A new study on vehicle safety has found that one in four cars on the road have worn shock absorbers, with many at danger critical wear levels. This could be putting thousands of people at risk, yet most drivers are unaware of the dangers.

This is often because shocks wear slowly and motorists will grow accustomed to the ride and handling changes and amend their style of driving to compensate over time. However, worn shocks are not only dangerous, they can also cause costly damage to vehicle suspension systems, including mountings, tie-rod ends and ball-joints and mean premature tyre wear, leading to unnecessary tyre replacement.

Some of the key safety issues that worn shocks can cause are:

◆ Poor road holding as the tyre contact with the road is compromised.
◆ Dangerous tyre wear patterns.
◆ Increased braking distance. - 2.6 metres extra needed to stop at 80km/h in the dry.
◆ Aquaplaning and dangerous loss of control in the wet.
◆ Dangerous headlight dazzle to other road users.
◆ Increased driver fatigue due to added concentration on driving.

The message to garages and motorists is that shocks need to be checked and replaced where required at regular intervals. This is especially true at this time of year, when vehicles might be undertaking longer, full load, journeys for holidays, or towing caravans or trailers.