Suspect steering to Audi A4 following accident repair (UK based)

I recently had a minor dispute with a lorry whose rear wheels scraped
along the side of my Audi A4. This necessitated a respray of the
offside of the car and replacement of various trim components. The
offside front wheel also suffered a knock and this upset the steering
system, which was supposedly rectified by the replacement of a number
of links in the suspension system.

The repair was handled my Norwich Union's authorised repairer and took
a lengthy 29 days (could it be they obtained a kick-back from the loan
car hire company?). On initial collection I rejected the repair
because they had omitted to respray the chipped door mirror. Whilst
this had been on their job sheet it had somehow been overlooked.
After a few days I noticed further problems, namely wind noise from
the driver's door due to poor window alignment, the driver electric
window mechanism catching as the window was wound up and down, and the
steering feeling odd on sharp right hand cornering. I took the car
back to the repairer and the first two problems were rectified.
However, they were unable to find anything wrong with the steering.

When I make a tight right hand manoeuvre at relatively low speed, such
as in a car park, the steering wheel offers no resistance and feels as
if it is pulling towards the right. This is accompanied by a
scrabbling sound from the tyres. The car did not do this before the
accident. Given the repairer's poor quality control I am reluctant to
accept their assurance that nothing is wrong. Should I get the car
independently checked, if so by whom? Presumably I should inform the
repairer of this and expect them to pick up the tab if they are shown
to be negligent. Should I inform the insurance company of my concern,
if so at what stage?

have someone with some mechanical experience follow you along a straight
road. A poorly aligned or damaged steering will result in the vehicle
crabbing. It is so obvious when you follow one of these.

dj

Typo wrote:
> I recently had a minor dispute with a lorry whose rear wheels scraped
> along the side of my Audi A4. This necessitated a respray of the
> offside of the car and replacement of various trim components. The
> offside front wheel also suffered a knock and this upset the steering
> system, which was supposedly rectified by the replacement of a number
> of links in the suspension system.
>
> The repair was handled my Norwich Union's authorised repairer and took
> a lengthy 29 days (could it be they obtained a kick-back from the loan
> car hire company?). On initial collection I rejected the repair
> because they had omitted to respray the chipped door mirror. Whilst
> this had been on their job sheet it had somehow been overlooked.
> After a few days I noticed further problems, namely wind noise from
> the driver's door due to poor window alignment, the driver electric
> window mechanism catching as the window was wound up and down, and the
> steering feeling odd on sharp right hand cornering. I took the car
> back to the repairer and the first two problems were rectified.
> However, they were unable to find anything wrong with the steering.
>
> When I make a tight right hand manoeuvre at relatively low speed, such
> as in a car park, the steering wheel offers no resistance and feels as
> if it is pulling towards the right. This is accompanied by a
> scrabbling sound from the tyres. The car did not do this before the
> accident. Given the repairer's poor quality control I am reluctant to
> accept their assurance that nothing is wrong. Should I get the car
> independently checked, if so by whom? Presumably I should inform the
> repairer of this and expect them to pick up the tab if they are shown
> to be negligent. Should I inform the insurance company of my concern,
> if so at what stage?
I would inform them. Now. This isn't unusual, in my experience. See
http://www.piglet-net.net/bodge-it-up.html for my experiences. By the
time the insurer got back to me I'd already traded it in for my Audi,
thankfully, as I'd already decided not too keep it.

I'd also take you car straight along to a proper 4-wheel alignment place
(not just a tyre fitter), and take a close look at the tyres too. You'll
find they will quickly wear strangely with a bad misalignment- you can
sometimes feel feathering on the edged of the tread.

Basically the 'approved repairers' are ****. ****ter than ****. but
they're cheap, so your insurer likes them. I know it's a bit late now,
but the Audi insurance scheme guarantees a franchised bodyshop, and they
gave me an excellent quote too.