Motoring Discussion > Ford KA, KA2, KA3 - Pics! (uneven tyre wear and suspension arms) Miscellaneous
Thread Author: tyro Replies: 10
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New Thu 26 Aug 10 11:47 
 Ford KA, KA2, KA3 - Pics! (uneven tyre wear and suspension arms) - tyro
Further to my last thread, I got some used parts from the dealer, and I've taken a few pics.

1. n/s/f tyre is very unevenly worn.
tinyurl.com/2vp9fc8
tinyurl.com/37dasho

What could have caused this? My driving style? Incorrect inflation?

2. Pictures of the ends of each wishbone suspension arm. I take it that these rubber things are the (dead) bushes?
tinyurl.com/3x2porl
tinyurl.com/2utvxse


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New Thu 26 Aug 10 11:56 
 Ford KA, KA2, KA3 - Pics! (uneven tyre wear and suspension arms) - DP
>> 2. Pictures of the ends of each wishbone suspension arm. I take it that these
>> rubber things are the (dead) bushes?
>> tinyurl.com/3x2porl
>> tinyurl.com/2utvxse

Those are the balljoints that connect the outer end of the arm to the hub carrier. The offending bushes are on the other (inner) end of the arm. There are two of them, one front and one rear. These are what the Ka and Fiesta tend to chew through. You will probably find they have split badly, or even parted company with the arm.

When these bushes wear, it can throw out the tracking, as the arm is no longer located in its correct position. Also the softening of the rubber will allow the arm to move around more than it should under the loads associated with driving. You will probably find that is the reason your tyres wore unevenly.

I would recommend getting your tracking checked ASAP. Even if it was "correct" on the old bushes, it probably won't be on the new ones.
Last edited by: DP on Thu 26 Aug 10 at 11:57
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New Thu 26 Aug 10 11:59 
 Ford KA, KA2, KA3 - Pics! (uneven tyre wear and suspension arms) - Old Navy
>> I take it that these rubber things are the (dead) bushes?
>>

No, they are the ball joints, the rubber covers keep the grease in, and the dirt out. The bushes are at the other end.
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New Thu 26 Aug 10 12:16 
 Ford KA, KA2, KA3 - Pics! (uneven tyre wear and suspension arms) - bathtub tom
tyro.

The broken spring could cause the suspension geometry to be a little 'out', which in turn could cause that tyre wear. Is the worn tyre from the same corner as the broken spring?

I notice from the picture of the broken spring in that album (I'm a nosey sod) there's quite a bit of corrosion at the break, indicating it's been broken for some time.
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New Thu 26 Aug 10 12:24 
 Ford KA, KA2, KA3 - Pics! (uneven tyre wear and suspension arms) - tyro
"it's been broken for some time."

Thanks for that.

The coil spring was offside rear, the tyre was nearside front.
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New Thu 26 Aug 10 12:21 
 Ford KA, KA2, KA3 - Pics! (uneven tyre wear and suspension arms) - tyro
Hmmm. Looks like the bushes parted company with the arms and didn't make it home.

tinyurl.com/36yubd6
tinyurl.com/34e6pf3
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New Thu 26 Aug 10 12:08 
 Ford KA, KA2, KA3 - Pics! (uneven tyre wear and suspension arms) - sherlock47
Looking at the last picture in your album of a rusted sill, I think that my advice would be to sell the car on NOW!

At least you can offer it it with a 12 month MoT, and good documentary proof of expenditure. It may impress some poor unsuspecting buyer.

If lucky you will get back the majority of your last service invoice.
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New Thu 26 Aug 10 12:26 
 Ford KA, KA2, KA3 - Pics! (uneven tyre wear and suspension arms) - RattleandSmoke
That rust near the sill is quite shocking for such a new car. I was joking about it not lasting another 12 months because its a Ka and will rot. It seems its already got to that stage :(.

Its a shame ebcause with oil changes those engines go on for ever, and every single Ford with that gearbox I have driven has always had the sweetest gear change better than any of the new french stuff.

With the rust I would sand it down, apply K-RUST and then respray but it may be hard to get an exact match that colour :(. I used to this with my dads Escort and although it never cured the rust it stopped it going worse and in the five years we had the car rust was never an issue for the MOT.

You do need to sort something out with the sill though, my mads was only slightly worse than that it and it failed. It meant the brake pipes were no longer attached to the chasis and were dangling down.
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New Thu 26 Aug 10 12:30 
 Ford KA, KA2, KA3 - Pics! (uneven tyre wear and suspension arms) - tyro
pmh & Rattle -

apologies, but that pic of the sill is two or three years old.

It has since been dealt with by Ford under warranty - though will probably appear again some time!
Last edited by: tyro on Thu 26 Aug 10 at 12:31
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New Thu 26 Aug 10 12:37 
 Ford KA, KA2, KA3 - Pics! (uneven tyre wear and suspension arms) - tyro
Rusty sill:
Further to my last post: Horrible pic taken July 2008, it was buffed down and resprayed by the dealer courtesy of the manufacturer's warranty in June 2009.
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New Thu 26 Aug 10 12:43 
 Ford KA, KA2, KA3 - Pics! (uneven tyre wear and suspension arms) - RattleandSmoke
Actually from that picture the sill itself looks ok, its the area above the sill which will cause issues. If you can treat it now it might stop is spreading onto the sill and causing MOT issues. For whats worth one of my dads wheel arches has internal rotting (from the inside) but so far its not been a problem for the MOT.

Still so poor though, I suspect some of the later examples had worse rust proofing than the earlier ones.
Last edited by: RattleandSmoke on Thu 26 Aug 10 at 12:43
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