Splash guard plastic is scraping...

[mjames]

I lowered my car on KW HAS a while back and just took it to the Tail of the Dragon for some spirited mountain runs. Did great, except I immediately had the problem of the plastic splash guards hanging down by each wheel would scrap the road on every turn. Sounds like a snow plow, I literally cringed with embarrassment as I passed bystanders. We determined it's that, not the tire itself hitting the fender.

Mind you, I am not slammed, either. It's the plastic wheel well liner area that is scraping the pavement. Surely others have had this problem?

Something has to be done, as I literally can't drive my car spiritedly in the twisties...

[GMP Performance]

We're more than happy to help. I'll shoot you a PM.

[mjames]

Aren't others having this problem, too, with lowered cars? That's what I don't get, how this isn't an issue that comes up a lot. Are these cars just not meant to be lowered and driven hard?! My E46 M3 never scraped when I lowered it on springs.

[mjames]

So fender liner is probably correct term for what is scraping... Anyone have thoughts on this? My car is not modified other than the springs. And I can guarantee the fender liner is scraping all over in spirited driving...

[whiped]

Is the tire rubbing on the top or is the bottom rubbing on the pavement?

The first is FAR more likely. You should be able to visibly see where it was rubbing.

Might need to adjust the camber on the wheels.

[mjames]

We had the windows open and could hear the noise on every corner ... was definitely plastic scraping the pavement, NOT rubber. Felt in the fender and no rubber. Tire did not appear to be rubbing.

[whiped]

We had the windows open and could hear the noise on every corner ... was definitely plastic scraping the pavement, NOT rubber. Felt in the fender and no rubber. Tire did not appear to be rubbing.

If it was on the pavement there are going to be some marks. shove a camera under there and take some pictures.

[NPuter]

We had the windows open and could hear the noise on every corner ... was definitely plastic scraping the pavement, NOT rubber. Felt in the fender and no rubber. Tire did not appear to be rubbing.

My A4 was slammed and I never hit the plastic things that hang down in front of the wheels. However, I scraped my fenders constantly (killed them on the tail of the dragon lol). I don't even see how it would be possible to scrape the plastic things without the tire hitting the fender.

And the tire rubbing the fender sounds nothing like what you would expect rubber rubbing up against something to sound like. Rather, it is a very loud/metallic scraping sound. I can easily see how one would confuse this for something hitting the pavement.

Also don't go by the lack of a presence of shaved rubber either - check to see if you have scrape marks on the inside of your fenders.

[SteveYem]

It will help greatly if the OP can post some photos of the parts that he thinks are contacting the ground.

[NPuter]

A couple of pics pre and post tail, just because. Never enjoyed that car more :)





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[mjames]

I'll try to get some pictures soon.

[SteveYem]

I'll try to get some pictures soon.

Sounds good. FWIW, I had pretty bad rubbing between the edge of my tire tread and the pinch weld (at least I think it's a pinch weld) on the inside of the rear passenger side fender just above where the bumper meets the fender. It sounded almost like plastic scraping the ground whenever it would rub. I found small striations in the very edge of the tire tread surface all the way around the tire and the location of the marks led me to surmise that the tire was contacting that little metal nub on the fender.

What is your wheel offset and tire size / type / brand? Also, what is your rear camber setting?

[mjames]

I'm running AG M590 19x9.5 et40 wheels and 255/35/19 Pilot Super Sports. Not sure what my rear camber setting is off hand. I had it aligned to factory specs after lowering. This is happening on all four corners. The road is demanding... https://southlandrealtync.com/wp-con...e-Dragon-2.jpg

[SteveYem]

I'm running AG M590 19x9.5 et40 wheels and 255/35/19 Pilot Super Sports. Not sure what my rear camber setting is off hand. I had it aligned to factory specs after lowering. This is happening on all four corners. The road is demanding... https://southlandrealtync.com/wp-con...e-Dragon-2.jpg

Gotcha. I had the same wheel size, offset and tires on my car last year and was lowered to the point of having ~1/2" tire to fender gap all around. Front camber around -2.0 degrees, rear around -1.7 degrees. I never noticed rubbing up front but would get rubbing at the rear passenger side when the car was loaded and went through a bump or dip in the road. If your camber is within OEM spec all around (which would probably require adjustable front control arms depending how low you are dropped), then I could see the front tires hitting the fender liners.

Regarding the front - did you remove the fender liner screw that is right around the 12 o'clock position inside both front fenders? If not, then I would bet your tires are hitting the heads of those screws. Take a look up in there and you might find some scuffing on your front tire sidewalls and some finish removed from those screw heads.

[mjames]

By the way, I don't see why it'd be hard to imagine this fender lining/splash guard from scraping ... it is literally the lowest hanging piece of the car's underside by each wheel. And also, we could tell it was the culprit because of how it was scraped up from the road.

[NPuter]

Sounds good. FWIW, I had pretty bad rubbing between the edge of my tire tread and the pinch weld (at least I think it's a pinch weld) on the inside of the rear passenger side fender just above where the bumper meets the fender. It sounded almost like plastic scraping the ground whenever it would rub. I found small striations in the very edge of the tire tread surface all the way around the tire and the location of the marks led me to surmise that the tire was contacting that little metal nub on the fender.

What is your wheel offset and tire size / type / brand? Also, what is your rear camber setting?

I rubbed there as well, and do on my 5 as well.

I'm running AG M590 19x9.5 et40 wheels and 255/35/19 Pilot Super Sports. Not sure what my rear camber setting is off hand. I had it aligned to factory specs after lowering. This is happening on all four corners. The road is demanding... https://southlandrealtync.com/wp-con...e-Dragon-2.jpg

I was on AG M510 19x9.5 et40 w/ 255 V12's and 3mm spacers. I rubbed on much lesser than the tail.

By the way, I don't see why it'd be hard to imagine this fender lining/splash guard from scraping ... it is literally the lowest hanging piece of the car's underside by each wheel. And also, we could tell it was the culprit because of how it was scraped up from the road.

I hit mine on speed bumps and when entering inclined driveways (leading to mine being scraped up too), but I don't think I ever scraped it while doing an aggressive turn. Yes it is the lowest point to the ground, but your tires are MUCH closer to your fenders when they're turned (I had almost zero gap). Even when really low, there is a good amount of space between the plastic things and the ground. Therefore, your tires are going to hit your fenders way before the plastic piece will hit the ground.

[NPuter]

Just found a pic. They're pretty far from the ground. And this is with a FTG measurement of 24.5" (VERY low)
My tires were millimeters from the fenders when turned.

[14S4GWM]

Sounds good. FWIW, I had pretty bad rubbing between the edge of my tire tread and the pinch weld (at least I think it's a pinch weld) on the inside of the rear passenger side fender just above where the bumper meets the fender. It sounded almost like plastic scraping the ground whenever it would rub. I found small striations in the very edge of the tire tread surface all the way around the tire and the location of the marks led me to surmise that the tire was contacting that little metal nub on the fender.

What is your wheel offset and tire size / type / brand? Also, what is your rear camber setting?

That is my exact predicament right now. Passenger rear only.

[absolutarin]

Just found a pic. They're pretty far from the ground. And this is with a FTG measurement of 24.5" (VERY low)
My tires were millimeters from the fenders when turned.

Seems like there is a problem with your attachments. You might need to re-upload/attach them.

[NPuter]

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[absolutarin]

...and this is the sole reason I am scared to lower my car

[SteveYem]

That is my exact predicament right now. Passenger rear only.

I had the same issue on my old 2012 S4 as well. I believe the rear subframe is shifted toward the passenger side on these cars for some reason.

[14S4GWM]

I had the same issue on my old 2012 S4 as well. I believe the rear subframe is shifted toward the passenger side on these cars for some reason.

Im thinking about throwing a 10mm spacer on that side. I have a 12mm in there now with an et of 31. Running stock rotors with Conti DWS06.

[b6onboost]

On flat road, when you are lowered the tire will rub the fender liner well before the front bumper or splash guards will bottom out.

However on a road like the Tail with sharp undulations its not uncommon for front overhangs, splitters, lips, etc. to scrape.

By the way, I don't see why it'd be hard to imagine this fender lining/splash guard from scraping ... it is literally the lowest hanging piece of the car's underside by each wheel. And also, we could tell it was the culprit because of how it was scraped up from the road.

[SteveYem]

Im thinking about throwing a 10mm spacer on that side. I have a 12mm in there now with an et of 31. Running stock rotors with Conti DWS06.

My current setup is S4 spec 5-arm rotors, 19x8.5 et43 with Mich. PSS 255/35-19. I installed 10mm spacers all around and the rear passenger side rubbed like crazy. This was the first setup I described above, where the tire tread shoulder was rubbing on the little nub on the inside rear fender. I replaced the 10mm spacer on that corner with a 5mm spacer and now I only hear rubbing over severe dips, but I believe the rubbing is now between the tire and fender liner.

[mjames]

On flat road, when you are lowered the tire will rub the fender liner well before the front bumper or splash guards will bottom out.

However on a road like the Tail with sharp undulations its not uncommon for front overhangs, splitters, lips, etc. to scrape.

I am taking my car in to get looked at, but glad to hear you agreeing with me. The whole reason I have this car and lowered it was for performance driving on these mountain roads. I might as well have a Civic if my car isn't capable of driving these incredible roads.

I have to get this problem fixed, whether it means raising the car, fender rolling, or adjusting the alignment.

By the way, I can even hear the scraping when I take a quick sudden turn ... this happened turning into the Audi dealer this morning (I am also getting a warranty carbon build-up cleaning, ugh). If my car is swaying this much, is it a sign the shocks might be shot or something? 85k miles.

[NPuter]

I am taking my car in to get looked at, but glad to hear you agreeing with me. The whole reason I have this car and lowered it was for performance driving on these mountain roads. I might as well have a Civic if my car isn't capable of driving these incredible roads.

I have to get this problem fixed, whether it means raising the car, fender rolling, or adjusting the alignment.

By the way, I can even hear the scraping when I take a quick sudden turn ... this happened turning into the Audi dealer this morning (I am also getting a warranty carbon build-up cleaning, ugh). If my car is swaying this much, is it a sign the shocks might be shot or something? 85k miles.

Sounds like the drop is not working well with the stock struts. Sounds like they're way too soft for your drop.
I drove the tail hard (and crazier roads hard as well), and have never bottomed out any part of the car. And I'd never scrape fender driving around town.

I still have my set of vogtland coils if you're interested. I think I preferred those to the H&R coils I have on my S5.

[mjames]

Sounds like the drop is not working well with the stock struts. Sounds like they're way too soft for your drop.
I drove the tail hard (and crazier roads hard as well), and have never bottomed out any part of the car. And I'd never scrape fender driving around town.

I still have my set of vogtland coils if you're interested. I think I preferred those to the H&R coils I have on my S5.

Everywhere I read the KW HAS are supposed to pair well with stock struts, I have full ADS ... that's the whole damn reason I bought KW. I do NOT have a bouncy ride... The shocks being shot are just a theory. Do our shocks really wear out in 85k miles? I was under the impression they didn't.

[SteveYem]

If you can give us similar photos to what NPuter posted, we should be able to tell pretty quickly whether those flaps have come into contact with the pavement.