Clio 200 steering problem

[Stuart Brierley]

Hi all. I've got a 2010 Clio 200 which I've had from new. It is a full fat 200+ cup chassis. I've noticed that it feels like it is wandering around on the road. If I take a fairly fast and long corner, like you might find on a dual carriageway, it feels like it is swaying from side to side. Every second or so it'll go from feeling like it's understeering to feeling like the back is coming out and this oscillation continues through the corner. It feels like I'm sailing a boat! I don't think there is any play in the steering and it has recently passed an MOT. I've tried searching for this symptom online but most steering related discussions are about pulling to one side or the knocking noise. Can anyone point me in the right direction?

 

[Goodj]

alignment or worn suspension parts?
Although why your shocks would be shafted after 6 years would be concerning.

 

[Stay Puft]

Shocks?

 

[White16valver]

Jack it up at the front and lock the steering into position (clicking the steering lock when the key is out should do it).

Place your hands at 12 and 6 on each front wheel and see if there is any play when you try to wiggle it - if there is, it may be worn ball joints.

Then place your hands at 9 and 3 and try to wiggle each wheel - if there is, there could be wear/play in the steering arms/rack/column or something else. If it's the former, it may be at the end where the arms connect to the rack assembly.

Other than that... Are your tyres all the same make and model and pressure? Are they new or old? (They can go out of shape.) Does each corner of the car stop within one bounce when you push down at each corner? Does the effect only happen on one particular stretch of road? When was the last time you had a full alignment done?

 

[Stuart Brierley]

OK. I can have a look at the shocks I guess but the car has only done 40k miles and there are no signs of them leaking as the MOT was recent. I would also add that it's not necessarily when I'm leaning hard on the shocks. It could be a fairly open, long corner taken at about 70 for example. Are there any bars on the back or front that control lateral movement of the suspension arms?

 

[Stuart Brierley]

Thanks @White16valver . I'll have a look at all those points. The tyres were all renewed last year, all OEM continentals.

 

[Goodj]

Using the interent to diagnose a car fault? Expect the following potential points to check:

Snapped roll bar
Leaky tyres
Poor alignment
Fenimism
AIDS
Stretch armstrong failure
Clogged Overhead swizzleclanger

Advice: Take car to garage / knowledgeable friend with tools.

 

[Stuart Brierley]

Using the interent to diagnose a car fault? Expect the following potential points to check:

Snapped roll bar
Leaky tyres
Poor alignment
Fenimism
AIDS
Stretch armstrong failure
Clogged Overhead swizzleclanger

Advice: Take car to garage / knowledgeable friend with tools.

Thanks for the comedy. I have had the car serviced, MOTed and aligned and it didn't make any difference to this problem. I am mechanically competent so I'm just looking for someone who may have experienced this themselves so I can try that first. There are dozens of known issues and complaints people have with these cars and I just wanted to check it wasn't one of those.