Smoother ride

[Gspot]

Wonder if you guys can help....I have 1.2 1999 and at speed 70+ it feels a bit unsteady worse on broken roads and particularly on long motorway bends.

58k never changed shocks, had one one anti roll bar drop link changed so far.

My mate reckons new uprated bushes but i thought id try you guys first. Any ideas on improving or even curing this problem?

Cheers

 

[Tom]

>58k never changed shocks

Query answered.

 

[Ash]

Go for new shocks and bushes

dont need to be uprated just new will make a massive difference

if you are changing the shocks then it isnt much more work to do all the bushes too while u got it in bits!

 

[Tom]

Ash, you changed the bushes on your Bravo?

 

[LightWarrior]

just shocks or are there other bits that need checking. a mate had to change something else (an arm or something i think) which he said was just a solid peice of metal. i get a bit of vibration myself, so thought it'd be worth checking out. turns out one of my old 17's was buckled (hence the crap ride) and i think something else may have been damaged when that did. any ideas?

Buzz
the poster formerly known as LightWarrior

 

[Tom]

It would have been the lower control arm, the bushes are an integral part of it.

And if you change one, do both

 

[Anonymous]

had the balancing done at all?

 

[LightWarrior]

2 shocks, and 2 control arms. the bushes will be done too without me asking yeah?

Buzz
the poster formerly known as LightWarrior

 

[Tom]

Bushes come free with the arms. Do the rear shocks while you are at it

 

[LightWarrior]

it was the rears i thought i had to do.
i couldn't afford all of them at once!

Buzz
the poster formerly known as LightWarrior

 

[Tom]

No bushes or arms at the back though.

KYB are £36/pair fronts and £30/pair rears (+VAT & P&P) so not exactly bank breaking.

 

[LightWarrior]

£36 a PAIR? i was thinking i should buy bilstein, as theres a fair bit of load on mine, and you said those were £30 each!

als, i have to pay someone to do the work. anything that can kill me, like suspension struts falling out, i pay a mechaic to do. if my stereo breaks, or i crack a bit of plastic, etc, i'll still live...

Buzz
the poster formerly known as LightWarrior

 

[Tom]

Bilstein are very good, KYB are supposed to be pretty good too. But ANYTHING is better than old and worn out ones.

 

[LightWarrior]

well heres the acid test. what do YOU have?

was just thinking, i could get em done while i'm having new front disks/pads put on in a couple of weeks. Tom, how long does it take to swap the control arms and shocks, so that i can make a random guess at the labour cost...
Buzz
the poster formerly known as LightWarrior

 

[Tom]

Bilsteins

 

[Tom]

Lower arms are a bitch of a job as the bolts usually rust solid. (I've done them twice on my car now) I'd say 2hrs for front arms and shocks.

 

[LightWarrior]

and the rears? you say they are a doddle?

Buzz
the poster formerly known as LightWarrior

 

[Tom]

Jack up
wheel off
lower bolt off
upper bolt off
remove shock
replace shock
line up upper hole
upper bolt in
line up lower hole
lower bolt in
wheel on
jack down
repeat

 

[LightWarrior]

no springs to worry about? i know a guy who shot one 30 feet as he was taking it off. Luvky bastid didn't hit any of the cars around him though. or so he says

Buzz
the poster formerly known as LightWarrior

 

[Gspot]

Smoother Ride

where can i buy shocks and bushes? Which pair should i change first, front or rear? Cheers All