Hi guys.
I seem to have a rattle coming from the from suspension when driving over rough roads. I have just been checking the front shock bushes and can feel a knock on the top of the shock when gently pushing the car down. I did replace the top bushes last year with the sponge type bushes so don’t expect these to wear out in such a short time. Anti roll bar all good as I rebushed it again last year. Maybe the shocks are toast these are the original Boge as far as I know. Thoughts please.
Rob.

 

Hi Robbo,

Replaced my top shock bushes about 3 or 4 years ago. Although they are starting to degrade I haven't got the rattle back so have left as is.

Surprised you have a problem with these after a year but I have seen other advice on here that they need regular replacement. Can you see the bushes from inside the engine bay and is this where the movement is? May not be as easy on the V12 compared with my 6 cylinder.

Good luck,
Leep

 

Hi Leep.
I will have a look in a bit. I wonder if the shocks have had it as I can feel a knock through them with just a gentle push down on the car.
Rob.

 

If they’re original, maybe it’s not a bad idea to replace them?

Sway bar links? Those bushings get eaten alive.

Either ball joint?

Not sure what else it would be. I know the foam doesn’t last long. You may want to use rubber. I did. It’s still doing it’s job after several years.

 

Sometimes a shock will knock due to internal wear/failure, yes. The knock is telegraphed right through.

Also.....

In my experience the lower mounting bolts must be very tight. Tighter than you normally expect. Really tight. Otherwise, they'll knock.

Cheers
DD

 

Hi all.
I have had a look and whipped out the top bushes. I had some nearly new rubber bushes which came off my Triumph Stag when I had it. I have installed these and also tightened up the lower mount bolts. They were tight but now they are tighter. Anti roll bar links all good. I did replace the upper wishbone bushes last year but not sure if they look particularly good. Photo to follow.
Rob.

 

Photos

 

It looks to me that the bush towards the front of the car has deformed. You will also notice where the shock shroud has had the sticker rubbed off. When I got the car poly bushes were fitted here and last year I changed them for the std bush. I will admit these are not genuine bushes. The poly were ok as far as I can remember and I kept them so can refit.
Rob.

 

Robbo
I can see day light between the RHS wishbone bush and the eye of the wishbone casting, second photo. Have you got all the components in there that you should, special chrome washers etc ? It looks like the inner bush has squashed.

 

Hi Greg.
Everything is there as it came off the car when I changed the bushes. I think this is a case of **** pattern parts again. I think I will put the polys back and see how it goes.
Rob.

 

Job done I think but haven’t had a chance to test. The one year old wishbone bushes with around 800 miles on them were basically falling apart. What a load of crap. Poly bushes cleaned greased and reinstalled and guess what no knock felt at the top of the shocks. I found one of the steering rack heat shields was rattling on the exhaust down pipe so adjusted that. Will road test tomorrow if I have time and let you know the outcome. Cheers guys.
Rob.

 

Great news Robbo. But now you have had two experiences, write above the garage door "Never use pattern parts on an XJS"!
If it is any comfort, I have spent about 4 months chasing newly-appeared knocks and rattles and have only just chased them all down...

 

Yes!
Jags should Purr (or Snarl), Not rattle!
(';')

 

Absolutely, Greg! Everyone who buys a Jag should be given that poster to put in their garage! Never stray away from anything less than genuine Jaguar or absolutely guaranteed OEM! It's a quality car, fit only quality parts. There is SO much crap aftermarket stuff out there now.

Paul

 

Good point Paul.

I recently took the wife's Toyota Yaris for its Mot at my friendly independent garage (who also do the odd job on the XJS). I always witness the test as you can learn so much.

The tester pointed out a minor pin hole leak on a CV joint rubber bellows (MoT advisory). He suggested probably OK to leave till next year but if I did change, then go for Toyota OEM as non Toyota replacements available on the internet don't last 6 months compared with the 14 years the original Toyota part lasted.

Sorry for the non-Jag content!

LeeP

 

Yes! And we all know about non-OEM lower wishbone bushings that last 3 years instead of 30 and the Unbounded Joy with which we had to do it again!

I truly believe this explains the sudden disappearance of ALL (except Nix) of Classic Jags on my local roads.
(';')

 

I once had a similar rattle from the top of the shock absorber after replacing the rubber. Turns out it was a very simple fix - I hadn't tightened the bolt enough at the top - oops! It was a while ago, but from memory I used an O2 sensor tool to hold a nut, then I could tighten the Allen Key fully. BTW - fully agree on the dialog regarding OEM vs aftermarket, there's some really horrible stuff out there. Cheers, Dave