Took my car my car for an MOT today and it passed but I was adised that the wishbone bushes were worn and needed replacing..the person was vague about what was needed..so i am asking a possible silly question..any ideas what I need..he also asked if I had noticed any knocking from the front of the car on rough roads..any help please

 

Top or bottom wishbone?

For my money I would do the ball joints at the same time, the top wishbone has the long bolt going through it, the bottom come in 2 parts

This is a pic of the top



This particular one was a real PITA and came out like this



I had a good secondhand wishbone I used, replaced the ball joint and polybushed the whole car.


The question is have you felt a slight knocking feeling going over rough ground?

 

I thought XKRacer would have completed that excellent reply by telling you where he got his poly bushes

Graham

 

I am a Powerflex dealer, so indirectly they came from me

 

thanks for the reply..i will go back to the mechanic and ask him to be more specific..

 

Did he record it in the 'Advisory Information / Advisory Items' section on the MoT Test Certificate or just mention it?

Graham

 

no mention on the bit of paper he gave me ..but i did question the MOT was a joke..just a bit of a4 paper out of a printer..He may be looking for a bit of work and trying to confuse me with techno munbo jumbo .like wishbone.last wishbone i saw was in a chicken.

 

The new A4 certificates from this year do lack a bit of gravitas! As the Police can check your documents electronically at the roadside, there's almost no requirement for an actual piece of paper any more. Did you know you can download the full test history for your car back to 2006 when the database was set up? It's available on:

www.direct.gov.uk/en/Motoring/OwningAVehicle/Mot/DG_1002053

As the tester mentioned wishbones, it's worth checking them. The photos XKRacer posted aren't unusual. Once the top ones start to fail they can soon seize up and make it very difficult to remove the fulcrum bolt. I spent three days last year removing one side.

Graham

 

yes i looked back on the mots for my car and it failed in 2006 for petrol cap and a light out..it also had both rear wheel bearings mentioned in 2008 and was retested again 70 miles later and passed..even though it wasnt a fail..all good info

 

I'm wondering if someone here can help me. I don't meant to hijak the post...
I need to perform the same type of repair. Except, whoever was there befor me didn't tighten down the control arm bolt enough and there is excesssive wear in the aluminimum. I am just wondering if any one knows a proper repair statagy thats not going to cost me a ton. We are thinking of just drilling it and sleaving it.

 

You will still have to drop the subframe to do that........ not a bad job providing the V mounts come undone, but you will have to support the engine

 

i was hoping to do it place after i take the top wish bone off and then drill it an angle drill

 

Very close to the bulkhead at the front and more obstructions at the rear with brake pipes:



Your problem would be getting square on to drill.

Graham

 

+1

 

Thanks for the advice. doesn't seam like an impossible job. do you know the part number for the control arm bolt by any chance? I assume its siesed in the bushing and the bolt and bushings will have to be replaced too.
Any idea if this is a common problem on these cars? I'm new to jags
Thanks for your help

 

The control arm bolt is known as the fulcrum shaft

Fulcrum Shaft: MJA1455AD
Upper Wishbone Bush: MJA1462AB

These particular parts fit a range of models and model years but it always helps when asking questions like this to give details of your vehicle year.

Failing upper wishbone bushes is very common. The bushes seize on the fulcrum shaft and the shaft can often seize in the aluminium crossmember but damage to the crossmember is much rarer. Many choose to use poly bushes in place of the original Jaguar type. If you follow the web page link at the bottom of XJRacer's post, you'll see the alternative Powerflex bushes.

Have a look at Reverend Sam's video on the replacement procedure:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YuUy5..._order&list=UL

This gives a complete run through the procedure.

 

Thanks guys for your help. My spesific car is a 1997 XK8
one more question. is this what I need to fix the play in the aluminum cross member?
Jaguar SHIM THICK FOR FULCRUM SHAFT FRONT UPPER CONTROL - MJA1467AA

 

I also noticed that the fulcrum shaft is quite expensive. Is there a was to remove the wish bone without cutting the fulcrum shaft?

 

The fulcrum shaft should be a sliding fit through the crossmember. If there's any play on it, the aluminium crossmember is likely to be worn. Shims will not cure this.

This is the Parts Manual for the upper wishbone showing the shims and part numbers for the two available thicknesses:



You would normally be able to reuse the existing shims to locate the wishbone correctly on re-assembly.

Graham

 

Provided either of the bush sleeves haven't seized onto it, you will be able to tap it out. Might take some persuasion with heat and penetrating oil.

Graham