clkwork

Steering has been squeaking at low speeds and clunks heard when backing up in reverse. Took it in for service yesterday and it turned out to be the stabilizer bar connecting links which are being replaced under warranty. My question is, could this cause uneven tire wear, and if so do you think I can get a set of new PZero Corsas under warranty?

I'm down to 4/32" at 14k which I thought was pretty good considering they are only 6/32" brand new, but I still see a new set of tires in the near future.

Jeff

LZH

You've got 14k miles on a set of Corsas and you think they should be replaced under warranty ???? C'mon dude....

user z478747

14k miles on the original set of Corsas? Wow!

clkwork

Well I wasn't completely serious (hence the sarcastic smiley) but if the failure caused premature tire wear then shouldn't MBZ be partly responsible? It's not that I'm sore about replacing the tires, it's more the principle of the matter - having wasted diligence in maintaining proper pressures, having not abused the tires on the track or sliding around the street, etc.

The other thing is that I'm not very familiar with these tires. I just looked them up on Tire Rack and they have a treadwear rating of 60, so I guess I'm doing pretty well with 4/32" at 14k

But enough of that, what alternative tires do you suggest?

LZH

I hear ya man...Although, considering the aggressive alignment setup of the BS from the factory and the R compound rating of the Corsa - I seriously doubt whatever "stabilizer bar" they are talking about has anything to do with your alignment or suspension geometry. If it did, you would never have gotten close to 14k miles.
As far as tire suggestions....I'd say since you don't drive aggressively or track the car, the Corsa is overkill. You would probably not notice the difference if you went to a Michilen PS2. That's what I have and I actually think they area better tire for the street. They come up to temp faster and stay there longer than the Corsa.

jrcart

Honestly I am more curious as to how you managed to get 14k miles out of a set of Corsas...I don't even have 10k miles on my car and I lost track of how many tires have been on this car. Please tell me you are at least on your second set of rears and I'll petition the other guys to get you your man card back JK

LZH

Exactly....I got 3500 miles out of my first set which included one track day. Then, went to the PS2's and now have 9200 miles on the car total and the PS2's are almost spent...

clkwork

Thanks, and I think you're right, there's no way that this steering problem contributed to my tire wear. I'll look into the PS2's as well

Hahah, man I wish I could be you. Don't you routinely track your car? Your commute must look like the C63 burnout commercial. I just read on a Lambo forum that these tires hold up well for interstate commuting (which accounts for 95% of my miles), so I'm going to go with that excuse.

Are those all street miles or any track use?

LZH

I didn't realize it was a STEERING stabilizer...If it's what I think it is, then that is just a dampener (shock absorber) for the steering and has nothing to do with the alignment. Most of my miles are street, but the car is driven pretty hard....not abused, but driven the way it was intended.

clkwork

Cool, thanks for the clarification. I've read conflicting posts on the Internet about it and wasn't certain.

Jeff

DFW01E55

You must drive on streets of what? Glass? Gold? Or some road surface with no friction.

I'm at 16k, starting my 3rd set of Corsa's and 2nd set of Vred's.

nielsll

It has been mentioned that the factory alignment specifies a "toe out" for the rear. Toe out in the rear tends to allow quicker rotation - but kills tire wear. This is especially pronounced and compounded when high a degree of negative camber is also dialed in. Has anyone with this severe wear checked the alignment? Do you have the same experience when the rear is set to a "toe in" alignment? A "stickey" knowledge database would be of value for our forum.

Jim, you've been through enough tires. What is your experience?

sechsgang

I think the owner changed out the corsas on my car before he sold it...at 5k...FWIW, I can actually go around 8-9k miles on my my gt3s corsas and that actually has a more aggressive setup than my black...that said it does weigh less...

LZH

The weight of the BS is the rub....

To the OP...please keep us posted on exactly what your dealer replaces as this might be something other owners can benefit from.

ET550

I have 18,150 miles on my original set of corsas and figure them to be good until 20k. Mostly highway miles on northeast roads. No point switching to another brand of tire as far as I am concerned.

LZH

I just don't see how that's possible. I guess u never really get your tires up to operating temp.

nielsll

I once had a set of PS2's on my 500E that only lasted 2000 miles that included about 120 track miles. It handled unbelievably well. -3.0 deg neg camber and 2mm toe out in the rear. -3.5 deg neg camber and 2mm toe out in the front. Same tire with factory spec alignment would give me 15,000 miles including several track days. Alignment makes a huge difference in longevity.

clkwork

Will do. I'm getting my car back tomorrow so I'll follow up with exactly what was done and whether or not it resolved the problem.

I had another complaint of the first 2-3 shift slipping a bit when the trans is cold and 2-1 S-mode downshifts aggressively dropping into gear when coming to a stop. Their answer to that was a transmission/engine software update. Again I'll let you everyone know if that fixed the issue.

Jeff

clkwork

Well I just got my car back and the stabilizer bar end links didn't fix the "clunking" problem. According to the mechanic that worked on my car he couldn't find anything else wrong or showing any signs of wear.

Just for clarification this is the issue where when you turn the wheel to near-full lock when backing up such as out of a parking space there is a loud "clunking" noise and the car shakes. Could someone else out there try it to confirm theirs does it as well? I've already had 1 member PM me with the same symptom.

The other suggestion he had was...new tires! But the mechanic also said they really don't look too bad and I probably have another 6-8k left on them. So....

If I can't get this resolved I think I'll just live with it... a clunk is not really that big of a deal really.

Jeff

lewisracing

When I back up and turn the front wheels, the front wheels slip when they are cold and that causes a sound cimilar to clunking and light vibration in the chassis. Not sure if that is the same thing you gave or not.

If you are going to put on PS2's, then this will get rid of that issue (if you have the same issue as me).

Although considered "sticky" in the racing world, the Corsa's are not made for everyday driving and especially when driving them cold.

LZH

Interesting.....I get the same "clunking" sound when reversing and steering is at opposite lock....but the clunking is coming from the rear of the car. This happens when you have a locking dif and turn sharply (especially at low speeds ie while parking) - this is normal. Perhaps that's what you are hearing ?

clkwork

The clunk is definitely coming from the back (although the squeak when turning the wheel was up front and has been corrected). It's weird because I don't remember it happening when I first got the car, but maybe I just never turned it full lock. Go figure.

LZH

The squeaks coming from up front in the steering are most likely the bushings. Others have reportd the same and the squeaks go away after a few mins of driving when they get some heat in them.

DFW01E55

As LZH points out, heat is your friend .... at least in this case.

I only have those clunking and groaning noises during cold weather, never hear them in the warmer weather.

LZH

Exactly...the BS does require about 10 minutes of milid driving before you can get on it. I keep my center display on the oil temp screen and don't rev it past 4000 until it reaches 80C. This is also good for the rear end and allows the gear oil to get up to operating temp.