Technical Fitting Powerflex bushes

[rendo]

I'm having that knocking noise from the rear of the car and i am considering replacing these, has anyone done this. from the haynes manual it doesn't sound to difficult, although time consuming.
has anyone who has done this had to replace the complete trailing arm, i have been runnning the cinq for 2 years now, and always had this knocking, wondering whether the trailing arms will have been damaged in this time.

 

[Luke]

Welcome to FF

Ive got the rear knocking too, have a set of powerflex bushes to go on in the very near future. Not sure if they will have been damaged in that time, suppose time will tell

 

[rallycinq]

The most difficult bit is getting the outer metal ring of the original bush out. It will have rusted to the arm and will need cuttung and battering to get it out.

Cheers

D

 

[HP]

The knocking is two internal parts of the bush that have lost some rubber sleeving, it's not going to damage the car or make the arm irreperable as long as you get it done within a reasonable amount of time.

Excess knocking could point to seriously worn bushes, which can mean unwanted suspension movement and the possibility of some slightly off handling.

 

[philbo]

the knocking i had from the back end was down to the trailing arm bushes being worn and allowing the arm to knock against the subframe. mine had been doing it for ages and before i bought it but the damage was minimal. so dont worry. easiest way is to buy the new arms with bushes fitted but thats expensive and wheres the challenge? fitting powerflex bushes is apparently a dam site easier than fitting new rubber ones which i wish id done. good luck and have fun!

 

[Badger_Benji]

Poly bushes will add slightly to the road noise in the car, but they do help the cars handling. Fitting is usually no problem, I usually use a big G clamp, as they are split bush, they are easy to fit at home, plenty of grease, line them up and wind them in. Insert steel centre pipe and wind that in as well.

 

[HP]

Poly bushes will add slightly to the road noise in the car, but they do help the cars handling. Fitting is usually no problem, I usually use a big G clamp, as they are split bush, they are easy to fit at home, plenty of grease, line them up and wind them in. Insert steel centre pipe and wind that in as well.

Cento rear powerflex bushes aren't split, they're a polyurethane cylinder with a flange and a metal tube insert. Removing the old one is a problem as mentioned, as the standard bushes have a metal outer sleeve which is pressed into the arm.

 

[Badger_Benji]

Sounds like a job for my trusty friend the air chisel

 

[GhostWKD]

So what kind of tools will i need to take this on by myself? rear bushes have gone and i need to swap rear susp over for my 60mm goodies so figured may as well do bushes while im there...

Is it just a hacksaw job or will i need to get some more tools before taking car to bits?

also found the bushes cheap on ebay :slayer:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/POWERFLEX-COMPLETE-REAR-BUSH-KIT-FIAT-CINQUECENTO_W0QQitemZ8018310903QQcategoryZ40192QQssPageNameZWD1VQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

 

[rallycinq]

As mentioned above the rings of the original bushes are the worst part to get out. Use a sharp hacksaw blade and carefully cut this inner ring, if you can be bothered, a couple of places really helps. Then the bits should be able to be collapsed in to get them out.

Or, as suggested, the air chisel.

Cheers

D

 

[GhostWKD]

Dont have an air chisel unfortunately, think i may order the bushes and if they turn up stock up on hacksaw blades and take it on

 

[Badger_Benji]

Just get angry with them, always found this has worked well in the past, worst ones i have ever had to change fiat uno tubby, they were a nightmare.

 

[black_fiatsei]

I replaced these on my sei! Bloody difficult to do - but the knocking does go away! The hardest part is getting the old ones out - but i tried cutting and many other methods to try and get them out! The quickest and easiest way is to get a blowtorch and burn them out - and then slip in your new ones!

 

[GhostWKD]

Unfortunately dont have a blowtorch maybe a can of deoderant and a match will do the job (nb dont worry im not nuts enough to try that ) think i'll still take this on at the weekend with hacksaw blades

 

[black_fiatsei]

Well you will be there forever - i got one from Homebase for a £10! It does it in half the time! If using a lynx can you may find you will need to buy loads of them!

 

[GhostWKD]

£10 wow didnt realise so cheap mebe try that instead, does it come with a big cool warning?

 

[rendo]

Well i finished replacing the bushes, and what a bugger!

Couple of recommendations, replace the bolts that go thro the bushes and hold the arm in place. these are m12, can't remember the length, and nyloc nuts. i ended up taking the originals to B&Q, which was expensive. £12. maybe fiat parts would have been cheaper. i had to hacksaw some of the bolts off. so get yourself the best quality hacksaw blades you can afford. cetainly cuts the work down a bit, particularly in the difficult reach areas.
Two off the old bushes came out ok, but i had to burn the others out, well just heat it to release it. (ended up using a wee burner my wife has for cooking).
Cutting thro the outer ring of the bushes wasn't too bad, think the good hacksaw blades helped here, then they just collapsed and were knocked out with a hammer and punch.

Word of warning, i cut thro my fuel pipe (the one from the fuel cap to the tank) while weilding my hacksaw, so i'll be off to fiat for a replacement one today.

 

[jaspernina]

Hi

My Seicento has the knocking noise on the drivers side and the bush has clearly gone, it car also sits 2cm lower on this side, does the bush also cause this problem?

Stephen

 

[rallycinq]

Hi
car also sits 2cm lower on this side, does the bush also cause this problem?

Stephen

Can do, unless the driver is enormously obese.

Cheers

Gormless Cretin

 

[fingers99]

Well i finished replacing the bushes, and what a bugger!

Couple of recommendations, replace the bolts that go thro the bushes and hold the arm in place. these are m12, can't remember the length, and nyloc nuts. i ended up taking the originals to B&Q, which was expensive. £12.

No need to replace the bolts unless they're damaged (maybe by the hacksaw!), but the nylocks should be replaced. A good soak in penetrating oil the day before works wonders.

I'd suspect that the B & Q ones may not be the right grade.