVs can become slightly rippled before they resurface it. Try moving from lane to lane when this happens to see if it is lane dependent (traffic permitting of course)

I hate the little gobs of adhesive left from reflectors after they moved or shrunk the lanes for roadworks.

CV joint issue perhaps as it is more pronounced when applying steering lock ?

Paul

2 thoughts

Has the car always done it on those roads or has it developed over time ???

Can you find a way of going in a similar car on the same road

It's always the same stretches of road too that seem to cause it (A1M past Ferrybridge, M62 past J32 XScape). Also I can do those exact same speeds on other stretches of m'way (such as the concrete bit of the M62 by Goole and the A64 past York) and have no issues at all, possibly because the roads are flatter.

There's your answer in the question. Don't assume the road surface doesn't change over time. There's a stretch I use in Kent does exactly the same thing.......in both my Octavia and my old Focus. (Scared the crap out of the first time, but the car felt fine after. Turned round and did it again.....exactly same result.)

Try a different lane, or, if possible, a different car at the same speed on the same sections. If it doesn't happen anywhere else, why are you assuming it's a fault with the car?

At the moment, all you're doing is throwing money at a problem that isn't on your car.

Agree with Rainbow Fire. I think it's the road too. Don't spend money on what isn't needed.

@chrispy - I travel along the M62 fairly regulary and can say there are certain stretches that are pretty naff. However I can't recall any problems with wheel judder.

I am next going across the M62 (west) this Sat 13th, and returning (east) Sun 14th. I will be going from Hull past Xscape / Ferrybridge and beyond to Chester. If you tell me exactly where you have the issues (which direction / lane / speed), I will try to replicate and see if I get the same.

I have a 2011 Octy vRS TSI and it drives like new with no issues, so hopefully will give you an idea whether its your car or the road.