Creaking Suspension

D

DayleW

Member
Hi All,

Since I had my P6 the front near side suspension has occasionally creaked. Recently however it has been creaking all the time and is infuriating! I suspect it might be a bush which has perished away. Having never taken a panel off a car before, I took the wing off yesterday (which was a pain in itself as some past owner had welded it on at the bottom) and have had a look at the suspension but I cant figure out exactly where the noise is coming from. Does anyone have any tips/suggestions as to what to look out for?

Also, it looks like for some suspension jobs I might need three spring rods to hold the spring in a compressed position. Does anyone have some I could borrow? I am in the Stourbridge, West Midlands area.

Thanks,

Dayle
 
If you spray each bush with WD40 , one at a time , when it stops creaking you'll know the last one you sprayed was to blame
 
I've not been able to stop the creak with wd40. I think it is coming from the horizontal spring at the top...
 
DayleW said:
Also, it looks like for some suspension jobs I might need three spring rods to hold the spring in a compressed position. Does anyone have some I could borrow? I am in the Stourbridge, West Midlands area.
Click to expand...

Hi Dayle

You're pretty close to Mark Gray of MGBD. I'm sure he'll be able to help you out.

Dave
 
Hi Dayle,

If the rubber covering the ball end within the top link, which in turn sits within the spring cup, should split allowing metal to metal contact, you'll certainly have a creak in that area.

Ron.
 
Agreed. I had that very situation on my P5B. The rubber allowing water into a front joint which WD40 always quietened down until the next time. It remained like that until I changed the subframe which some might say was quite a radical cure. :LOL:
 
ohh yes i been there changin mine and never again the power in those springs are out of this world
 
Can anyone suggest a set of coil spring compressors that are going to be safe to use on P6 suspension? I can see some cheap sets on ebay starting at around £7, but I'm worried that they will slip or snap. I've never dealt with suspension before but I can imagine a spring compressor slipping off would be a very bad thing!
 
Hi Dayle,

Before you go to all the trouble of taking out one or both of the front springs, have a look at the rubber attached to the ball end that I spoke of in my post above. Has the rubber split or appear damaged in any way? If not, try some silicon spray around the edge of the cup where the spring sits against and again where the spring rests up against the bulkhead.

What is the general condition of the spring and the suspension components? Are they lightly or heavily rusted or is there no rust at all?

Ron.
 
Hi,

Having a look at the rubber it is all pretty badly perished. I cant see anywhere that it has split right through though. The springs have some surface rust but I think they are in fair condition.

Dayle
 
To be clear, the rubber we are talking about is on the head of the push rod that enters the front of the spring. The end of the push rod is a mushroom shape and is covered by a rubber "condom". This rubber covered mushroom then pushes against the spring end plate. It's very hidden away, but you should just be able to see it if you squint up inside the spring from the outer end. If you can see the rubber at al, chances are it's fubarred! If it's OK it barely peeps out around the metal parts.

This parts diagram might help:

http://www.rover-classics.co.uk/ima...lery/pages/Shock Absorbers & Springs_jpg.html

You're looking for part no 534667

If you do finish up wanting to remove the spring, please don't use spring compressors. Have some long studs made up to replace 595734 and its freinds that secure the top pivots to the bulkhead. To dismantle simply gradually un-do these fixigs from inside the car with a substantial wieght to hold the front of the car down - on its wheels, not jacked up. When the bolts / studs are clear of the pivot arm brackets you can then release the weight and jack up the car allowing the spring to come free gradually as the brackets move away from the bulkhead. Assembly is the reverse of dismantling - except that you need those long studsto engage the brackets when still a fair way from the bulkhead. Simply wind them in and then swop the long studs, one at a time, for the correct fixings once everything is secure.

Chris
 
Another area that you can check Dayle are the shock absorbers, ensuring that the rubbers are intact and that there is no metal to metal contact anywhere. I am afraid that I don't agree at all with the method that Chris York (sorry Chris) suggests with regard to spring removal. I can see no end of problems along with the rods which secure the top link being damaged in the process.

The rubber covering the ball end is quite visible when looking into the cup, for if you can't see it, chances are that it is missing altogether. I have seen rubbers that have given way and ended up hanging around the top link pushrod like a donut.

Another area to check are the caps which secure the anti roll bar to the top links.

Ron.
 
hey ron, what would you use for removing the springs? I thought normal compressors were likely to give way on p6 front springs? (And nobody wants to end up wearing them! ;) )
 
Hi Rich,

The normal off the shelf spring compressors that I have seen are two short to safely remove the front springs, so I use the fixings on long threaded rods of the same diameter. They don't come off and the spring can be released back to its full static length with plenty of thread to spare. The work can be done alone if need be, but having an assistant always makes things easier, even if the assistant spends most of his/her time just waiting. As my Dad used to say, "he also serves who only stands and waits".

Ron.
 
I've got two sets of spring clamps similar to these http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/EXTRA-LON...t=UK_Hand_Tools_Equipment&hash=item20cd8174fb

There should be just enough room to get a pair of spring compressors either side of the spring while it is compressed with the weight of the car on it and the front wing removed. Then comes the tricky part, what I did was jack the car up so the wheels were in the air, and disconnect the top ball joint from the upper bellcrank link assembly and pull it out of the way or remove the complete lower suspension assembly for clearance.

With the car safely on axle stands, and even better wheels underneath so it cannot move or fall, using a jack raise the end of the bellcrank where the swivel pillar balljoint goes to take the load off the damper. Remove the damper and let the jack down, either there will be enough movement on the bulkhead bushes to pull the bellcrank down and remove the spring, or there won't. If there isn't and you don't want to pull the bellcrank down hard, slowly undo the four mounting studs or bolts from inside evenly, keeping an eye on the compressed spring so it doesn't fall and knock the compressor clamps off.

It would be a good idea to have four spring compressor clamps to hand, once you have enough access all the way round the spring during the removal process, fit the second pair onto the compressed spring. Clearance is tight around the top so it is likely you will damage the factory underseal.
 
I have used Chris's method. It's less complicated and works if you use patience and care, as you should with springs.
 
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