Ts18Q7

Hey there. I have an 18 Q7 prestige, 90k miles. Just put new vredestein tires 15 months ago. 12k miles ago. Rear driver side has been 2 inches lower for at least 2 years. Upon state inspection, mech says found a broken rear spring. He replaced both rear springs and shocks. Since then the ride is nowhere near the same. Dry road it feels loose on uneven road or potholes. Now it's winter and the truck feels super loose like its sliding on snowy or icy roads even at 30 mph. I took it back to mechanic and he says must be the tires... Should I take it for an alignment somewhere else? Not sure what to do. Hubby thinks I'm nuts...I love this truck but am afraid to drive it in the weather now.

'10Q7TDI_Prestige'

First question you should ask is did the mechanic use the OE/OEM shocks and springs, which are high-end units, or did he go to the aftermarket parts bin? There's a huge difference in shock tuning if you go with aftermarket items. Next, tires are what connects the car to the road surface, so worn or overinflated, or trying to use incorrect tires for Winter driving on snow/ice conditions, etc., that's most likely just your tire selection, or that in combination with tire pressures being incorrect, etc. The rear tires don't need to be inlated at max pressure when the car isn't loaded down with people and other gear in cargo area, etc. That's just a recipe for a poor ride; the placard on driver door pillar indicates the air pressure for maximum vehicle load rating, which is not what you need if the car is empty, or you are not towing a trailer with, etc.

The alignment (all four wheels) affects tire wear and steering/braking dynamics and should be verified/done whenever replacing tires. A bad alignment is visible in how the edges of tire tread is wearing, and often the steering feels 'off' and the steering wheel may appear off-center as well. It won't hurt you to go get an alignment check if worried about it, and often you can get a 'check' done for free. If you rely on shops or others to verify /fill your tires, they are likely over-filled, which makes them ride 'hard'. Likewise, if the rear shocks /springs aren't the same parts your car had on it prior, it's gonna feel like garbage in comparison due to superior spring rates, and custom damping tuning of the shocks specifically to the Q7. Tires generally don't do well in snow/ice unless they are specifically designed to excel in snow/ice conditions, which requires specific design/tire compounds be used, so if they are high performance all-season tires or summers, don't expect them to be snow shoes too.

Ts18Q7

Thank you so much for the reply. Come to find out that the original shop installed the new driver side OEM spring upside down but passenger side correctly. The spring was touching the control arm, hence the rough ride. Tore up the rear tires driving for 5 months on a bad setup. New shop reinstalled the spring and a 4 wheel alignment. New tires this week's and she is all back to normal. I appreciate your insight.