Replacing front suspension arms and bushes

[Arctic]

Originally Posted by BigRuss

Yes, the quality of aftermarket parts can be poor to say the least, only last week I was investigating unusual tyre wear on my S60 and also a noticeable clunk from the offside front suspension.

Both front tyres had worn significantly on the inner portion of tread.
When I bought the car 2 years ago both front wishbones/bushes had been replaced by the dealer for the MOT.

I had decided that I would get all the necessary parts together to rebuild the whole of the front suspension, using original replacement parts as it was feeling a bit soft on the original struts and springs.

Finding the clunk was easy, it was down to a failed ball joint

But on removing the bottom arms (which were aftermarket) and comparing them with the new original parts the reason for the tyre wear became obvious.
The aftermarket arms were approx 13mm wider each.
No wonder the tyres were wearing on the inner edges.

Moral of the story here is to always measure/ compare any replacement arms or parts against your old ones

Hi Russ.
I tried your suggestion and this was the results.
1

2

3

three pics above are Febi.

These below are unipart.
4

5

Febi top
6

[BigRuss]

Sorry Steve should have been clearer I meant the other way from the mounting surface to the rubber bush.

It may have just been the angle of the photos but some of the bushes looked higher/lower than the others.

The other important dimension would be from the centre of the mounting bolt hole to the centre of the bush.

Russ

[Typhoon190]

Unfortunately Steve I think even Unipart are using sub standard suppliers to fill their boxes to remain 'competitive'. It really has got out of control this business of 'OEM quality' and 'heavy duty' components. Most is fit for landfill when it's re-boxed in my opinion. There are very few trusted brands left. I try and stick with FAI and TRW where possible.

[Arctic]

Originally Posted by Typhoon190

Unfortunately Steve I

. It really has got out of control this business of 'OEM quality' and 'heavy duty' components. Most is fit for landfill when it's re-boxed in my opinion. There are very few trusted brands left. I try and stick with FAI and TRW where possible.

Hi Ben.
The Unipart ones i have are new old stock, myself and MarinaBrian bought a few sets back in 2016-17 i passed on a couple of sets and kept one for myself, i think Brian has fitted all his, and as not complained about them so i feel safe to say they wil be god enough for me, i don't even think Unipart are doing any parts for our cars now or any other cars i could be wrong.

[BigRuss]

Unipart stopped doing parts a few years ago, any that are about are old stock
A lot of the Unipart parts for our cars were made by the same companies that supplied Rover.

Yes, I agree a lot of aftermarket "OEM" stuff is pure rubbish, even a lot of the trusted brands are not the quality you would expect and not just for 75's/ZT's either.

It's the main reason I don't run a 75 as a daily drive now, at least with the S60, nearly all original parts are available and the companies that supplied the original parts for them are still around (if you don't want to pay the Volvo parts markup) that match the factory originals for quality. Such as Sachs and Lemforder for example. Even Meyle have supplied me with parts in the past that have had the Volvo logo ground off.

TRW are generally very good if I'm looking at parts for 75's/ZT's but unfortunately they only do a limited range. It's certainly getting harder and harder to get good quality parts that are going to last. It can take quite a bit of trawling the net and luck sometimes to get what you want.




Russ

[DMGRS]

I have to say, the amount of goods we stock which don't pass muster and are returned to suppliers is absolutely bonkers.
It used to be a 'naughty corner' and is now a 'naughty room' - this is despite us providing exact specifications to our suppliers when ordering.

It'd be an easy game if we just sent anything out the door - the cost of these 'aftermarket' arms at the moment is at an all-time low (suppliers clearing out stock I suspect) but the quality is awful, from poorly aligned bushes to the hexagon being so mis-shapen the shape is barely identifiable.

We work with a select few suppliers to minimise these issues, but it's still absolutely mind-boggling that so many parts turn up with obvious (and less obvious) issues.
Not to blown our own trumpet, but there's more reason than ever to use MG Rover specialist suppliers these days given what's out there.

[chris75]

I looked up this and other threads as I am currently having bother trying to fit a new bush to a new arm . I have in the past fitted new bushes to existing arms whilst still on the car and found they went on relatively easily , but this new bush won't go on the arm even though I'm working on the bench with a homemade press . So based on past experience I tend to agree that they should push on easily , but indeed Rave say they need a 3-part press tool to assemble .
It looks like I will be reaching for the file , but does anyone know what the correct across-the -flats measurement should be for the hexagon on the arm ?
The new one I have varies from 27 -29 mm.