High mile control arm questions.
12-01-2009, 08:54 PM
#1
Pro
Thread Starter
High mile control arm questions.
Hi There
My C2 Tip has 185k on the clock and is pretty much original. The car has covered most of its miles on the motorway which is probably the reason it still has it's original rear shocks (not for much longer). I mention this because I am refurbing the whole suspension and have started to take off the rear control arms. I am rebushing them so no concerns at that end, however I am wondering about the ball joints.
The ones I have had a chance to examine so far move easily in their sockets with no roughness, and you can feel that they are still lubricated. They do not feel loose but they are in no way tight either. You can rotate them slowly between finger and thumb without too much effort. There does not seem to be any play although I have not clamped the joint shaft between wood in a vice yet and had a really good push and pull. The boots look ok.
Has anyone here replaced the boots? They look like they are bonded to the arm rather than held in place by a lip. You can get new generic boots but I am not sure how I could attach them at the base. That way I could regrease them easily.
Alternatively I was thinking of injecting some fresh grease through the small gap in the top of the boot. I would use a syringe and a thin metal needle like tube made originally for refilling inkjet cartridges.
I know that the easy answer is replace the arms with new ones, and the logical conclusion of that train of thought is to replace the whole car with a new one, but that is not the point of this project. Parts that have reached the end of their life I am and have replaced. Parts that are still serviceable I want to refurbish. It is part of the pleasure for me and part of really getting to know my car and having a partnership with it.
Does anyone here have any experience of the above (the control arm bit
)?
All the best
Berni
My C2 Tip has 185k on the clock and is pretty much original. The car has covered most of its miles on the motorway which is probably the reason it still has it's original rear shocks (not for much longer). I mention this because I am refurbing the whole suspension and have started to take off the rear control arms. I am rebushing them so no concerns at that end, however I am wondering about the ball joints.
The ones I have had a chance to examine so far move easily in their sockets with no roughness, and you can feel that they are still lubricated. They do not feel loose but they are in no way tight either. You can rotate them slowly between finger and thumb without too much effort. There does not seem to be any play although I have not clamped the joint shaft between wood in a vice yet and had a really good push and pull. The boots look ok.
Has anyone here replaced the boots? They look like they are bonded to the arm rather than held in place by a lip. You can get new generic boots but I am not sure how I could attach them at the base. That way I could regrease them easily.
Alternatively I was thinking of injecting some fresh grease through the small gap in the top of the boot. I would use a syringe and a thin metal needle like tube made originally for refilling inkjet cartridges.
I know that the easy answer is replace the arms with new ones, and the logical conclusion of that train of thought is to replace the whole car with a new one, but that is not the point of this project. Parts that have reached the end of their life I am and have replaced. Parts that are still serviceable I want to refurbish. It is part of the pleasure for me and part of really getting to know my car and having a partnership with it.
Does anyone here have any experience of the above (the control arm bit
)? All the best
Berni
