[Closed] Suspension bushes

Molgrips,

The front suspension arm rear bush is a common failure on VW's. For my old polo VW didn't recommend changing the back bush but instead recommended changing the carrier with the bush already installed this was mega spendy from VW.

Bush has to go in the correct way as the pin from the control arm is splined and pressing the bush in could damage the casing on the carrier if done wrong.

In the end i got a garage to press a new bush in as they were doing other stuff and it meant the labor charge was not too bad.

For a DIY job i'd recommend getting the bush in a that carrier if you can or the whole control arm & bush assembly if you wan tto do the lot at the same time.

You might find that Euro Car parts will exchange the whole arm .

Thanks.

However currently stuck trying to get the drive shaft on the other side out due to siezed ball joint bolts.

Time to start spannering. Clock starts... now!

Well, I finished the last job on Sunday. Replaced all bushes, rear shocks and offside CV joint boots.

The bushes were a pain in the arse frankly. The press tube kit thing I bought was decent enough in terms of quality but the bushes have an outer alu shell which isn't really strong enough to push on hard enough so some creative bodging was required.

The only seized bolts were the ones I knew about on the back - the VW eccentric bolts for adjusting rear suspension angles are made of some different steel that rusts badly, but they were accessble and easy to cut out. Everything else was fine, remarkanbly. Possibly helped by the WD40 de-block stuff which seems rather good.

Didn't bother to mark the position of anything before I removed it, thikning I'd have it aligned after I'd finished. Driving it down to VW was a bizarre experience to say the least.

When replacing the CV joint boots I forgot to fully squish the grease around on the inner, so on first test drive I had a lot of noise that you'd expect from a worn joint. Packed it with more grease and it's settled down mostly but still makes a bit of a noise on hard acceleration. Hope I haven't buggered it.

So - is the car super smooth and plush now? Well, no, not really. Certainly feels tighter and bumps are a bit more muted but it's perhaps offset by the fact that for some reason the whole suspension seems a lot firmer now. Maybe due to the shocks (old ones had leaked so there was a bigger air gap over the oil hence less resistance) or perhaps the spring effect of new bushings. But it's a bit firmer than I'd like tbh.

You'll probably find things loosen up a little once the bushes settle down and bed in. Probably a month or so.
Bear in mind the deterioration of the old bushes was a gradual thing, so not really noticeable over time. But going back to a new tight setup may initially feel "wrong" until you become accustomed to it.

I'm hoping it beds in - have done very few miles so far.

It doesn't feel bad, actually, just very firm. If it were lower I'd have called it sportier. The back particularly - which should help with the caravan.

It's nice to have full alignment again though as the rusted bolts meant they couldn't do ti before. And the rebound on the back is definitely better as you'd expect with new shocks.

Having fixed the seals on the turbo hoses that I noticed were leaking whilst I was under the car though - that has helped the gearbox and engine response somwhat.

Nice work.

How did you get the car in the air? I'm finding it a pain in the rear to rely on axel stands for space.

Thought of hiring a ramp of a garage.

Used the force.

The force of a trolley jack from Machine Mart and some Halfords Axle stands. It did require some planning though, as there's only room on the jacking point for the jack, but that's where you want the stands to go. So I got creative with the jack using blocks of wood to spread the load or suitable jacking points where the suspension attaches to the car. Used pre-cut hockey pucks as protection for the car - available from ebay for a few quid.

I have a sloping driveway both backwards and to one side which makes it scary - the car shifts as I jack, so I have to factor that in and ensure the stands are flat on the floor and there are no wobbles. With the axle stand pin in the second hole there was plenty of space under to work whilst lying on my back. Only struggled for leverave at times with long breaker bar.

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There's a place near Bristol that hires ramps, but it would take a while and cost would mount up. Although if I'd been using parts with pre-fitted bushes instead of pressing in new ones, it would have taken far less time. And my neighbour informed me that his Peugot and Honda had bolt-in bushes rather than press which would've been far easier.

I've had Passats B6, B7 and now a B8 and all three have made a horrible bang if I accelerate too hard or drive too fast down the far side of a speed hump, which I take to be the front suspension rear arm bushes.

On the B6 I had bad sawtooth wear on the insides of the rear tyres. After a long battle in which I sent VW a photo of the rear tyre spinning on a balancing rig, in which you could clearly see the worn area inside the tyre, Volkswagen admitted that the rear suspension was out of alignment. Some weeks later I received an unexpected phone call from an engineer at VW in Germany, asking if I would mind emailing him a copy of that picture. The B7 didn't have the same mis-alignment problem, or not as bad at least.

I've had Passats B6, B7 and now a B8 and all three have made a horrible bang if I accelerate too hard

Wheel spin? I've had a banging if I floor it on rough road surfaces and the front wheels are bouncing. I think it's the engine smacking itself off the mounts or the exhaust banging or something.

Not limited to just Passats, the 950cc MKII Fiesta I learned to drive in did it too.

Just noticed the boot lid is a good 2-3 inches higher than it used to be 😯

When you tightened all the suspension arms did you jack the suspension in to its normal loaded position/ lower the car on to the ground first?

If you have tightened all the arms in their max travel position (unloaded suspension) all the bushes will be under full rotational load rather than +- no twisting load when at normal ride height.

This will not only make the bushes fail faster but can make the ride hard due to the loading on the bushes.

EDIT

and possibly the ride height higher......

When you tightened all the suspension arms did you jack the suspension in to its normal loaded position/ lower the car on to the ground first?

Yep, as per instructions.

Assuming VW did the same thing when doing the alignment.

Wheel spin? I've had a banging if I floor it on rough road surfaces and the front wheels are bouncing. I think it's the engine smacking itself off the mounts or the exhaust banging or something.

With the first two I thought it might be the DMF flying back and forth as the tramsmission speed varied but the current car is DSG and does exactly the same so yes, engine mounts, exhaust or suspension struts. It's quite alarming.

Nice one molgrips,

My driveway slopes too. Spooks me even with axel stands.

Need to empty my garage so I work on a flat.

Most jobs are easy except getting under the middle of the car to get my gear selector is a pain and I worry the car is going to fall.

I give it a very good wobble and shove before getting under it. It was rock solid. Also the ramps in the picture are there as backup, packed with wood blocks to act as backup.