General Changing Radius arm bearings

[iainioff]

Hi - In the middle of changing rear subframe on '02 Multipla. The new (from breaker yard) subframe had radius arms still on but in bad shape so I am putting my original radius arms on the new subframe. Had to cut the bolts holding the old arms in place so bought new bearing kits.
Now I'm at the point where I need to drift out the old bearing shells and plastic sleave which sits inside the arm, and I'm wondering do I really need to do this. It looks like quite a lot of work to drift them out and fit the new ones in place correctly.
The old shells look in good enough condition and I'm thinking of just fitting the new bearings into them - has anyone done anything similar before or can anyone think of a good reason not to do this??

Thanks - Iain (newbie here so hope I'm posting in right place)

 

[conanhoward]

the inner and outer bearings should only be fitted as a matched pair. you may be lucky, but while your at this stage its better to be brave and change the lot... if the inner races are tight, warm them up a bit with a blow lamp first, use a suitable drift and they will fall out..... best of luck Conan

 

[iainioff]

Good advice thanks - took the plunge and once I had the old races out noticed they weren't as good a fit for the new bearings as they looked - certainly didn't fit as perfectly as the new ones which came in the kit. One of the things I was worried about was positioning the new ones in the right place but now that I can see inside the arm with everything removed I can see a lip there which will keep the new races/bearings in the right position. Many thanks for the advice Conan