993 wishbone bushes

[silver993tt]

I heard a while back that it was possible to get the bushes replaces on 993 front wishbones instead of getting completely new units.

Has anybody got any concrete info on this?

I think I'll get mine replaced over the winter since they do have cracks in the rubber.

>>> Edited by silver993tt on Monday 13th September 10:38

[kent993]

There's an article on this in the June 2004 copy of 911 & Porsche World in which the author explains how to do it at a significant cost saving. However, at the point at which this article came out, my own 993 needed the bushes changed and I asked my independent whether he would undertake the method referred to in the article. He said it would cost more in labour terms to do it that way than by the normal replacement of the wishbones, and that the figures quoted in the article for OPC parts was wrong. He also reckoned that there was a fair chance that the method quoted would cause damage and that it just wasn't worth the risk.

I accepted his advice and had OPC parts fitted.

[silver993tt]

Ok, sounds like good advice. What did you pay for the parts & fitting?

How long do they usually last before starting to crack?

>> Edited by silver993tt on Monday 13th September 12:12

[nel]

Mine were done by an OPC at around 50 kmiles when the car was 7 and 1/2 years old. Will dig out the bill and let you know the price. Their longevity will no doubt depend on the quality of the roads and whether the car has been tracked or not.

[kent993]

The pair of wishbones was £339.09 and there was a labour charge which I can't quantify because it was part of some other work. Probably an hour at £45. Don't forget, though, that you'll have to have the car realigned after fitting new wishbones - in my case, it was done at a fixed price by an OPC, at £150.

The work was done at the eight-year point, which seems to square with Nel's experience, though in my case, much lower mileage (30K). I think it's as much a question of time as mileage because the bushes start to crack with age.

[silver993tt]

Thanks, useful info. My car turned 7 years this August and had 39k miles.

[ian964]

I've just had the bushes replaced on my 964 (they're the same as for a 993) at GT1 - the bushes were £99 and it was 4 hours labour so the total was £309 ex VAT. There was a four wheel alignment on top of this as well. Overall you're only saving about £100 over replacing the wishbones. I had this done as part of a complete suspension replacement (Bilstein/H&R) - these bushes are slightly stiffer than stock without being as hard as race ones, so they will change the feel of the car slightly.

Hope this is useful

Ian

[silver993tt]

Did you source your new suspension from GT1 or did you get the parts and have GT1 fit them. If GT1 sourced them, what was the cost of the Bilstein setup (PM me if u like)?

I've used GT1 before for some work for my car, no problems.

[Ian964]

I sourced the Bilstein/H&R kit myself from [url]www.type-911.co.uk/home.htm[/url] for £720 plus VAT and next day delivery. GT1 charged 6 hrs labour to fit it (on top of the wishbones and alignment). All in I've been very happy with both GT1 and Type-911 - I just need time to drive now!