Lower wishbones. Absolute nightmare.

[gamefreaks]

Trying to change my lower wishbones. My passenger side broke the bracket that holds the drop-link.

Really struggling.

Taken the old one off. Easy job, nothing seized.

Really struggled to fit the lower shock as the bird st welds on the new wishbone were in the way. (Bilstein shocks so nothing non-standard) Spent about 2 hours filing away to remove the burrs.

I'm using the poly-bushes.

Now trying to offer up the wishbone to the car and I can't get both sides lined up simultaneously. Lining up one side leaves me 1-2mm short on the other side.
The bushes are a super tight fit and I simply can’t see any way to get them in without just hammering the st out it and destroying the bushes.

This is the pits. I've never been beaten by a job like this before but im starting to think my only way forward is to just out the old wishbone back on and give up.

[Classic Chim]

Open up the lugs on the chassis slightly to help fitting.

[gamefreaks]

Ok. Had a bath and come up with a plan for tomorrow.

1) Remove the shock from the wishbone to make it easier to offer up to the car.

2) Remove bushes to see how the bare wishbone fits.

3) Offer up just the bushes to the car.

4) If they both fit then we need to get the bushes more snug.

5) Refit bushes and hopefully this time we can fit the wishbone.

[gamefreaks]

Classic Chim said:

Open up the lugs on the chassis slightly to help fitting.

How can I do that? The lugs are sort of C-shaped IIRC so you can't just fold them back?

I had to do this to the lugs where the shock absorber mounts but thats just a straight piece of metal.

[gamefreaks]

This is a picture of the rear lug on my car.

Fronts are the same.

[hoofa]

Personally I wouldn’t use poly bushes as they are crap. They don’t last, took my car to centre gravity and they couldn’t get the geo right. Standard bushes are far better and cheaper and last. The only place I’d use polly is the diff mountings. Replaced all the polly ones on mine with standard

Edited by hoofa on Saturday 30th July 22:48

[Classic Chim]

gamefreaks said:

How can I do that? The lugs are sort of C-shaped IIRC so you can't just fold them back?

I had to do this to the lugs where the shock absorber mounts but thats just a straight piece of metal.

I didn’t say fold them back!

Tap the lugs out just a mm or two on each lug, this just allows you to get the wishbone into position, put bolt through and nip the two lugs together when you tighten them.
Err put shock on last!
Use a rubber mallet to assist knocking wishbones into lugs
And I too think your wasting your time using poly but each to there own.

Edited by Classic Chim on Sunday 31st July 06:25

[SMB]

It sounds like you are fitting the shock to the wishbone first. Don’t,

[crowfield]

I have just replaced top and bottom front wishbones on my car last week. I used standard bushes ( pressed in for me by a local helpful garage ) I fitted the shock absorber to the bottom wishbone before fitting ( easier access while the wishbone was off the car ) , and just tapped the chassis mount a couple of mm to open it up slightly, fitted the long bolt first, then used a punch pushed into the front mounting hole to centre the wishbone and slid out the punch and inserted the bolt. It needed gentle tapping to get it right through, but I could then put the nut on and do it up. Dont forget to fully tighten everything once the car is back on its wheels

[gamefreaks]

Ok it's fitted. Just need to tighten up the bolts.

Never had a job fight me all the way like that before.

That ones going on the 'never again' list.

[skiver.]

That's a long list on the Chim.