Hi Guys!

I'm pretty sure my control arm bushing is NOT supposed to look like the picture. And all of a sudden, my typically straight-n-true front tire wear has gone adios-la-bye-bye. Just realized I'd trashed a set of mid-mileage Falkens (my favorites).

I can rebuild all the bushings myself, but it might be worth some extra money if a reasonably affordable (i.e., price does not insult my intelligence) completely rebuilt control arm was available. Or both, of course.

Any known sources? Any other ideas?

THANKS! - Jim

 

Jim,
If I were to suggest anything from what I see in the photo, it would be that the upper arm bolt was never tighten to the correct tq, if tightened at all. The way the bushing is sticking out from under the bolt head and washer would lead me to believe that was the cause. It would be interesting to have a wrench put on that nut and see how tight it was.

 

Jim,

You'd have to seperate the ball joint either way wouldn't you? Given that effort maybe it's just easier to replace the bushings. See Rev Sam's video on how to do it.


John

 

Appreciate the idea - thanks.

However, those bushings have 170,000 miles on them running straight and true, and just recently my tire wear has gone haywire. Yeh - I'm pretty sure the bushings are shot.

I think a trip through Youngstown, OH did them in a few months ago. Folks - I'm not kidding here - don't ever get off the highway within two counties (MINIMUM) of those roads. They're worse than The Bronx! The worse U.S roads I've ever driven over. Shameful.

 

Jim,

That bush is done.

170k miles! I usually replace upper wishbone bushes at 25 to 30k miles.

Jaguar list complete upper wishbone assemblies but it's an expensive option and rarely necessary as the bushes can easily be replaced.

Choice for bushes is between OE Jaguar or aftermarket polybushes.

Graham

 

Thanks Graham. I haven't found any rebuilds yet. I'm waiting to hear from a British outfit I've dealt with before (JagSpares) on that possibility.

Another British outfit (BritishParts.co.uk) has the whole kit; upper and lower; both sides, for about $200. They're the top contenders right now.

I just realized that the first symptom of the bushing(s) going south, was actually several months earlier when I started noticing louder than usual wheel noise. My first thought was the left wheel bearing (still original), but I was never able to confirm it. Turns out that it was obviously being made by the scalloping of the inner edges of the tire treads.

 

So you're suddenly seeing excess inner treadwear and you're attributing the cause to worn bushings rather than just needing a fresh front-end alignment?

 

Jim,
I would think the bushings are shot also, now that I know how many miles are on them.


I guess when the forum ask for year of car and miles, when posting, they understand how that can help people make suggestions to questions and make other intelligent comments on the post.


Cheers

 

See the rust around the bushing. Thats a sign they were gone along time ago and have been metal to metal. If theres rust theyre bad, play or not as plumbs and i have discussed in his thread. Just replace the bushings theyre not bad and lube with silicone paste or grease when going back together. Keep track of where the shims for caster are when disassembling

 

The majority of the work involved is the removal of the control arm. Once it's out, replacing the bushings is relatively simple - a little silicone grease on the edges and they slide right in. Certainly beats paying $300 - $500 for a new arm (standard Jaguar dealer procedure). When removing the arm, be sure to use a pivot, lever-arm ball joint extractor, not one of the extractor forks, as they will damage the boot. Be sure to wear eye protection and gloves, as the extractor "explodes" the ball joint out of the arm with accompanying dirt/debris. Also, feed a rod after the main fulcrum bolt as you remove it to catch the shims in place next to the fulcrum block of the sub-frame, per the commentary/video from other members. A relatively easy afternoon job, assuming the bolt is not rusted in place. Doesn't look too bad, per your picture.

 

Thanks! I need to put a kit on order. I found a full front end rebuild kit from Britain for about $250. I may order that and just replace those things that are shot now; leaving the rest in my supplies for later. Right now I have to put my GT6 engine back together first.

 

More than one person here has been very disappointed buying bushings from them.

They sell lots of aftermarket copies that don't fit right and/or are made of sponge cake.

In rubber bushings, no one has had bad things to say about the OEM Lemforder. They
lasted 170K the last time

 

Don't do it (buy a kit from British parts), the upper bushes don't fit and for the lower they supply two identical parts which should be different.


I made this mistake along with Rev Sam, within 18months I had to do the entire job again, I now have changed to Powerflex poly bushes which were easy to fit and I can't fault in any way.

 

scardini1, the poly will be your best bet. The GT6 should be a snap, is it the early or late one? We are just a couple of friends away from putting the Spit body on the '72 GT6 complete rebuilt frame and running gear, Saturday is planned. Been a lot of fun and can't wait to feel the power difference.


Wayne

 

Sorry to hijack but I was very interested to read about what bushings have been successful and which ones to stay away from. I ask because I am in the process of building a small hobby/business to cater to the Jaguar enthusiast and the first product offering will be rebuilt lower control arms. I have plenty of experience swapping out the bushings and ball joints. I have always used the Jaguar provided bushings when I worked for the dealership. I have the Lemforder ball joints ordered but have questions about the control arm bushings themselves. The best I can find is the Urospare pieces. My parts supplier seems happy with them but you guys know better how they hold up. I can get the Jaguar ones at work easily enough but they are fairly expensive. Once things get up and running I will be offering rebuilt upper control arms as well. My services will be on a core return basis or send me your parts to rebuild.

Thanks for the input as I get this adventure going.

 

scardini 1, be sure to check the condition of the shocks and the upper mounts, as the control arms have to come out to replace them, of course.

 

Hi Guys,

Thanks for all the inputs. If British Parts UK is out, who/where is a good source for at least just the bushings. I would prefer high quality rubber over poly - my ride is just firm enough - I like it.

 

I bought a set from parts geek last year.

 

Whoa.... Parts Geek wants $50+ per bushing! I'll just go with Rock Auto or a different English source. Even Rock's price is higher than I was expecting after the British Parts quote for the whole kit.

I saw Reverend Sam's video - I think I'll stick with rubber vs. poly. I prefer to maintain the physical configuration, so I don't have to worry about a wheel alignment. And my sport suspension is just stiff enough.

BTW: Where do I find the Lemforders? I'd at least like to price them.

 

Bought the new bushings from Rock Auto. About $22 apiece. UroPart brand. Regular rubber and could see no difference from the OEM. No difference in the ride, other than more certain tracking, of course.