More front suspension discussion
 

With all this discussion on front suspension stiffness I plan to check mine later on this week. I have 41,000 miles on it and it is stiffer than I think it should be, but not as stiff as has been described by some. I'm pretty sure the shocks are OK, but the wishbone bushings and ball joints concern me along with the sway bar bushings. My question for all of you with all this great first hand experience concerns some good spray lubricant that can be applied to loosen up rubber bushings. One member menitoned WD40 and was cautioned against it as it might harm the English rubber. Has anyone had luck with something that isn't harmful and works?

Thanks guys. Always a pleasure hearing back from you.

EZDriver 2000 XK8 41,000 miles

hey EZ, was your car raised in TX? the only thing I can think that would 'stiffen' an xk8 suspension to the point it feels too tight is a seized bushing on either the lower control arm of the upper A-arm...upper being more common. It would surely show up as an uneven ride height also, unless both are rusted to the bushing's sleeve.

Drive over here to Ft Worth, and we can swap cars for the day...compare notes. :) I lost my Silverleaf client so no more Holly Lake Ranch projects for me...and that means no trips to Flint, sorry.

h20boy

My main concern is to avoid problems that seem to be cronic with these cars as they get older. And the ride did seem to me to be a bit stiffer than I thought it needed to be. But that is one thing that makes it corner like it was on rails. Any way. I took the car over to Mineola yesterday where I have my main shop in my airplane hangar. I also talked to a couple of guys about something to spray on the keep the rubber from getting so hard it needs to be replaced. They recommended a silicone spray. So I picked up one and tried it on some old rubber parts I had laying around the hangar. It looked like it would work pretty well. Maintains a nice film on the part and I think it will prolong life pretty well.

I also jacked up the car at the jack pad one side at a time to check how far the car was lifted before the wheel left the ground. Both were the same and looked about right. So my conclusion is that my front suspension is working as it should be. The ride is as it should be. But in the near future I will put the car on a lift and spray a liberal amount on all the rubber parts.

As far as where the car was raised I am not sure. I am the third owner. For the last seven years it has been an East Texas car.

Me...go to Ft Worth!!!! Man I avoid those big cities. I was in Ft Worth about three years ago. I was invited to give a talk on the SR-71 that I was a flight test engineer on to the Society of Flight Test Engineers and Test Pilots. The talk was to be given in a resturant at the Stock Yards. I had hardly began when a tornado came up and we lost power and all had to go to the basement. That ended that. It also hailed like hell and I had my XJ6 in the parking lot. Nothing like a little hail damage in Ft Worth. No, don't think Ft Worth is for me. I like it here where the deer with new fawns roam in my back yard every day.

You mentioned a client here. What do you do where you have clients. Fill me in on that. Use a PM if you want. Me, I'm just retarded... no retired. Don't like being retired. That is one reason I have two Jags and an airplane.

Looks like the car is fine for now.

EZDriver 2000 XK8 1995 Xj6

sent you a friendly email :)