Front Suspension Rebuild

After I had cleaned up all the suspension parts it was time to refit it all. I decided to buy new bushes and some of my fulcrum pins were threaded which I replaced.

First up is to fit the new bushed in to the lower wishbone. So started by applying the grease that came with the kit.

It is useful to point out that where the wishbone connects to the chassis there are two holes. One significantly bigger than the other. The point in this is that you should fit the inner bushes first.

Then slide the wishbone in place, push each bush in one at a time.

I found a well placed screw driver helped with this whilst using my knee as support for the wishbone.

You can the easily fit the outer bushes through the larger hole on either side, but depending on the type of bushes you have you might need to fit the metal tube first as further below.

I then used my welding clamps to insert the metal tubes that come with the bushes kit.

Once fully inserted I fitted the outer bush and then pushed through the fulcrum pin from the other side.

Then you can fit the large washer.

And tighten on the locking nut.

All ready for the stub axle before fitting the spring which is covered in this post: Front Steering Rebuild

Once you have completed fitting the stub axle and king pin it is time to fit the main front spring. However I need to be clear and make the following statement:

Springs under load are extremely dangerous and can cause major injury. I am not responsible for any accidents that may occur if you follow what I did to fit mine. If you are unsure about proceeding please speak to a professional.

I decided to follow the long bolt method as described in the Haynes Manual. This involves two or four long bolts. I bought these two 150mm bolts and added two further nuts to be safe. You don't need the bolts to be that long but that's what I went for.

The process is to undo the four bolts that hold the spring seat on to the lower wishbone. DO NOT undo all these bolts if the spring is in place! However you can use this method if you need to replace the spring by repeating this process in reverse.

Remove the spring seat and drop either two or four long bolts (depending how safe you want to be) down through the wishbone. 

You then lift the spring up into place and follow with the spring seat. Then start to tighten the nuts.

You will find that it is quite easy to start off with your fingers, but after a while you need another option. I found this video online that explains the whole process.

I followed his advice and used these mole grips and socket. 

You just have to carefully keep tightening both bolts evenly until the spring seat is in place and you can bolt in the original spring seat bolts one by one. 

Please watch the video as it was a great help to me.