Are all Rear Bottom Links the same?

Q

Quagmire

Active Member
Morning all,

Was just wondering as per the subject title really - are all Rear Bottom Links the same across the various models? I want to re-bush mine and have some spare in the garage I picked up cheap. To minimise downtime it would be good to be able to get these cleaned up, re-bushed and painted so I can simply swap them on.

Thanks!


Jamie
 
If you mean the ones from the boot floor side to the elbow bottoms then v8 ones are kinked and 2000 ones arent iirc.
 
V8s and 2200s are the same. 2000s are different in the front bush area I think 'cos they don't have the crossmember.
 
rockdemon said:
Aren't there two types for v8s too?
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According to my parts book there is only one type, but there are two different diameters of bush that fit into the rear of it, so I'll leave you to work out how that can be....
 
harveyp6 said:
According to my parts book there is only one type, but there are two different diameters of bush that fit into the rear of it, so I'll leave you to work out how that can be....
Click to expand...

I guess I'll find out soon enough! :shock:

Thanks all.
 
iirc the only sign is the width of the bit the bush goes in. I only know because i was asked which one it was when i attempted to buy a bush for it...
 
Well looking at what I have in the garage I have in the garage I have 1 set of one type, and one set of another. The back end bush is the same on both sets, but one set has a much smaller diameter bush at the front - see side by side shots for comparison.

Now I just have to get mine up in the air so I can try and see what I have fitted:

Back end - Same:


Front - Different:
 
note the bush on the larger one is slotted to allow for th esideways movement as the axles rise and fall. I'd rebush the bigger ones. I have three sets of cars 1968+ and they're all large. Then again Australia did get the beefed up suspension so that might explain the difference.
 
I have not seen trailing arms with different size front bushes before. Those that I have seen though in relation to the 3500 have the smaller diameter front bush, mind you, they were all series 2 models. My Rover has arms with the smaller diameter front bush.

See if the overall width of the bush is different between the two diameters.

Ron.
 
I should have checked here sooner - I have literally just got in from getting the car up on the ramps and having a look myself! :roll:

As you say Ron, I have the links with the smaller diameter front bush, and so I have started wire brushing these up ready for removing the old bushes, painting and new bushes.

I will check the widths of the two and post back here at some point.
 
Have you managed to get the correct bushes? This is one of the places polybushes might be dangerous.....
 
Poly bushes are seldom slotted to allow for sideways movement. They can also be (though not necesarily) stiffer which can fatigue the mount surround causing it to break free. I suspect the first reason is the more correct and there may well be others! You could of course drill them to relieve the sideways loading.
 
Thanks for the explanation. I can understand the additional stiffness is undesirable, but I can't quite get my head around the sideways movement - isn't this undesirable as well? I'm still learning about suspension systems, so sorry if this is a bit of a daft question.
 
Baron von Marlon said:
Thanks for the explanation. I can understand the additional stiffness is undesirable, but I can't quite get my head around the sideways movement - isn't this undesirable as well? I'm still learning about suspension systems, so sorry if this is a bit of a daft question.
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p6dedion1.gif


Looking at this image the differential and the front lower arm bushes are fixed to the bodyshell. The driveshafts are of fixed length and operate in an arc around the differential so between full extension, normal ride height and full compression the rear track width changes with the wheels physically moving in and out from the centre of the car, also giving the need for the sliding joint of the de dion tube. The outer elbows of the de dion are fixed to the driveshafts so move in and out from the centre too, so the upper and lower arms aren't just pivoting in one direction, but working in two axis, vertically and laterally. This is the reason why the lower arm bushes have voids in them, giving enough flex in the bush to allow for the lateral movement in the changing of the track width. The polybushes generally don't have this extra free movement and it's also well known that failures have occurred in the end of the lower arm and de dion elbow primarily from corrosion weakening the metal.

Quite simply Rover specified a voided bush for a very good reason :wink:
 
I bought the bushes from wadhams, all seem to be rubber rather than PU (as expected) and the large rear bushes for the lower arms have the voids as the per the originals. Plan is to get the car up in the air tonight ready for me to start removing parts tomorrow after work.

I have already removed the old bushes from my spare arms, so really just need to get the top links off and de-bushed as well before visiting my parents and using the press again to install the new ones (any excuse :D ).

I will try to remember to take some measurements of the various bushes before I install them for everyone's info.
 
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