New shock absorber tester does away with questionable results

21st June 2013

By: Ilan Solomons

Creamer Media Staff Writer

  

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South African shock absorber manufacturer Control Instruments Automotive’s (CI-A’s) flagship brand, Gabriel, launched a new, internationally recognised shock tester tailored to the South African automotive market in late 2012.

“Gabriel spent 2011/12 developing and adopting an internationally recognised shock tester for the South African automotive market,” says CI-A drive control divisional head Sean Staley, who explains that the company undertook this development because reports by clients and fitment centres indicated that other shock absorber testers had delivered suspect results, such as recommending new shocks for almost new vehicles.

The Gabriel shock tester is manufactured by embedded electronic and automotive diagnostic systems manufacturer Actia Automotive. The shock tester measures the phase damping coefficient.

Staley says the shock tester, as opposed to other shock testers manufactured overseas and used by the South African automotive market, has been adapted to the needs of the South African automotive industry.

He adds that, to date, more than 40 units have been sold to local fitment centres and retail outlets.

Staley states that a shock tester should be used only by a well-trained technician and only for indicative purposes.

“A visual inspection of the shock absorbers, in conjunction with the machine testing, is also mandatory. After testing undertaken by Gabriel engineers on a range of passenger vehicles, the conclusion we draw is that the company’s shock tester finds a fine balance between ride comfort and safety in determining the state of the shock absorber,” claims Staley.

He stresses that incorrect interpretation of shock tester results can be a serious problem, which is why the Gabriel tester produces a printed report which cannot be altered.

“This feature, therefore, prevents a fitment centre from misinterpreting or manipulating the results to generate a sale,” emphasises Staley.

Getting Correct Results

Staley explains that, in adopting the Gabriel shock system, mathematical compensation is required to accommodate lower road adherence for light
rear-axle configuration vehicles.

Recently, Gabriel tested a Volkswagen Golf with an odometer reading of 53 459 km and a Hyundai i20 with a 32 657 km reading, which is still within the factory warranty period.

He highlights that Hyundai guarantees that its vehicles will be free from any mechanical errors for up to 150 000 km, while Volkswagen guarantees that its vehicles will be free from mechanical errors for up to 120 000 km.

Staley claims that a competitor’s suspension tester failed the Volkswagen Golf, while passing the Hyundai i20, based on incorrect shock absorber testing criteria, which he believes was a result of operator error.

He

says both these vehicles, grouped in the light rear-axle class, are known to be problematic when tested.

Further, he says, in terms of the front axle, there was also an ambiguous reference made to the light rear axle.

“The vehicle detail was not printed on the test report, but was handwritten and, therefore, the integrity of the test report is questionable,” says Staley.

“The vehicles have front-wheel-drive configuration, with a hatchback layout. This causes a heavy forward vehicle weight distribution and because of this unbalance, the lighter rear axle leans towards lower road adherence,” he explains.

Road adherence is influenced by axle mass and tyre pressure, which makes testing of light- axle vehicles difficult. The Gabriel test screen indicates the road adherence factors, but does not take these into account as pass/fail criteria.

“Front- and rear-axle mass are compensated for on the Gabriel test bench, giving a significantly more accurate reading for light-axle vehicles,” he asserts.

Gabriel shock testers’ advanced and accurate technology differentiates it from similar devices, because it is not directly influenced by road adherence, he concludes.

Edited by Tracy Hancock
Creamer Media Contributing Editor

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