Technical Rear Suspension - am I being "done"

[phanco]

My 2016 Panda had its first MOT in December last year. With a total of 13K miles it failed with a major (Offside Rear Shock excessively work upper bush), and two advisories (Nearside shock slight worn upper bush) and nearside hand break cable split.

Garage (Arnold Clark Fiat Dealer) wanted to charge me £175 for a replacement shock for the failed bush advising the whole unit had to be replaced, not just the bush - until I reminded them the car had 3 days warranty left, so they very grudgingly fixed it for free.

Now looking at getting the advisories fixed before next MOT in December -

question 1 : is do I really need to replace the whole shock for a worn bush ?
question 2 : Can I really expect to replace the rear suspension every 13K miles ?

Thanks,

Pete

 

[The Pretender]

My 2016 Panda had its first MOT in December last year. With a total of 13K miles it failed with a major (Offside Rear Shock excessively work upper bush), and two advisories (Nearside shock slight worn upper bush) and nearside hand break cable split.

Garage (Arnold Clark Fiat Dealer) wanted to charge me £175 for a replacement shock for the failed bush advising the whole unit had to be replaced, not just the bush - until I reminded them the car had 3 days warranty left, so they very grudgingly fixed it for free.

Now looking at getting the advisories fixed before next MOT in December -

question 1 : is do I really need to replace the whole shock for a worn bush ?
question 2 : Can I really expect to replace the rear suspension every 13K miles ?

Thanks,

Pete

Upgrade to Bilstein B4 schocks, better quality and much better bushes, and there will be no more worries.
Also a much improved ride quality.

 

[AndyRKett]

question 1 : is do I really need to replace the whole shock for a worn bush ?

yes, they are very simple ansd cheap shocks, they are simple single bolt at either end and realistically from anyone other than the dealership would not cost more than about £30 even from a good name manufacturer.



question 2 : Can I really expect to replace the rear suspension every 13K miles

No this seems a bit OTT, it depends on the dealers tolerance, another garage might suggest what you had, still has a couple of years of life left. As stated its a very cheap shock so getting more than about 6 years use is probably good, also depends on how the car is stored and in what conditions, however really they don't need replacing unless they are split or visabl damaged or have become so weak they are allowing the shock to knock against its mounting bolt.

 

[Herts Hillhopper]

There's some unknowns here... do you drive a lot on badly rutted roads? Or are you prone to going quickly over speed bumps? The bush cannot be replaced separately, so no, not being taken for a ride , so to speak. But they aren't indestructible and sharp jolts, especially in cold weather when the rubber is less pliable will cause damage. Flip side_ you're actually doing very low annual mileages, so the bushes may be spending a lot of time not moving and so may loose some of their flexibility through long periods of 'sitting going nowhere'. The same may apply to the handbrake cable - if not driven much, water may end up sitting in the cable and causing to to perish the casing, or to expand in there in winter when frosty, leading to splits.

More importantly: shocks should ALWAYS be replaced in pairs (both rears at same time) so that the damping is equal on both sides, so Arnold Clarke should have replaced them both under warranty. (In the same way as tyres should be replaced in pairs - both fronts or both rears - to ensure safe and equal handling)

 

[gar074]

Always take your car to an independent MOT testing station - one that just does tests, not repairs. That way, they have no incentive to fail you.

That degree of suspension component degradation in 4 years and only 13k miles sounds surprising, to say the least.

 

[MaxHeadroom]

Garage (Arnold Clark Fiat Dealer) wanted to charge me £175 for a replacement shock for the failed bush advising the whole unit had to be replaced, not just the bush - until I reminded them the car had 3 days warranty left, so they very grudgingly fixed it for free.



Pete

That's bad.

Any traders try doing that to me get asked if they'd like some free advertising?

...On BBC Watchdog or Rogue Traders


Oh yes, and by the way - Welcome to the FIAT forums, Pete!

 

[bimmer]

The VOID bushes are weak in my opinion. I could not source any bushes on their own so got 2 gas shocks for £37. It took 20 mins each side to replace inc. wheel removal.
The replacement shocks have solid rubber bushes so IMHO should be more longer lasting.