Rear Coil Spring Corrosion

[redlew]

The RAV passed its MOT today but the tester made a note that the rear col spring was corroded. Anything to worry about , please?

[rambler]

The RAV passed its MOT today but the tester made a note that the rear col spring was corroded. Anything to worry about , please?

A rusty coil spring.....is that all.

After many off roading trips,most of the drivetrain on mine is showing signs of the brown stuff and it flew through the mot last year....no troubles.

And this is no worse than last year's condition.

Ignore the yellow cross & lines.....but you get what i mean......yikes ,my Mot is due in 3 weeks

[firemac]

The RAV passed its MOT today but the tester made a note that the rear col spring was corroded. Anything to worry about , please?

Hi Red,

Don't want to be thought of as a prophet of doom but it might be worth keeping an eye on. Our 02 4.2 broke a rear spring a couple of months back which was spotted during service by Mr.T. Didn't affect handling or anything but seemed odd...

Got odder still: I bought a 54-reg 4.2 3-door in May from Mr. T with a 12 month Toyota warranty and two weeks later, when having side steps fitted, Mt.T says that the a rear spring had snapped. Same side as on the other RAV. Replaced under warranty but does make me wonder as I've never had a coil spring fail on any of my cars in last 40 years.

Could have been corrosion so maybe best to keep an eye on it.

[IanXT4]

It seems corrosion is less of a problem on Japanese cars than European. Here is a reply from Honest John in the Telegraph a while back

"The spring broke for the same reasons that hundreds of thousands of European made springs fail every year, and is something I have been campaigning about for years. As a cost cutting, the ends are not properly ‘pigtailed’, flattened or tapered to resist corrosion, so they can seriously weaken after 3 years and are usually snapped by speed humps. VOSA won’t do anything about it, so complain to the council that installed the speed humps that finally fractured her inferior European made spring. "

My VW Golf rear springs lasted ten years before one snapped a couple of inches from the end. Rather than wait to see how long your Japanese springs will last,I would suggest you get a brush and some Waxol and treat your car a pre winter anti rust treatment

[valeite]

The RAV passed its MOT today but the tester made a note that the rear col spring was corroded. Anything to worry about , please?

Hi I had the same note made on mine and the car is a 2007 model!

Wire brush and Waxoil here I come

[Manxrav]

Have just done my U/C with waxoyl ( wheel arches and as much underbody as poss), Messy job but well worth the effort

Regards Clare

[Jamesbelfast]

Springs which are made from tempered steel and need to flex are always prone to cracking from surface corrosion. That's why good quality units are plastic coated.

[redlew]

Springs which are made from tempered steel and need to flex are always prone to cracking from surface corrosion. That's why good quality units are plastic coated.

I would rather have hoped that Mr T would be using top quality units -may get top quality replacements depending on price differential

[bothwell_buyer]

Coil spring breaks are fairly common. The 1995 RAVs were recalled due to front coil breakage problems.

My 1994 RAVs have had coil springs replaced due to breakage.

My sons 2005 Corsa has had springs replaced. 2 after hitting a pothole.

I guess its the condition of our roads, - speed bumps probably less of a problem if you hit them at slow speed which is what they are designed for.... but potholes you hit at speed hammer the suspension, wheels and tyres.