Basically story goes my passenger side front tyre hit a kerb was doin bout 10 mph at the time, it was the back of the tyre that hit the kerb (i was skidding into the kerb because of slippery road and tried to steer out of it putting full lock on the opposite way thus the back of the tyre hit the kerb) the results are that my steering wheel is off center when the car is going straight if you get wot i mean.

So my dad took it to a garage round the corner (fiat specialist) this mornin expecting it just to be tracking or something, apparently the shock absorber and hub are knackered and i require all new fitting, total price £306 . Firtsly is this too much considering its only new shock hub and labour (am i gettin ripped off)??? and secondly do you think he's conning me could a 10mph crash into a kerb do all that damage??

thanks for your help

supprisingly it can,. you'd be better off going to a scrappie and getting the parts yourself,. it not too difficult to do,.,.

well seen as though i'm not very knowledgable about cars and i cant get a haynes manual for my model then i think i'm best off getting it done at a garage. Would 306 quid be too much for the work that needs too be done? I can find the item on ebay (second hand) for 70 quid and then would just require fitting!

you don't replace dampers on their own, so that should be a price for both front dampers.

rite well its gettin taken to another garage oin the morning for a second opinion, so if my shock absorber and hub are broken and in need of replacement wot work will need to be done and how much shoudl it cost?

when you say you need a new hub,do you mean that the rim of the steel wheel is damaged or the front disk?

the allignment of the front wheel has 2 main adjustments,toe in which is adjusted by the track rod ends,and is sometimes called front wheel allignment
,and the other ensures the tyre sits at the correct angle from the vertical,which can be called squat.

it sounds like the garage is saying the wheel is at the wrong angle from the vertical.i suspect the angle is not adjustable on the punto but is set in production,hence the need for new components.fiat cutting corners im afraid,if you ll excuse the pun

johnswlondon said:

i suspect the angle is not adjustable on the punto but is set in production,hence the need for new components.fiat cutting corners im afraid

Click to expand...

Most modern cars are like this.

one solution is to remove the top suspension bolt and replace it with an adjuster kit such as that shown in the attached article,the only tools needed are a torque wrench

http://www.twosrus.co.uk/product_info.php?products_id=169

My punto was crashed into a kerb at about 30, wheels locked and skidded etc.

Write off, accident repair wanted £1200 to fix a snapped wishbone, suspension mount, and replace alloy wheel.

went to scrappies, bought a second hand subframe WITH both wishbones on for £50, garage fitted it for £70, passed MOT.

Just goes to show...

depends what angle and what sort of loads etc.


wheels aren't mean't to hit things sideways.

could be worse, MUCH WORSE, you're pickup points and subframe/actual inner wheelarch could be bent/ fractured, which on a modern car would either mean jigg'in or cutting that whole corner from a scrap car and welding it in (dodgy and insruance lot wouldn't allow it), or write off.

doubt that much has been done though.


bearing could be buggered, their not expensive but fitting is labour intensive, and stuff breaks when you fit them

if you are sliding, steer into the slide anyway that does seem like a lot of damage but if the hub is gone like you said... i wouldnt tackle that job on my own but 306 quid does seem a lot... that second opinion seems like a good idea i hope it turns out ok

yep got the scond opinion at dinner time, the garage said that they couldn't see anything worng with the car and that they're putting it on the trackin machine (not sure what its called) in the morning to see if that solves misaligned steering. He said that if this doesnt fix the problem then it could be a problem with the top of the shocker which is not visible, so I asked him to get me aprice for a new 1 of them aswell just in case, that souns better dunt it!!

maybe th first garage was spot on, but 2nd one are too thick to notice the bent arm


now, get a third opinion.

afterall, its your car, and your life. if something is cracked or abou to crack due to bend'age then I'd sure want to know about it, and not be scrimping pennies


ever had a blow out at 70mph+

well imagine that, but instead of just the tyre bursting, thick off the whole suspension shearing off and the car spinning even more violently, cos thats what it will be like.

ENOUGH G'S TO PULL YOUR FACE OFF:worship:

place a plumb line on the top of the tyre and see if it is more than 2mm away for the bottom of the tyre

well i shall see what the garage say tomorrow and let u all know wot happens it maybe that this second garage do find the fault when they investigate further!

I had the same experience last month. Hit some black ice around 30ish and skidded alot tried to hold it but couldnt to avoid smashing into a car, I pulled the handbrake and smashed into a curb around 20-25ish. I sh*t myself - fearing the worst for my beloved MK1! - luckly the car was fine and I was able to drive off (shaken) I think my tire hit the curb straight on if not at a slight angle. But thankfully it was okay.