Help needed to clear up some advice I've been given

[Grale1]

Hi guys, I'm hoping that someone can clear a few things up for me. Today I took my car to a garage for them to test drive it because of this problem I have with it pulling left, so the guy drove it with me in it and he was saying it feels spongy on the front and floaty. I was advices by another garage who looked at it that the diff was more than likely the cause of the problems?? Anyways this guy said that my first problem he reckoned the steering rack has to much play in it? And then he went onto say that the gearboxes on these have a slip diff? Is this right? I was under the impression that these gearboxes didn't have a slip diff? This guy also wanted £300 to change the box and rack plus fluid and nuts and bolt, as I have a box and rack in the garage is this a good price in your guys opinion?

thanks simon

 

[phil miller]

So your car pulls to the left? has the tracking been done? what are the lower front arm bushes like? has it been on an ATL shaker plates to check for movement in the subframe bushes? £300 to change a rack and box, man i need to rethink my hourly rate if thats considered a good price

 

[Grale1]

It's been on hunter alignment several times and all is good, lower arms are poly bushed front are rear bushes. I've never had it on a shaker plate thing, never heard of it before lol. Got to remember I live in surrey, everything is expensive here lol

 

[phil miller]

It's been on hunter alignment several times and all is good, lower arms are poly bushed front are rear bushes. I've never had it on a shaker plate thing, never heard of it before lol. Got to remember I live in surrey, everything is expensive here lol

Fair play, my first step would be to go to an MOT station that has ATL (single man testing) on the 4 post lift they have floating plates, so they can move the wheel with hugh force to check for movement, i have a feeling your subframe bushes are weak tbh

 

[Grale1]

Ok cheers Phil, I'll have to hunt a garage locally that has one of them then and see,

 

[Grale1]

So do the gearboxes have a slip diff in them or was this bloke not informed right.

 

[Lewis583]

Nah, they're a bog standard Open diff

 

[Grale1]

Ok ta, what's what I thought then this guy confused me as he was adamant they had a slip diff

 

[superkarl]

The A3s also have steel pressed wishbones, more prone to bending, as is the subframe.

 

[Grale1]

My wishbones are new, I would like to get the s3 ones but then I'd have to change the front coilovers as I don't have the tab for the drop links :-(