Technical loose strut top

[davestilo]

hi guys,not been on for a while,cars been running smooth over the time.The problem is ive had a slight clunking noise and incresed road noise form the front wheels,but every time i jacked it up and pry barred all the bushes and joints i could,nt find anything,after my last try i put the wheel back on,lowered it to the ground and in frustration kicked the wheel, ahh now where getting somewhere it seemed to move so i grabbed it and moved it side to side, and with the bonnet open i can see the whole of the top strut moving. Ive done a bit of research on this but im still not sure which bits to buy,is it the whole rubber thing or is it the bearing inside ,im going to take strut of this weekend and have a look i just wondered if anybody had come across this before,also if anybody knows which bits to buy i could get them before weekend. many thanks dave

 

[richydraper]

hi guys,not been on for a while,cars been running smooth over the time.The problem is ive had a slight clunking noise and incresed road noise form the front wheels,but every time i jacked it up and pry barred all the bushes and joints i could,nt find anything,after my last try i put the wheel back on,lowered it to the ground and in frustration kicked the wheel, ahh now where getting somewhere it seemed to move so i grabbed it and moved it side to side, and with the bonnet open i can see the whole of the top strut moving. Ive done a bit of research on this but im still not sure which bits to buy,is it the whole rubber thing or is it the bearing inside ,im going to take strut of this weekend and have a look i just wondered if anybody had come across this before,also if anybody knows which bits to buy i could get them before weekend. many thanks dave

road noise, clunking and side to side movement in the wheel... more likely to be your wishbones dave...

get wifey to rock the steering from side to side, not much just from 11 o'clock to 1 o'clock positions (10-2 if 11-1 isnt enough). if your strut tops are gone then you will see/feel the spring jolt as it rotates... the strut tops are 2 piece, i think, so youll need the bearing piece which sits directly on the spring and the rubber top which fits in the top mount 'cup'

as for wishbones there is a couple of different varients depending on the diameter of the bushes so some research would be needed, but, buy the best you can afford iirc Fiats are insanely priced (£190 per side) ive heard good things about 'TRW' i think they're priced around £50-80 per side... reportedly 'Meyle' are up there with the best... if Meyle offer their 'HD' varient then go for them as the HD range have 4 yr warranty. my local parts place rate Febi Bilstein but ive heard no reports good or bad.

if you want me to double check part numbers for you drop me a PM with your chassis number and ill get back to you as soon as i get a free minute to check ePER... or you can do it yourself from the top nav bar on the forum

 

[davestilo]

cheers for the reply Rich,new wishbones fitted 2 weeks ago for mot so i dont think its them,ive had car in my garage and checked everything again,still the same,with the car sat on its wheels if i push and pull the wheel at 12 oclock the strut top in the engine bay moves about 6mm each way,ive videoed strut top moving with phone but not sure how to put it on here......help

 

[Yellow Peril]

Movement of the strut top when the car is jacked up is normal. The movement stops as soon as the car is lowered.

 

[davestilo]

cheers phil for the reply,i could actually move mine with the wheels on ground.It really bugged me today so ive been in garage took the strut of,compressed the spring (nerve wracking) and took the strut top of,i think i may have found the problem,when i rotate the 2 parts against each other they feel quite notchy and to top it all the hole in the steel plate on the top item is elongated. see photos (hopefully).My question is do i buy the top piece of the strut top or both pieces?, and also in my haste to take it of i didnt take note of how it was aligned in my photo of the whole strut ive marked what i think should be aligned in white marker is this ok?

thanks for any advice in advance. hope the photos have worked.....Dave

 

[Davren]

For the mounting hole to get elongated, one or both of the nuts may have been loose.

The needle roller bearing plate is supplied attached to the bottom part, so if it's notchy, you will need the top and bottom parts.

From your picture, the top mounting is way out of alignment. The 2 parts of the mounting have to be aligned as in the diagram below, and in line with the middle of the hub carrier bracket. When the complete shock absorber and spring is refitted on the car, and with the wheels straight ahead, a 4mm rod (screwdriver) should pass freely through the hole in the top part and the cut out in the bottom part, and the hole next to the suspension turret.
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[davestilo]

thanks Davren,this was just the info i was after,when u say it was probably caused by a loose nut,which one are referring to?
Im with you on everthing else though. thanks again. dave

 

[Davren]

Most likely the flanged nut that holds the mounting to the shock absorber piston shaft. (arrowed blue below) It needs to be tightened so that the metal bush in the top mounting is tight against the step in the piston shaft. If it isn't tight, the shaft could move in the hole causing it to elongate.

The nyloc nut on the top retaining plate should then be tightened once the assembled strut is fitted and the car on it's wheels. The retaining plate doesn't clamp tight on the turret, it's only there to stop the suspension falling out if you jack the body up or the wheel drop downs a deep pot hole.

Alignment mark 1b in the diagram below is misprinted slightly, it should be central.
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[davestilo]

Cheers davren all the info you gave was spot on,I've done the job now,everythings lined up and in place,not done one of these before I just wondered if mines o.k. I tried to twist the top bit by hand,it's tight, is this o.k? Hope so cos it's on car now. Cheers mate.

 

[Davren]

The tapered top part of the mounting fits into the matching tapered turret and is held there by the weight of the car. It's not supposed to turn.

When you turn the steering, only the bottom part of the mounting turns, along with the spring and shock absorber.
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