hi,

I'm in the middle of replacing the Front Lower Wishbone Front Bushes.

I bought them from powerflex, they look totally different then the original ones, but seem to fit. the problem is that there are two, labeled:

27-203A
27-203B

and they have different thicknesses. So which goes where?
I need to know it quite urgently ....

many thanks.

 

I did a little browsing on their website, and can't see why there would be any difference between the left or right, lower fronts. Maybe give them a call first thing Monday.

I checked the jaguar EPC, and the same part is listed for both L and R front lower bushings, so there should be no deviation in thickness.

 

hi, thanks for the quick answer, here is a bit more info, hopefully this will sort out the misunderstanding:

here is a picture of the original bushes:
http://d2kt1nelsss5fp.cloudfront.net...jpg?1335653503

and here is picture of the powerflex ones, which I used instead:
http://www.powerflex.co.uk/resize_im...sweb.jpg&w=250

as you can see the original ones are one piece bushes, while the powerlex ones are made of two pieces and a metal tube.

the problem is, that the two powerflex pieces, which together make one bush are not identical. (i.e. it is not left-right problem, it is within one single bush).

So if you think of the front lower wishbone front bush, as mounted on the car, its axis point in the front-back direction. And there are two parts which make one bush, thinner and thicker one. So the final question is, which goes where: the thicker to the front and the thinner to the back or vice versa?

 

I did a similar search to H20boy yesterday and came to the same conclusion.

A check on the Powerflex website confirmed you had the correct part but, as you've found, makes no mention of the A and B suffix.

Does a comparison with the thickness of the 'shoulder' on the old OE bush give a clue to which way round the A and B on the Powerflex should be fitted?

Graham

 

Hi,

I just received and answer from powerflex (Quote):

Very sorry about this.

We should give special instructions.

The bushes will look quite different to standard.

The A parts goes to the front of the car.

OK, so problem solved, hope no one else runs into it unprepared ;-)

 

If they do, now they'll find your solution.

Graham

 

So, is the "A" part the longer one or the shorter one?

You are now appointed the JF "Powerflex Front Lower Wishbone Front Bushes (XK8/XKR)" technical expert and deputized to answer all questions in that regard.

 

Did you manage to replace the front lower wishbone bushes? I need to do this myself, but I'm wondering if it is a DIY project or if I should leave it up to the mechanic...

 

Hi azetec,

yes, I did, it was not that difficult.

now this needs a bit of explanation: What i did was to change the ball joints, and all the bushes and the bearings. This means I had the whole thing apart. So the part about changing the Front Lower Wishbone Front Bushes was easy, I had good access. But I think it should be no problem even if you do only the Front Lower Wishbone Front Bushes.

In my case the most difficult part was to get the old bushes out. The press didn't work, they felt apart, I had to cut them and then hammer them out using a chisel. If you plan to install Powerflex you don't need a press to press them in. With the original ones I guess you need it.

cheers, Asen.

 

Reverend Sam has a video in the FAQ's that shows him fitting Powerflex front upper wishbone bushes.
He had the same problem, and IIRC it was also the Reverend that contacted Powerflex, who explained that the "A" markings on each half go to the front and "B"'s to the rear.
They also conceded that it would be helpful if they included this information in the instructions, but it appears they still haven't done so.

It might save many people some grief when replacing their standard bushes with Powerflex, if someone condensed this information in to a short post titled "Powerflex bushes" (or something similar) and it was added to the Suspension heading in the FAQ's.

shl1980, i reckon that should be your job, since you are now nominated the expert

Sorry, only just seen your post, or i'd have tried to help earlier.

 

Hi shl1980

where did you find the lower ball joints?

 

You can get ball joints fron SNG Barrett

SNG Barratt - USA | Parts
Search for: MNC1350AA

There are two choices, the aftermarket or OEM version for $23 or $42 respectively.

 

Hi,

In one of my previous posts I included the answer I received from powerflex, which suggested that the A part (the thicker one) goes to the front of the car. But this is wrong !!!

Despite this being the powerflex answer it kept bothering me, because when I measured the gaps between the wishbone and the chassis mountings with the original bushes and I got the opposite result; i.e. the gap in the front was smaller than the one at the back.

So I wrote to powerflex again, asking them to find someone who really knows. What I received is in the attachment. Clearly the A part (the thicker - PFF27-203-A) goes to the back and the B part (the thinner - PFF27-203-B) goes to the front

NOTE: this is about the powerflex bushes which are of a completely different design than the original ones!

NOTE: is there some forum moderator here, who can rearrange this thread? because now if someone doesn't read it to the end he/she might install them wrongly ... Is there a way to put this message first in the thread?