i30 Owners Club
GOT PROBLEMS OR ISSUES? => GENERAL => Topic started by: Soegaard on October 13, 2018, 20:10:47
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Hello all!
My 2009 i30 1.6 crdi, has yet another problem. :blubber:
The left rear corner of the car was hanging about 2-3 cm. (ca. 1 inch) lower than the right side.
Therefore I replaced both rear coil springs and shocks, and got the car aligned. Now the car drives smooth, straight and i can't feel anything wrong with it. After I replaced the springs and coils, the car seemed to be at even high in the rear. After about 1 week, the car started sagging again.
Today I tore the whole thing apart again, nothing unusual to notice. Everything seems fine and in good working condition.
If i look under the car, it is clear to see, that the left spring seems more compressed than the right one.
Do you guys have any suggestions to what might by wrong?
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Hello all!
My 2009 i30 1.6 crdi, has yet another problem. :blubber:
The left rear corner of the car was hanging about 2-3 cm. (ca. 1 inch) lower than the right side.
Therefore I replaced both rear coil springs and shocks, and got the car aligned. Now the car drives smooth, straight and i can't feel anything wrong with it. After I replaced the springs and coils, the car seemed to be at even high in the rear. After about 1 week, the car started sagging again.
Today I tore the whole thing apart again, nothing unusual to notice. Everything seems fine and in good working condition.
If i look under the car, it is clear to see, that the left spring seems more compressed than the right one.
Do you guys have any suggestions to what might by wrong?
No but I think we'd love some images of the whole set up . Seems somewhat impossible if it's all new springs and shocks
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I know. It is strange. Can it be one of the lower arms / components, who is at fault?
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I know. It is strange. Can it be one of the lower arms / components, who is at fault?
Honestly without seeing something I don't know what to think. If an arm or bushing was bad surely there's be other issues with that like noise, movement and alignment issues plus whoever did the work you would think they would investigate the original problem first before replacing those parts unless you just did it hoping.
initially I was expecting a broken spring ,
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The only thing that comes to mind without any clues is that perhaps the rear (or even front) right suspension is somehow binding, forcing added pressure on the left rear.
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Could the camber of the roads be causing the a problem with the set up plus pot holes?
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I can only think of wrong mix of springs or that one is faulty and has lost some tension.
have you tried swapping them to the opposite side?
TIP: Place car clear of pot holes when measuring height. :D
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Springs are typically marked LH/RH.
Have then been fitted to the wrong side ?
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Springs are typically marked LH/RH.
Have then been fitted to the wrong side ?
How did you come up with that one? OEM springs front have same part number, OEM springs rear have same number so not sided.
Rear shocks not sided , same part number, rear mounts same number not sided
macpherson struts are sided, struts mounts are not, same part number
Do you have any examples of this?
I can understand a NASCAR having a biased setup on one side for ovals.
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I can understand a NASCAR having a biased setup on one side for ovals.
Lester sort of said that; the i30 DANISHCAR
Could the camber of the roads be causing the problem ?
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I can understand a NASCAR having a biased setup on one side for ovals.
Lester sort of said that; the i30 DANISHCAR
Could the camber of the roads be causing the problem ?
So wish we had a visual
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I can understand a NASCAR having a biased setup on one side for ovals.
Lester sort of said that; the i30 DANISHCAR
Could the camber of the roads be causing the problem ?
So wish we had a visual
:scared: Of Lester? :faint:
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I can understand a NASCAR having a biased setup on one side for ovals.
Lester sort of said that; the i30 DANISHCAR
Could the camber of the roads be causing the problem ?
So wish we had a visual
:scared: Of Lester? :faint:
have you taken your pills today?
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I suggest moving the fat passenger from the rear of vehicle :P :snigger:
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I suggest moving the fat passenger from the rear of vehicle :P :snigger:
You're rude. You know how much effort I've made not to ask the obvious about ballast and it's distribution :head_butt:
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:D :goodjob2:
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Springs are typically marked LH/RH.
Have then been fitted to the wrong side ?
How did you come up with that one? OEM springs front have same part number, OEM springs rear have same number so not sided.
Rear shocks not sided , same part number, rear mounts same number not sided
macpherson struts are sided, struts mounts are not, same part number
Do you have any examples of this?
Pretty much every after market spring ive ever fitted, typically a vehicle will sit higher on the drivers side.
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Springs are typically marked LH/RH.
Have then been fitted to the wrong side ?
How did you come up with that one? OEM springs front have same part number, OEM springs rear have same number so not sided.
Rear shocks not sided , same part number, rear mounts same number not sided
macpherson struts are sided, struts mounts are not, same part number
Do you have any examples of this?
Pretty much every after market spring ive ever fitted, typically a vehicle will sit higher on the drivers side.
Must be specialised applications then. Sounds expensive too.
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Springs are typically marked LH/RH.
Have then been fitted to the wrong side ?
How did you come up with that one? OEM springs front have same part number, OEM springs rear have same number so not sided.
Rear shocks not sided , same part number, rear mounts same number not sided
macpherson struts are sided, struts mounts are not, same part number
Do you have any examples of this?
Pretty much every after market spring ive ever fitted, typically a vehicle will sit higher on the drivers side.
Must be specialised applications then. Sounds expensive too.
off the shelf springs (both coil and leaf) from various suppliers.
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Springs are typically marked LH/RH.
Have then been fitted to the wrong side ?
How did you come up with that one? OEM springs front have same part number, OEM springs rear have same number so not sided.
Rear shocks not sided , same part number, rear mounts same number not sided
macpherson struts are sided, struts mounts are not, same part number
Do you have any examples of this?
Pretty much every after market spring ive ever fitted, typically a vehicle will sit higher on the drivers side.
Must be specialised applications then. Sounds expensive too.
off the shelf springs (both coil and leaf) from various suppliers.
I have struck this too, although not aware of it with Hyundai.
The Yanks are very much into different kerbside geometry. When I was doing imports and Left to Right hand steering swaps this was a factor. With pickups, The Fords never really worked for me. GM better, Mopar came up as good as in the US.
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Okay, to clear things up a bit :)
The car was sitting low in the rear left corner, which is the driver’s side where I live.
Therefore, I inspected the suspension and found, that the left rear shock looked worn and the coil spring looked worn and compressed compared to the right one. As the parts was somewhat inexpensive and old I chose to replace them with Monroe shocks and Lesjöfors coil springs, who is a Swedish manufacturer. After the new parts settled over a week, I had the car aligned and everything was fine for about one week, then the rear left corner started to sag again.
I have checked that the part numbers are correct, and both sides uses the same parts. Everything was torqued down to specs.
This is very strange! If I get the chance today, i will take it all apart again.
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Okay, to clear things up a bit :)
The car was sitting low in the rear left corner, which is the driver’s side where I live.
Therefore, I inspected the suspension and found, that the left rear shock looked worn and the coil spring looked worn and compressed compared to the right one. As the parts was somewhat inexpensive and old I chose to replace them with Monroe shocks and Lesjöfors coil springs, who is a Swedish manufacturer. After the new parts settled over a week, I had the car aligned and everything was fine for about one week, then the rear left corner started to sag again.
I have checked that the part numbers are correct, and both sides uses the same parts. Everything was torqued down to specs.
This is very strange! If I get the chance today, i will take it all apart again.
please take some picks as it is first. If you have a ruler to place in the shot that way we can really see the height difference.
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Your explanation is perfect.
Assuming mother-in-law has left the building, the only other variable I can think of is an empty to full tank of fuel.
Even so, the spring would have to be inadequate.
Shockies, should have no affect even if they are as old as. However, worth checking to see if LH shock is sticking and not travelling to full range. :undecided:
Irrespective, a L to R swap is probably the only way to prove the point.
I await with interest :cool:
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Disassembled the whole thing again yesterday, including removing of the lower control arms.
Discovered that the bushing in the hub carrier on the left side was worn a small amount and had a little more flexibility and give compared to the right one. But certainly not enough to cause a 3 cm. drop. Cleaned everything up and swapped the springs around. Same as last time, everything looked fine right after. I measured that the left side was around 3-5mm lower than the right, which is acceptable. Today I am going on a 200-mile trip. Exciting to see the results after some driving. If there is no improvement I will post some pictures for you guys.
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Disassembled the whole thing again yesterday, including removing of the lower control arms.
Discovered that the bushing in the hub carrier on the left side was worn a small amount and had a little more flexibility and give compared to the right one. But certainly not enough to cause a 3 cm. drop. Cleaned everything up and swapped the springs around. Same as last time, everything looked fine right after. I measured that the left side was around 3-5mm lower than the right, which is acceptable. Today I am going on a 200-mile trip. Exciting to see the results after some driving. If there is no improvement I will post some pictures for you guys.
Sounds like a plan
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After around 800 km. The left rear side sits lower again, around 1.5- 2cm.
I have checked everything, and still nothing to notice. Tried to take pictures, but it did not make a lot of sense because there is nothing to see, except that the left side sits lower.
This is surely a very strange and frustrating problem. :blubber: :blubber:
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Okay,
Remove spring / pack top & bottom by 10mm/ replace spring.
Measure. Drive & measure. If sag that again? ?? New car ???
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I agree that pictures are not going to be of any use. I have a couple of FDs here so will measure them later today and get back.
I have measured a difference in height on some i30s, but never enough to catch your eye. Cause was usually bad wheel alignment (castor) or similar.
Have you noticed much height difference between full and empty fuel tank?
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Okay,
Remove spring / pack top & bottom by 10mm/ replace spring.
Measure. Drive & measure. If sag that again? ?? New car ???
Or put a larger wheel/ tyre on it . :evil:
"If i look under the car, it is clear to see, that the left spring seems more compressed than the right one."
(1st post)
What will cause that? extra weight! From where?
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Do you need to look at this another way. Perhaps the left side is not lower than it should be - but the right side is too high.
This is a crazy notion :crazy1: - but is there any component in the right side that could stop the suspension on that side from going down beyond a certain point. :Dunno:
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Do you need to look at this another way. Perhaps the left side is not lower than it should be - but the right side is too high.
This is a crazy notion :crazy1: - but is there any component in the right side that could stop the suspension on that side from going down beyond a certain point. :Dunno:
:brilliant:
You should have been an engineer in a past life.. oh hang on! :lol:
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Do you need to look at this another way. Perhaps the left side is not lower than it should be - but the right side is too high.
This is a crazy notion :crazy1: - but is there any component in the right side that could stop the suspension on that side from going down beyond a certain point. :Dunno:
Now you've turned it all on it's head :wacko:
Might be right there, I can see someone crawling around a lot of cars to get some ideas of how it all sits .
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Do you need to look at this another way. Perhaps the left side is not lower than it should be - but the right side is too high.
This is a crazy notion :crazy1: - but is there any component in the right side that could stop the suspension on that side from going down beyond a certain point. :Dunno:
Now you've turned it all on it's head :wacko:
Might be right there, I can see someone crawling around a lot of cars to get some ideas of how it all sits .
:'(
Just back from shed #1 FD = Left 0.8 cm (8 mm) higher than Right. (measured at centre of rear wheel arch)
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The only thing that comes to mind without any clues is that perhaps the rear (or even front) right suspension is somehow binding, forcing added pressure on the left rear.
:whistler:
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The only thing that comes to mind without any clues is that perhaps the rear (or even front) right suspension is somehow binding, forcing added pressure on the left rear.
:whistler:
Reply #4 , re read post and spotted it earlier. Would be feeling really weird to drive and at times harsh with a solid thud.
After new springs etc it settled after a few days to be back about where it was. :crazy2:
Raising usually lets everything relax , the settle again . :wacko: :crazy1:
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Where are we heading with this trivia?
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Where are we heading with this trivia?
Ahhh, won't be to Denmark to have a look. Just thinking out loud I suppose :undecided:
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well, I took my milspec $5 tape measure still in cal and the wagon was even, the 2 hatches had variation, the driveway is slightly sloped and I know the hand brakes on those are not grabbing evenly and affects the rear end.
The heaviest part of the vehicle I suspect would be RHF with the engine on that side , pedals and the steering column.
Left side rear clearnace was higher 10-14 mm
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:'(
Just back from shed #1 FD = Left 0.8 cm (8 mm) higher than Right. (measured at centre of rear wheel arch)
Left #2 FD = 18 mm Lower than Right :phone1:
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Wow, looks like we've just entered "The Twilght Zone". :crazy1: :crazy1:
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well, I took my milspec $5 tape measure still in cal and the wagon was even, the 2 hatches had variation, the driveway is slightly sloped and I know the hand brakes on those are not grabbing evenly and affects the rear end.
The heaviest part of the vehicle I suspect would be RHF with the engine on that side , pedals and the steering column.
Left side rear clearnace was higher 10-14 mm
Worthless :rip:
Take all 12 cars down to a level street. The crooked Mayor's one will be perfectly level, and gold plated, wife and children can act as relay team to bring cars :Drive: beer and sandwiches.
We await your spreadsheet. and......
:weneedpics:
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Does your car have the "twist beam" rear suspension? A pressed "C" channel and sway bay running side to side with the trailing arms attached?
If so it may have had a hit and changing springs shocks etc won't help.
If the beam is bent from original specs it's never going to sit level.
This design is the poor mans semi independent suspension where the wheels try to move independently by twisting that beam.
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I would suggest it is the same suspension as your i30 which has ????????
As an example, Volkswagen dropped the twist-beam in favour of a true IRS ( independant Rear suspension) for the Volkswagen Golf Mk5, possibly in response to the Ford Focus' Control Blade rear suspension as well as the Hyundai Elantra (HD) or newer and Hyundai i30. General Motors in Europe Vauxhall/Opel have continued to use twist- or torsion- beam suspension. ( Wiki)
irrespective, I agree that past accident damage ( that the owner may not know about) could result in the height difference. I suspect that is the case with my #2.
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I think most owners could be excused for thing their car had an independent rear end.
When they look under and see coils, trailing arms, shocks etc it all looks the goods but in fact it's a compromise.
Does the job OK, ride/handling not too bad but accident damage or perhaps poor quality control ?? that's something else.
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I would suggest it is the same suspension as your i30 which has ????????
As an example, Volkswagen dropped the twist-beam in favour of a true IRS ( independant Rear suspension) for the Volkswagen Golf Mk5, possibly in response to the Ford Focus' Control Blade rear suspension as well as the Hyundai Elantra (HD) or newer and Hyundai i30. General Motors in Europe Vauxhall/Opel have continued to use twist- or torsion- beam suspension. ( Wiki)
irrespective, I agree that past accident damage ( that the owner may not know about) could result in the height difference. I suspect that is the case with my #2.
Sorry to hear about your number #2, would you like me to refer you to a good proctologist :rolleyes:
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I would suggest it is the same suspension as your i30 which has ????????
As an example, Volkswagen dropped the twist-beam in favour of a true IRS ( independant Rear suspension) for the Volkswagen Golf Mk5, possibly in response to the Ford Focus' Control Blade rear suspension as well as the Hyundai Elantra (HD) or newer and Hyundai i30. General Motors in Europe Vauxhall/Opel have continued to use twist- or torsion- beam suspension. ( Wiki)
irrespective, I agree that past accident damage ( that the owner may not know about) could result in the height difference. I suspect that is the case with my #2.
Sorry to hear about your number #2, would you like me to refer you to a good proctologist :rolleyes:
:mrgreen: I knew you would pick that one up. :whistler:
Found the car was parked in a different area, front wheels 30 deg to the right (would expect that to push down on left rear) Not so! Left is now only 7 mm lower than Right.
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I think most owners could be excused for thing their car had an independent rear end.
When they look under and see coils, trailing arms, shocks etc it all looks the goods but in fact it's a compromise.
Does the job OK, ride/handling not too bad but accident damage or perhaps poor quality control ?? that's something else.
@crayman I asked you what was under your i30, but got no answer, so I pulled two out of my cars, took this photo and then put them back in.
(https://i.imgur.com/xBpLNPM.jpg)
The closest suspension is FD (IRS) behind is GD which has a torsion bar.
Having realigned quite a few FDs, I know when done properly they work fine. Problems with achieving a perfect result have always been due to body / chassis twist. But this type of rear end does allow for quite a deal of adjustment to compensate.
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Thank you guys for all the great replies since my last post! :)
My car has the independent rear, not a torsion beam setup. I believe we get this in Denmark on all the i30 models from FD to the current one.
I don't believe that the car has been in an accident before, as the is no signs of repair or painting.
I have ordered new bushings for the lower control-arm, where it joins with the hub carrier. Maybe this will fix the problem? They are a bit worn, especially on the left side.
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I think most owners could be excused for thing their car had an independent rear end.
When they look under and see coils, trailing arms, shocks etc it all looks the goods but in fact it's a compromise.
Does the job OK, ride/handling not too bad but accident damage or perhaps poor quality control ?? that's something else.
@crayman I asked you what was under your i30, but got no answer, so I pulled two out of my cars, took this photo and then put them back in.
(https://i.imgur.com/xBpLNPM.jpg)
The closest suspension is GD (IRS) behind is FD which has a torsion bar.
Having realigned quite a few FDs, I know when done properly they work fine. Problems with achieving a perfect result have always been due to body / chassis twist. But this type of rear end does allow for quite a deal of adjustment to compensate.
Yeah I think you may have that crossed up.
IRS was across the board for FD series,
That was dropped with the GD with only the tourer and high end models in GD had IRS , base models had torsion.
Seatbelt strapping was not part of the design
I took my FD one out
(https://preview.ibb.co/dLVzoL/20170109-060432.jpg) (https://ibb.co/jjZQTL)
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Yeah I think you may have that crossed up.
IRS was across the board for FD series,
That was dropped with the GD with only the tourer and high end models in GD had IRS , base models had torsion.
I don't think even the high end GD's (SR) had IRS, only the Czech built tourer and 3dr's like mine :undecided:
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Yeah I think you may have that crossed up.
IRS was across the board for FD series,
That was dropped with the GD with only the tourer and high end models in GD had IRS , base models had torsion.
I don't think even the high end GD's (SR) had IRS, only the Czech built tourer and 3dr's like mine :undecided:
I'd have to check more, hard to believe in the several wirte ups by a professional car journalist did not go into that detail.
yes you're right, Tourer and 3 door which could be a sports version was IRS. I may be getting mixed up with PD as I think that too IRS is not standard but in essence the first series was 100% IRS.
You reach a point where you get tired of researching still get the same point across though. :winker:
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I know the PD SR models definitely have IRS, lower range don’t but I’m not sure about the other PD top end Elite model :undecided:
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Gerard that rear is out of the FD cw at a guess.
The FD one in my pix is 2009 hatch.
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I know the PD SR models definitely have IRS, lower range don’t but I’m not sure about the other PD top end Elite model :undecided:
I went back into the catalogs and it does appear Czech built 3 dr and Tourer for IRS, everything else was torsion
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Gerard that rear is out of the FD cw at a guess.
The FD one in my pix is 2009 hatch.
And ?
The rear end is identical and can interchange. Only point of difference , springs.
Old CW end is in the tractor with hatch springs. :mrgreen:
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I went back into the catalogs and it does appear Czech built 3 dr and Tourer for IRS, everything else was torsion
Yep :goodjob:
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I guess all this has solved the sagging :sweating:
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I guess all this has solved the sagging :sweating:
I'm not falling for that smoke grenade :rofl:
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Sorry for late reply, don't frequent this site too often.
Mrs's GD has the arse end in your top photo. You can clearly see the pressed channel beam and bar up the centre.
Her car is a 2012 5-door hatch.
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Soon after I bought (new) my right hand drive UK specification 2009.5 model year Czech built 1.6 u2 crdi 6 gear manual 5 door comfort hatch I noticed that there was less clearance between the left passenger side rear tyre and wheel arch than on the right driver's side. I did nothing about it and it caused no problems that I was aware of for the 8 years and 288,000 miles that I had the car.