CRASHED! Nearside saloon ABS trailing arm totally KNACKERED!

[andmcit]

Shit happens! Tonight at 12:30 am in the TCT K plate saloon...

OK. first time EVER I've had an off on an innocuous roundabout in the wet coming home from
the barn tonight. I wasn't doing the regulation 30 (probably high 30's) I genuinely wasn't doing
much more - I'm carrying a load of kit in the boot that probably didn't help, combined with a
greasy surface that had just had a hard spray of rain and add a dash of diesel on the roundabout
and hey ho, 180 degree clip into the kerb knackering both nearside 24v alloys which were running
near new BF Goodriches.

The main damage is the nearside rear wheel where the complete hub had levered itself off the
rear arm having clouted a high kerb sideways - the wheel has bulged the outer skin of the rear
wing although it sounds worse than it actually looks.

I NEED A REAR NEARSIDE ARM WITH S1.5 ABS - a rear subframe I have spare doesn't have ABS!!

Obviously I'm not a happy bunny and am very annoyed with myself. If I wasn't carrying a huge
tonne of goods and chattels in the back I probably wouldn't have had a squeak out of the rear
end but I did and it did!

Anyone able to help with an arm please, pretty please.

Andrew

[andmcit]

Yes, I'm a numpty - it feels reeeaaallly bad from where I'm sitting now.

I guess my indestructible/invincible feeling when driving an Xm got me a tad complacent
without considering all the stupid weight in the boot that no doubt had a massive pendulum
leverage on the back end = add a slimy roundabout opposite a Petrol Station in the rain and
there are all the makings of a disaster.

I'd love the get the thing on it's feet again asap - it's just too nice still despite the nasty things
I've managed to do to it of late.

Andrew

[robert_e_smart]

Sorry to hear about your mishap Andrew, I did something similar to my dad's C5 lately when it jack-knifed with a trailer on the back, car ended up facing the other way, and trailer hit back wheel and wing, plus force of trailer pushing car over kerb on other side, as a result, the rear wheels are at an odd angle, and they don't turn, the brake disc on the side of the car where the trailer struck was broken.

So its a waiting game with the insurance to see if the thing is written off or not. 2006 C5 2.0 HDi, only worth £6.5k, its hit or miss.

Good luck getting her back to form again

[jonathan_dyane]

Bad times

If it makes you feel any better, I managed to do the same thing with my sisters 2cv a few years ago (which was the only time ever in about 100 000 miles driving A series cars I ever experienced losing the back end.) Unfortunately I over corrected, lost it the other way then got a front wheel in the verge, which pulled me into a metal fence ensnaring the bumper, smashing the wing and bending back the suspension arm. At least you have escaped panel damage, it's just frustrating, particularly when you know you could/should have possibly anticipated...

[andmcit]

Sadly, there is panel damage Jonathan - the rear wheel got wrenched off the hub by the leverage of it's lower
part hitting the kerb and bulged the wing out as it escaped!

The good news now appears to be the rear subframe I have does in fact have ABS arms - I hadn't realised the car
that I broke had that level of equipment. The bad news is there's more amiss on the front nearside wheel/hub.

This caught the main impact initially whilst the car was going at it's highest speed before washing off the speed/
energy through the whole car and swinging the rear around which then hit the kerb. The front wheel appears to
have a shattered disc in behind it and there's a noticeable toe in and camber lean on the bottom of the wheel.
I'm not 100% whether the wheel has buckled THAT badly or the lower wishbone has bent (which is possible as I've
seen this before) OR worse, the subframe mounting point has bent which would do a good job of writing the car off.

Andrew

[jonathan_dyane]

Balls, I missed that

I would have thought it unlikely that either the subframe or its mountings would be damaged, but I guess you won't know until you get further into it. The disc having shattered implies movement having occurred at th bearing/hub, I'd try on another complete strut/knuckle assy and see how it looks before condemning the lower wishbone. At least thats a spot of luck having an ABS rear arm.

[Ciaran]

Shit Andrew

Sorry to hear about your mishap. As Jonathan says, its just very frustrating, but I'm sure you did what you could in the circumstances, you just react as best you can, and no one can really predict what the outcome will be.

I hope your front subframes Ok enough to repair, it sounds like you already have most of the bits to sort out the rear.

A nasty incident none the less, but at least it should be repairable.

My sympathies, there's no worse feeling than pranging your pride and joy!

Ciarán

[andmcit]

I'll need to take pictures showing the severed rear hub/arm - you just wouldn't believe it. I always thought these
were indestructible. Years ago I needed to take evasive action to prevent a moronic 4x4 from hitting me head to
head as it passed with the regulation 2 feet on his nearside and steered into what I thought was long grass and
shrubbery but turned out to be a solid mound of stone/soil etc and the nearside wheel was slammed backwards
in the wheelarch and the lower wishbone was bent about 30mm out of true!!

There's a chance the mounting flanges for the wishbone are bent and I'm dreading removal of the front wheel
- there are remains of the front brake disk fragmented behind the wheel, but the only thing to do is bite the
bullet. I still need to come up with a plan of attack for the car's recovery and a suitable spot to have it AA'd
(or self collected with my trailer) to somewhere where I can work on it.

Yesterday had an equally intense hishap that managed to throw my world out of orbit but I'm not in a sufficient
state of mind to get my head around it and the consequences...

Andrew

[andmcit]

BROKEN CAR:











I really don't like the look of the massively cambered and way off straight ahead
nearside wheel when the opposite wheel is dead true straight...

Andrew

[Ciaran]

Fuuuuck