Today, I finished my front suspension rebuild project. Phew. What a job (as predicted by the Kleynies). I finished up replacing:
Strut top mounts (SE spec in lieu of Sport spec)
Struts (Koni frequency-selective sort all round),
Front springs (petrol spec based on Timmus' recommendation to go with the Konis),
Wheel bearings,
Lower arms (forged),
Rear bush for arms (again, petrol spec, hoping for softness),
LH outer CV joint
Discs and pads
As a result I have learned:
The RH strut top bolts are the worst bit of the job. What a pig. I never did find a satisfactory way of getting to them. I struggled to get the brake fluid reservoir out of the way, but that was hard as it's held in place by all the wires and tubes even when you get the mounting bracket bolts out.
Don't try to hammer out the drive shafts from the hubs. It's hard not to damage the threads (hence the new CV joint). Take the whole hub and shaft out together and get them pressed out.
Take the consoles out when changing the lower arms. The whole job becomes a doddle.
When undoing the track rod ends, expect the nuts not to come off. They're bound to get stuck on the rust at the end of the stem, and the little Torx or hex socket in the end of the stem isn't strong enough to stop it all turning. If you've got a nut splitter, then here's where it comes in. Or saw the stem off and get new TREs.
Getting the new lower arm ball joints into the hub requires a sawn-off T40 Torx driver held in a slim ring spanner to hold the stem against the torque of the Nyloc nut.
Kiwi-Fit charge like a wounded bull for setting the tracking. £63 for 15 mins' work. Mind you, the choice at 3-00pm on a Saturday is limited.
People who said my wobbly brake problem was probably caused by uneven rust on the discs were right. The discs were as smooth as a baby's bum on the outside but the inside faces looked like a war zone.
It's easy to damage the thread in the console that takes the longitudinal bolt that holds the front rubber bush in place when undoing he bolt. My local engine re-manufacturer (Randall's of Hepworth, top people) charged £20 for inserting two helicoils.
Don't expect 14-year old brake back plates to come off in one piece. I've now got two new shiny ones.
On the topic of spring choice, I think the front of the car is now riding lower than the back. Unfortunately, I didn't measure the struts before fitting them, but it seems that the new Konis don't cause the rise in front ride height that the previous model did. It's particularly noticeable that the headlights are illuminating the road immediately in front of the car. I think the new Konis need the original diesel-spec springs to keen things even. It's not enough to make we want to take the struts out again, tho'.
And now to turn the thoughts to a 6-speed 'box. That's not a job I'll be doing.
