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+---- Thread: WOODSHAPERS BERLINGO TYRE/TRACKING/ALIGNMENT ISSUES (/thread-305.html)
WOODSHAPERS BERLINGO TYRE/TRACKING/ALIGNMENT ISSUES - woodshaper - 19-02-2011
Evening everyone, here we go.........................................................
I purchased my Berlingo XTR1600 Hdi at 14 months old with 21,000 miles on the clock, an ex Motability car with some minor body work damage inside and out, getting a below book part exchange price for my old one that was involved in an incident that resulted in it leaking badly due to a twisted body while in the hands of a Citroen main dealer!
*And that is a story of incidents that would take me all night to tell you!
!t also needed dechocolating on the inside having never been cleaned out properly!
It had Michellins on it that had about 2,000 miles left on them and as far as i could see had worn down evenly but very roughly!
It was also very heavy on the steering, it had a tow bar fitted but this did show any apparent signs of use.
Four brand new Avons were fitted at a well know tyre and exhaust place along with free Laser tracking.
The steering almost immediately became VERY HEAVY during a trip down to Oxfordshire, when we arrived I had the tracking checked at a local tyre place, they spent over 30 minutes attempting to realign it saying that the readings were almost off the scale.
I was told to run it for a while to allow it to settle down then have it checked/realigned again.
Now it pulled to the left but the steering was much lighter.
On returning home I took it to my Citroen dealer who after a few test drives and more adjustment informed me that whoever had tracked it had taken it almost off the scale!
After that I soon noticed that the inside front tyres were both wearing down VERY UNEVENLY!
Had it retracked yet again, as soon as I so much as looked at a small pothole or drove up a kerb the steering became very heavy.
HAD IT RESET IN THE MORNING HIT A VERY SMALL POTHOLE IN THE AFTERNOON, BACK FOR THE TRACKING CHECKED, IN UNDER FOUR HOURS THE READING HAD GONE FROM +2 TO ALMOST ZERO!
I was informed that it was nearly impossible for the tracking to be set and to be careful how I drove it.
They man who had adjusted it both times thought that I had been messing with it myself or been driving like a maniac.
Two days later after SOME VERY CAREFUL DRIVING, it went out again.
The tyre place people thought I was a LOONY.
It was reset and was I told if it happened again not to return!
I had a word with someone in the garage trade and he said it may be that the front axle needed realigning and advised having a computerised all wheel alignment/telemetry check as it could have been accident damaged!
Needless to say after even more careful driving the tracking yet again went out of alignment, I then also noticed that both outer rear tyres were wearing down severely on the outside edge.
This time I went back to the main dealer, who realigned it and could offer no reason as to the excessive tyre wear!
They sent me to a tyre fitters that had a computerised alignment checking setup, they checked every tolerance and the readout showed that all settings were within manufactorers tolerances ANF THAT IT HAD NOT BEEN INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT!
The front tyres needed replacing at just under 5,000 miles, they had continued to wear down from the inside.
I contacted the place has originally fitted them, the companys area rep spoke to me and said that they DID NOT give a guarantee on any work done by them!
I then contacted Avon to see if the tyres were from a bad batch, they told me that they were not!
EOPO
Shortly after replacing the front tyres the back ones were replaced having lasted just short of 8,000 miles, they were STEPPED, apparently something usually seen on front wheel drive cares that have had a lot of wheel spinning/boy racer use!
A look on google did come up with a few cases of uneven tyre wear just like I had.
Still after asking a lot of tyre dealers as to why, no one could offer any explination as to what was wrong!
It was also explained to me that it was not possible to adjust the rear alignment as it was fixed.
I contacted Citroen who said someone would phone back, when they did a lady told me that they had no reports of any other problems!
The all the new tyres I had Fitted were Kumhos there being recommended by the Citroen dealer as being heavy duty.
The new rear tyres seemed to be wearing down evenly and after yet another trip to have the tracking reset I was just about bouncing off the wall!
I then herd of a Berlingo van of the same age wearing the rear tyres down just as mine had!
SO I GOOGLED IT AGAIN!
Now I found a lot more reports of uneven rear tyre wear including a lubrication starvation problem on a front axle.
(sealed for life, no grease points)
Contacted Citroen head office again, explaining that If they looked on Google my car was not the only one with uneven tyre wear problems.
THIS TIME THEY GAVE ME A CASE NUMBER and to told me to contact my main dealer.
I left the car with them, it was taken to some specialist place for three days, the dealer did not know what had been done to it while it was away!
I have been told it was probably reshimmed.
The tyres are now wearing evenly and the tracking is okay! (so far)
Have replaced the front tyres once more as uneven wear continues once it has started!
Despite having had all this aggro and my first Berlingo smashed/damaged up by a rogue main dealer, AND THAT IS ANOTHER STORY A LOT LONGER THAN THIS ONE!
I LIKE MY BERLINGO, I liked my old one as well, still I did own two Austin Maxis HHMMMM!
Hope that you have found this story of interest or perhaps of some use.
Right thats enough from me for tonight.