Suspension Arms???

[spike]

I would really like to know the actual reason but I still don't believe the difference in cost between these relatively 'low cost' items was Audi's reason for changing but I could be wrong?

I believe it would have been a more technical reason ?

Pure guesswork but the pressed arms can be used on either side so only one part to stock. The ball joints will a common part so already in the system.
Forged arms are unique to the A2 and require pre assembly with low volume ball joints. I think forging dies wear quicker and are more expensive than press tooling so overall, and with being very low volume parts, the cost savings becomes worthwhile.

Cheers Spike

 

[Sootywg]

Are the 'cast' arms steel or an aluminium alloy?

Steel! The only aluminium ones are on the 1.2tdi and their geometry is different

 

[simon martyn]

They are steel. forged I believe.

 

[Woodwind]

Hello, I need some advice with replacing the suspension arms on my 1.4Tdi 2004. please.
The ones fitted are of the pressed steel type and sre the subject of an advisory. My problem is where to get good quality after market ones from.
As many internet suppliers are EU based and the cost is likely to exceed £139.00 for the pair, I'm wondering if they would be subject to import duty etc. The other consideration is the well discussed one of the cast type vs pressed steel. I'm still not clear if they are interchangeable or not.
Is it possible to get some definitive answer on how to proceed please. I'm mostly concerned with getting the best quality and a little less concerned about cost.
Thanks in advance

 

[carlston]

Hello, I need some advice with replacing the suspension arms on my 1.4Tdi 2004. please.
The ones fitted are of the pressed steel type and sre the subject of an advisory. My problem is where to get good quality after market ones from.
As many internet suppliers are EU based and the cost is likely to exceed £139.00 for the pair, I'm wondering if they would be subject to import duty etc. The other consideration is the well discussed one of the cast type vs pressed steel. I'm still not clear if they are interchangeable or not.
Is it possible to get some definitive answer on how to proceed please. I'm mostly concerned with getting the best quality and a little less concerned about cost.
Thanks in advance

Left cast iron suspension arm 8Z0407151J

https://www.autodoc.co.uk/car-parts/oem/8z0407151j?search=OEN%208Z0407151J

8Z0407151J for sale | eBay

Find great deals on eBay for 8Z0407151J. Shop with confidence.

www.ebay.co.uk

Right cast iron suspension arm 8Z0407152J

https://www.autodoc.co.uk/car-parts/oem/8z0407152j?search=OEN%208Z0407152J

8Z0407152J for sale | eBay

Find great deals on eBay for 8Z0407152J. Shop with confidence.

www.ebay.co.uk

Audi parts diagram (cast iron suspension arm)

track control arm, complete; wheel bearing housing... Audi A2 (A2) 2005 year Audi EUROPA 407010

track control arm, complete<br/>wheel bearing housing<br/>anti-roll bar<br/>F >> 8Z-3-019 682 Audi A2 (A2) 2005 year Audi EUROPA 407010 spare parts

audi.7zap.com

Audi parts diagram (pressed steel suspension arm)

wishbone; wheel bearing housing; anti-roll bar; F ... Audi A2 (A2) 2005 year Audi EUROPA 407011

wishbone<br/>wheel bearing housing<br/>anti-roll bar<br/>F 8Z-3-019 683>> Audi A2 (A2) 2005 year Audi EUROPA 407011 spare parts

audi.7zap.com

 

[Woodwind]

Left cast iron suspension arm 8Z0407151J

https://www.autodoc.co.uk/car-parts/oem/8z0407151j?search=OEN%208Z0407151J

Right cast iron suspension arm 8Z0407152J

https://www.autodoc.co.uk/car-parts/oem/8z0407152j?search=OEN%208Z0407152J

Audi parts diagram (cast iron suspension arm)

track control arm, complete; wheel bearing housing... Audi A2 (A2) 2005 year Audi EUROPA 407010

track control arm, complete<br/>wheel bearing housing<br/>anti-roll bar<br/>F >> 8Z-3-019 682 Audi A2 (A2) 2005 year Audi EUROPA 407010 spare parts

audi.7zap.com

Audi parts diagram (pressed steel suspension arm)

wishbone; wheel bearing housing; anti-roll bar; F ... Audi A2 (A2) 2005 year Audi EUROPA 407011

wishbone<br/>wheel bearing housing<br/>anti-roll bar<br/>F 8Z-3-019 683>> Audi A2 (A2) 2005 year Audi EUROPA 407011 spare parts

audi.7zap.com

 

[Woodwind]

From what I can tell, the suspension arms for the diesel have a different part number to the petrol ones. i.e. the Audi part number ends in an 'L' suffix for the diesel and a 'J' suffix for the petrol.
My A2 is a diesel (1.4tdi 75 BHC). What I need are left and right arms for this vehicle which are correct for the model.
I've gleaned quite a lot of information from other posts about the merits of steel vs cast/ forged re the ball joint but still cannot find a definitive answer about makes or quality. My general internet trawls querying the qualities of the various makes really have not helped and it seems that many are far east sourced, rebranded and possibly of questionable quality.
The two favoured makers seem to be Lemforder and TWR (German) but neither now appear to be available for the A2. There are several companies, autodoc included with UK websites but all are Berlin based, they carry much the same range of arms at various price points. None seem to mention any suitability for petrol or diesel. (I understand the diesel version has a heavy duty bush). I would be grateful if anyone has had recent experience with the problem and could comment on the best solution preferably located in UK. I have found cast parts on Ebay, or pressed steel ones labeled First Line or Borg and Beck. has anyone had experience of any of these?
Finally, I spoke to Stealth but they say all of their suppliers are out of stock but will fit for me if I can source.

 

[nick4tl]

From what I can tell, the suspension arms for the diesel have a different part number to the petrol ones. i.e. the Audi part number ends in an 'L' suffix for the diesel and a 'J' suffix for the petrol.
My A2 is a diesel (1.4tdi 75 BHC). What I need are left and right arms for this vehicle which are correct for the model.
I've gleaned quite a lot of information from other posts about the merits of steel vs cast/ forged re the ball joint but still cannot find a definitive answer about makes or quality. My general internet trawls querying the qualities of the various makes really have not helped and it seems that many are far east sourced, rebranded and possibly of questionable quality.
The two favoured makers seem to be Lemforder and TWR (German) but neither now appear to be available for the A2. There are several companies, autodoc included with UK websites but all are Berlin based, they carry much the same range of arms at various price points. None seem to mention any suitability for petrol or diesel. (I understand the diesel version has a heavy duty bush). I would be grateful if anyone has had recent experience with the problem and could comment on the best solution preferably located in UK. I have found cast parts on Ebay, or pressed steel ones labeled First Line or Borg and Beck. has anyone had experience of any of these?
Finally, I spoke to Stealth but they say all of their suppliers are out of stock but will fit for me if I can source.

I fitted meyle which I purchased from winparts (I’m in Ireland). I chose them as a few members here had done so and found them fine.

 

[carlston]

From what I can tell, the suspension arms for the diesel have a different part number to the petrol ones. i.e. the Audi part number ends in an 'L' suffix for the diesel and a 'J' suffix for the petrol.
My A2 is a diesel (1.4tdi 75 BHC). What I need are left and right arms for this vehicle which are correct for the model.

The same aftermarket bushes for the pressed steel suspension arms are sold to replace both the OEM petrol and diesel bushes, ie. a one size fits all approach.

For this reason, I suspect that the petrol and diesel cast iron suspension arms are interchangeable.

The 1.6 petrol engine has a similar weight to the 1.4 diesel engines, and yet uses the same suspension arm bushes as the lighter 1.4 petrol engines. I doubt you would have a problem using the petrol engine bushes in a diesel.

I don't know if you can still get original OEM Audi bushes and washers for the diesel, ie. 8Z0407182C, 8Z0407195C, and 8Z0407195D, but if so, maybe change the bushes and washers in the new cast iron petrol suspension arms for OEM diesel bushes and washers. However, I would have thought that any difference would be difficult to notice.

Cast iron suspension arm

2	8Z0 407 182 B	bonded rubber bush		2	AUA,BBY,BAD
(2)	8Z0 407 182 C	bonded rubber bush		2	AMF
3	8Z0 407 195	washer for bonded rubber bush	front	2	AUA,BBY,BAD
(3)	8Z0 407 195 C	washer for bonded rubber bush	front	2	AMF
4	8Z0 407 195 B	washer for bonded rubber bush	rear	2	AUA,BBY,BAD
(4)	8Z0 407 195 D	washer for bonded rubber bush	rear	2	AMF

track control arm, complete; wheel bearing housing... Audi A2 (A2) 2005 year Audi EUROPA 407010

track control arm, complete<br/>wheel bearing housing<br/>anti-roll bar<br/>F >> 8Z-3-019 682 Audi A2 (A2) 2005 year Audi EUROPA 407010 spare parts

audi.7zap.com

Pressed steel suspension arm

2	8Z0 407 182 B	bonded rubber bush		2	AUA,BBY,BAD
(2)	8Z0 407 182 C	bonded rubber bush		2	AMF,BHC,ATL
3	8Z0 407 195	washer for bonded rubber bush	front	2	AUA,BBY,BAD
(3)	8Z0 407 195 C	washer for bonded rubber bush	front	2	AMF,BHC,ATL
4	8Z0 407 195 B	washer for bonded rubber bush	rear	2	AUA,BBY,BAD
(4)	8Z0 407 195 D	washer for bonded rubber bush	rear	2	AMF,BBY,BAD

wishbone; wheel bearing housing; anti-roll bar; F ... Audi A2 (A2) 2005 year Audi EUROPA 407011

wishbone<br/>wheel bearing housing<br/>anti-roll bar<br/>F 8Z-3-019 683>> Audi A2 (A2) 2005 year Audi EUROPA 407011 spare parts

audi.7zap.com

As you can see above, the one bush and two washers for each suspension arm (parts labelled 2, 3, and 4 in the two diagrams above) are the same for both the cast iron and pressed steel suspension arms.

Aftermarket bush with two associated washers

MOOG AU-SB-3878

Delphi TD842W

Meyle 100 407 0089

https://www.autodoc.co.uk/car-parts/oem/8z0407182b?search=OEN+8Z0407182B&supplier%5B0%5D=152&supplier%5B1%5D=89&supplier%5B2%5D=134

With aftermarket parts, there's a lot of rebranding going on. Most brands don't actually make the parts that they are selling. Even big brand names such as FAG and SKF seem to be getting in on the act of selling rebranded parts that they haven't actually made themselves.

 

[Woodwind]

Thank you for the information and the list, really helpful in making a more informed choice.
It seems like a bit of a minefield.

 

[Woodwind]

I fitted meyle which I purchased from winparts (I’m in Ireland). I chose them as a few members here had done so and found them fine.

Thank you, great to hear of your experience. Were they the solid forged type?

 

[carlston]

Thank you for the information and the list, really helpful in making a more informed choice.
It seems like a bit of a minefield.

The VW Polo MK4 uses the same front suspension arm bushes for both petrol and diesel models. However, I wouldn't recommend these bushes as they are well known for early failure. Unlike the Audi A2 front suspension arm bushes, the VW Polo MK4 ones aren't shown separately.

VW Polo MK4 Front Suspension (Petrol Models)

1

6Q0 407 151 L

track control arm, complete

2

track control arm, complete; wheel bearing housing... Polo/Derby/Vento-IND (PO) 2003 year Volkswagen EUROPA 407005

track control arm, complete<br/>wheel bearing housing<br/>anti-roll bar Polo/Derby/Vento-IND (PO) 2003 year Volkswagen EUROPA 407005 spare parts

volkswagen.7zap.com

VW Polo MK4 Front Suspension (Diesel Models)

(1)

6Q0 407 151 L

track control arm, complete

2

track control arm, complete; wheel bearing housing... Polo/Derby/Vento-IND (PO) 2003 year Volkswagen EUROPA 407010

track control arm, complete<br/>wheel bearing housing<br/>anti-roll bar Polo/Derby/Vento-IND (PO) 2003 year Volkswagen EUROPA 407010 spare parts

volkswagen.7zap.com

 

[nick4tl]

Thank you, great to hear of your experience. Were they the solid forged type?

Hi. Yes solid ones. Someone here did a comparison of a few aftermarket ones and felt the bit that gets pushed into the big bush at the back on the Meyle ones was closest to oem. TRW and Lemforder are nigh on impossible to get.

 

[steve_c]

I bought these and had them fitted a couple of years ago:

FOR AUDI A2 FRONT LOWER AXLE LEFT RIGHT SUSPENSION WISHBONE CONTROL ARM ARMS SET | eBay

Product Description AUDI A2 FRONT LOWER LEFT RIGHT SUSPENSION WISHBONE CONTROL ARMS COMPLETE OE QUALITY TUV APPROVED BRAND NEW DIRECT REPLACEMENT PART 2 YEAR WARRANTY Buyer Guide AUDI A2 1.4 2000-2005 AUDI A2 1.6 FSI 2002-2005 AUDI A2 1.4 TDI 2000-2005 75 BHP AUDI A2 1.4 TDI 2003-2005 90 BHP...

www.ebay.co.uk

They do appear to be the original Lemforder castings, with the part numbers ground off. They're specifically the petrol version if that matters to you.

 

[Woodwind]

I bought these and had them fitted a couple of years ago:

FOR AUDI A2 FRONT LOWER AXLE LEFT RIGHT SUSPENSION WISHBONE CONTROL ARM ARMS SET | eBay

Product Description AUDI A2 FRONT LOWER LEFT RIGHT SUSPENSION WISHBONE CONTROL ARMS COMPLETE OE QUALITY TUV APPROVED BRAND NEW DIRECT REPLACEMENT PART 2 YEAR WARRANTY Buyer Guide AUDI A2 1.4 2000-2005 AUDI A2 1.6 FSI 2002-2005 AUDI A2 1.4 TDI 2000-2005 75 BHP AUDI A2 1.4 TDI 2003-2005 90 BHP...

www.ebay.co.uk

They do appear to be the original Lemforder castings, with the part numbers ground off. They're specifically the petrol version if that matters to you.

Now that's interesting, thank you for that. I'll investigate those. It seems the petrol ones will do the job according to what some say.

 

[PlasticMac]

From what I can tell, the suspension arms for the diesel have a different part number to the petrol ones. i.e. the Audi part number ends in an 'L' suffix for the diesel and a 'J' suffix for the petrol.
My A2 is a diesel (1.4tdi 75 BHC). What I need are left and right arms for this vehicle which are correct for the model.
I've gleaned quite a lot of information from other posts about the merits of steel vs cast/ forged re the ball joint but still cannot find a definitive answer about makes or quality. My general internet trawls querying the qualities of the various makes really have not helped and it seems that many are far east sourced, rebranded and possibly of questionable quality.
The two favoured makers seem to be Lemforder and TWR (German) but neither now appear to be available for the A2. There are several companies, autodoc included with UK websites but all are Berlin based, they carry much the same range of arms at various price points. None seem to mention any suitability for petrol or diesel. (I understand the diesel version has a heavy duty bush). I would be grateful if anyone has had recent experience with the problem and could comment on the best solution preferably located in UK. I have found cast parts on Ebay, or pressed steel ones labeled First Line or Borg and Beck. has anyone had experience of any of these?
Finally, I spoke to Stealth but they say all of their suppliers are out of stock but will fit for me if I can source.

To make a pressing, you need press tool, and they are very expensive to make, so no one will make that sort of investment, unless they are going to sell a large quantity of the item. To me, this makes it quite likely that all the pressed steel arms are pressed by a couple of companies at best. As wonderful as the A2 is, no one is going to make much selling spare suspension parts, theres so few of them around.
Mac.

 

[Woodwind]

To make a pressing, you need press tool, and they are very expensive to make, so no one will make that sort of investment, unless they are going to sell a large quantity of the item. To me, this makes it quite likely that all the pressed steel arms are pressed by a couple of companies at best. As wonderful as the A2 is, no one is going to make much selling spare suspension parts, theres so few of them around.
Mac.

Yes, that makes sense. Certainly the Borg and Beck and the First Line are one and the same.

 

[audifan]

Just to add fuel to this.. Here is my THEORY

Casting is a relatively cheap method to set up and as such there is a possibility there is more than one foundry producing cast arms. When the flash is ground off any extra identification marks can be ground off as required.

Pressing on the other hand is expensive to make the tooling so possible / probable there is only one facility producing the pressed arms.

In both cases the arms could be sent to another facility that would then fit the rubber bushes and ball joints then pack into the relevant resellers packaging.

This would then make quality pretty equal whatever brand you choose.......

Casting destroys the mould, pressing can make many but will wear out eventually.

 

[Woodwind]

I bought these and had them fitted a couple of years ago:

FOR AUDI A2 FRONT LOWER AXLE LEFT RIGHT SUSPENSION WISHBONE CONTROL ARM ARMS SET | eBay

Product Description AUDI A2 FRONT LOWER LEFT RIGHT SUSPENSION WISHBONE CONTROL ARMS COMPLETE OE QUALITY TUV APPROVED BRAND NEW DIRECT REPLACEMENT PART 2 YEAR WARRANTY Buyer Guide AUDI A2 1.4 2000-2005 AUDI A2 1.6 FSI 2002-2005 AUDI A2 1.4 TDI 2000-2005 75 BHP AUDI A2 1.4 TDI 2003-2005 90 BHP...

www.ebay.co.uk

They do appear to be the original Lemforder castings, with the part numbers ground off. They're specifically the petrol version if that matters to you.

I see these are still available. May I ask what identifies these as possible Lemforder castings and what is the quality of the ball joint like?

 

[steve_c]

I see these are still available. May I ask what identifies these as possible Lemforder castings and what is the quality of the ball joint like?

The appearance suggests that they are the same casting (in origin at least). The original part numbers have at some point in the casting process been rather visibly ground out.
They are made in Germany, so there's no risk that they're a Chinese copycat.
The ball joint appears fine.
The packaging that accompanies them identifies them as 8Z0407151J and 8Z0407152J, which are the OEM part numbers for the petrol A2 arms.
They are sold using Optimal branding, the Optimal part numbers are G6-864 and G6-869

G6-864 - Control Arm Trailing Arm, wheel suspension Info Page

G6-869 - Control Arm Trailing Arm, wheel suspension Info Page

Home

www.optimal-germany.com

Optimal have a good web catalogue

When I bought these, the original Lemforder arms were getting difficult to find, although the TRW arms were still easily available. I was happy to buy these at a very considerable saving at the time. They are an exact match for the Lemforder originals that required replacing, and I subsequently bought a second set as insurance for the future.