Stuck Front Hub

[bicyclerepairman 3]

Hi all,

 

Any help with more newbie questions would be appreciated!

 

Today I decided it was time to replace the strut bushes and bearings. I'm in the process of taking the front strut off the car, so far I've removed the ARB from the strut, and removed the nut on the hub carrier pinch bolt. The book says that now I should "use a screwdriver to open up the mount, and slide the hub carrier down". Using a screwdriver to open up the mount doesn't seem to do a whole lot, and I've used a block of wood and a hammer to hit the carrier, but nothing's moving.

 

1. Does the pinch bolt come out too? So far I've only taken off the nut, because the bolt also seems like it won't come out.

 

2. Am I doing it right? Do I just need to hit the hub carrier harder? I've already put a load of penetrating oil in there.

 

3. Could I get away with just dropping the strut, still attached to the carrier, and replacing the bearings/bushes?

 

Thanks!

Edited March 10, 2013 by bicyclerepairman

[j_turnell 134 3 Cars]

Get an 8mm allen key or sump plug key, tap it into the slot in the back of the upright, where the strut comes through, and turn it through 45deg, or use a suitable sized chisel and wedge between it to open it up. Then get a copper hammer and hit the top of the upright, a few smacks and it should slide off the strut. Obviously make sure the strut is still bolted to the top mount. There's no need to remove the bolt, just loosen it.

Edited March 10, 2013 by j_turnell

[bicyclerepairman 3]

Thanks for the allen key tip! Got it loose now. However, the suspension arm won't go down far enough to let me completely slide the strut out of the carrier - do I just need to compress the springs more??

[j_turnell 134 3 Cars]

You should just be able to push the upright down, and push it over to one side and hook the strut out, no need to compress the spring, just be careful the driveshaft doesn't pop out the box on the n/s.

[welshpug 1,646]

I have found that if the bolt has not been removed for some time it can be stuck in the bore of the clamp on the nut side giving more resistance to the clamp opening up.

 

Also on base models the springs and dampers are pretty looong, you may well need to compress the spring a bit to pop the damper out of the hub, often just cracking the hub nut off and removing the hub carrier off the balljoint and removing the complete damper assembly is far quicker.

Edited March 10, 2013 by welshpug

[bicyclerepairman 3]

I'll have another go, but the strut comes about halfway out of the carrier, before it seems like the carrier/suspension arm bottoms out and won't drop any further.

[pugpete1108 62 1 Cars]

Get some weight on the lower arm and you should be able to get it low enough to slide the strut out.

 

I usually use my foot on the lower arm and push down while working the strut loose.

[bicyclerepairman 3]

Got it out in the end, and am now re-building the strut.

 

Now have two more issues:

 

1. One of the three top mounting studs (that bolt the strut assembly into the top mount in the engine bay) sheared off when I undid it. How are they retained in the mounting plate? Can I drift out the remains of the stud, and replace it, or will I have to get a new mounting plate?

 

2. It seems I wasn't careful enough with the driveshaft, and it slid out enough that oil came out. Can I just slide it back into place and re-fill the oil when I'm done, or have I made a royal mess??

[welshpug 1,646]

1, they are spot welded M7 studs, you can drill/grind the remains off and use an M8 bolt in place, if you can it helps to tack it in place, but not the end of the world if you can't.

 

2, pop the shaft back in and top up.

Edited March 10, 2013 by welshpug

[bicyclerepairman 3]

Welshpug - that's great news, hopefully I haven't made a mess of the drivetrain too.

 

Well after a daylong epic, I have rebuilt one side. Just started on the other side, and getting the strut out took less than 1/2 hr...at least I'm learning....

 

Thanks for all your help everyone!!

[bicyclerepairman 3]

So I snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. I had the other strut off, stripped, re-built, and fitted in record time. Was tightening the last of the three retaining nuts in the top mount, when the stud sheared off. There then followed instant mojo loss, tidied everything away, and now I'm off to the pub. But now this leaves me with one stud sheared off in each of the mounting plates.

 

Option one is to do what I intended to do to the other side, which is drill it out and fit an M8 bolt.

 

Given that I'll probably have to disassemble the strut again to do this, I may as well replace the top mounting plate (also now I'm a little worried about the condition of the remaining studs). As I didn't replace anything else apart from the bushes and bearings, I could also get the complete kit. Does anyone know if the two re-build kits "4" (top mounting plate, spacer, nut, and washer) and "2" (pretty much everything, apparently including the spring) from the servicebox page are still available, and if so, roughly how much they cost? I'll be trying to source some parts this week, but it would be nice to know my options before I start.

 

I'd appreciate any advice. I'm also open to temptation buying uprated parts (there are already group N bushes fitted) if they are an option, as I have to take everything apart again I may as well fit decent parts.

 

Thanks in advance!