Lovert Mafukure
STUDIES have shown over time that 95 percent of road accidents are caused by human error. Many a time people neglect routine service and replacement of worn parts. Others do follow that routine service but replace parts with generic parts. We now have more cases of accidents and incidents of cars breaking down. Why is that? One of our readers has had spring failure twice and wants to know why that is and how it can be avoided.
First of all, getting into an accident is by no means fun and heading to a repair shop for estimates and parts can be overwhelming if you’re not familiar with the terminology of the replacement parts.
Terms like OEM, aftermarket and salvaged parts can be used to describe the new parts that will repair your damaged vehicle to make it safe and operable again.
OEM is an abbreviation for Original Equipment Manufacturer. That means the parts are made directly by your car’s manufacturer and they are good. They are of the best and durable quality.
OEM parts are usually distributed through authorised dealerships. There are no authorised dealerships for Japanese cars, they are Grey imports. That said, you can rarely get OEM parts locally and two options remain for parts — aftermarket parts and salvage parts.
Aftermarket parts are manufactured by a company other than your car manufacturer. These are companies that have copied the original part and produced it to their own standard. Some are good and some are not. Price always differentiates them.
Salvaged parts are from accident cars or non-runners sold for spares. With reputable car breakers the parts are tested for quality but are in used condition. Since the parts are second hand, they are
often cheaper than the unused OEM parts. The great thing about salvaged parts is that they are often OEM parts. So you are receiving a high quality part that will fit your make and model of car, just at a significantly reduced price.
Coming back to our topic, spring failure is common on cars that have come from England. Such cars usually suffer from corrosion due to the type of weather they have. Saline solutions are common there and used to melt snow. The downside is they corrode suspension parts. The idea of the replacement of parts, as I have mentioned, needs one to be wise. You can get new replacement parts but be sure of the manufacturer because generic parts may put you in harm’s way instead of making your car safer.
Given the state of the UK weather, components such as these do suffer a lot and are replaced a lot there, some eventually get weaker springs that may have come from the east and usually have a shorter lifespan. From the factory springs have some coating that’s supposed to protect them from corrosive elements but due to stresses, suspension components are exposed and they crack and tear with time, exposing the them to rust. Rust eventually weakens springs and other suspension parts to a point where they break.
There are tricks you can employ to avoid spring failure. First of all, inspection is important on imported cars, remember they are not new cars, they just have new owners. Spring failure is not so much of a problem on Japanese cars as it is on UK cars but they are not immune so always inspect such imported used cars for rust and replace corroded parts. It’s for your own safety.
Since we have established that spring failure is common on cars imported from the UK, it is wise to always change the springs when a car lands from the UK. One thing car importers need to be aware of is that the rust you see on cars from UK protruding through the fender wells, bonnet and boot linings as well as the doors is just a tip of the iceberg. The moment you see rust on the fender wells, imagine the places you cannot see. The undercarriage and all suspension systems, they’d be worse affected by the rust and eventually its things like springs that give in first.
It’s also wise to get your car inspected before buying locally or importing from the UK. Ask for picture and videos if you can before you spend your money on rust buckets. If you are buying locally, what we call Pre-Purchase inspection in automotive circles is important for you as buyer of a used vehicle. It might cost a few dollars but it will save you a whole lot in future in terms of safety and cost of repairing damage caused by such elements as rust.
Some cars are exposed to overloading like those involved in the mshika shika business. Overloading isn’t good for suspensions. Eventually components fail because they are strained beyond capability.
Cars should always be used within their capabilities, overloading is not only against the law but it shortens lifespan of vehicle components such as these suspension springs.
The quality of parts coming from our eastern friends is not always the best. The good thing about our eastern friends is they give you any part according to your budget. Cheap isn’t good in most cases and cheap does not spell out GENUINE. So next time you go parts hunting remember, genuine isn’t just a word, it’s your safety, it’s your life and whatever is too cheap isn’t genuine.
@lovert116 — Automart Used Spares Centre — Quality Used Japanese Spares — +263 772 33 99 38 – automartzw@gmail.com