I used to pay very little attention to potholes – principally because I had an older car that didn’t ride very well in the first place. Now however, having invested in something a little bit more comfortable, I’m paying more attention. My new car has a much smoother, comfortable ride which means that driving into a pothole is an extremely jarring experience.
UK roads have suffered from a number of severe winters along with a repair schedule that many maintain simply isn’t up to scratch. The result? Poorly or simply non repaired roads that can cause damage to your car. But what kind of damage can be caused by driving into a pothole?
Tyres
Tyres can be damaged by driving into a pothole. Some of them are almost as deep as a curbside meaning you can scrape or scratch alloys as well as causing a tear or puncture in your tyre. Repeatedly driving over potholes will certainly affect your tyre pressure. In the worst case, a pothole can cause a rim (or alloy if you prefer) to crack.
Wheel alignment
Potholes can affect your wheel alignment. Rather than both wheels facing straight for example when the wheel is in the central position, one or both could be slightly off. This affects steering and one of the causes can be turning whilst driving over a pothole, effectively trapping the wheel in position.
Suspension
I myself had a coil spring snap following driving over speed bumps and badly surfaced roads for a previous job years ago. Owing to the stresses that the spring was under repeatedly, eventually the spring failed. Other parts of the suspension such as the linkage and control arms can all be affected by excessive stress which severe potholes can bring on.
Other damage
A car bottoming out can render lower vehicle parts vulnerable to damage. Exhausts, mudguards and other parts affixed to the car can work themselves loose or suffer from minor damage owing to crashing into potholes.
Driving dynamics
Be extremely careful of large potholes as it can, in the most severe of cases, affect the direction your vehicle is travelling in. This can be particularly dangerous if you’re on a roundabout or some other junction where it can jeopardise your lane discipline.
Conclusion
Avoid potholes and poorly surfaced roads if you can. They are not good for your car and if nothing else can make the journey less comfortable. The government runs a website which has a ‘Report a Pothole‘ service. If we don’t tell them, I guess they can’t (or won’t) fix it…
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