FWIW - the binding on the fulcrum pin can be relieved using a chisel/hammer applied to the edge of a washer that is binding. In my case both times it was the inside washer on the side farthest from the bolt threads, the one under the lip of the rubber. Distorting the shape of that offending washer will free it up. Also helps to thoroughly clean/lubricate the visible part of the fulcrum bolt before you start moving it through all the bushing internals.

 

Oh itll never lock up again after we were done with it. But you are on point that's what we did with a little air hammer time.

 

Well I managed to destroy one of my upper shock mounts. Hit a deep pothole recently. Then started noticing a clunky sound going slow over rough pavement. Then it got worse.

The center bushing gave up on this one. So with the Welsh mounts I made it about 3 years and 41K miles. That is twice what I got from the Uro version. Still I wish it had been longer. Especially since I just did the upper control arm bushings a few weeks ago. So I ordered another set of Welsh mounts. They are still the best solution out there.

Fortunately the outer bushings seem to be fine so alignment is not compromised. Just noisy on bumps.

In the past I have never figured out exactly how to get the strut out without disconnecting the control arm. I remember somebody claimed to have done it. If there is a detailed procedure to do it I would be grateful. Not really wanting to disturb my control arm bushings again.

 

I did not remove the control arm (fulcrum bolt refused to come out ) but was still able to slide the whole thing out by angling the bottom of the strut fwd of the lower arm. I may have split the control arm loose at the spindle, but can't recall with certainty.

 

Removing the sway bar links gives you more clearance from the control arms.

 

New guy here, just a few posts. Can I ask what are Welsh mounts? Is that a brand name or a British term like boot or bonnet?
I will also be doing my bushing and ball joints soon.
TIA, TM

 

Welsh is the brand. The OEM upper mounts are a hard foam that deteriorates rapidly over time where the Welsh are a poly bushing that last a bit longer than the OEM

 

I believe the OEM shock mounts were foam based, and while they offered a slightly softer ride, the longevity was terrible. Welsh mounts are “poly” (i.e. rubber) and last a fair bit longer than the OEM versions. Some note a slight firming of the ride quality with the Welsh mounts as compared to stock. Obviously subjective, but these are widely regarded as the best solution out there if you are in need of replacement. I already have the Welsh mounts sitting on my workbench and will be tackling this come spring!

 

Thanks for your replys. Good info as usual. Yes, I noticed my foam deteriorating when I got my car in May. I had not seen foam upper mounts before. I have some new ones from Rockauto but I'll have to look to see their construction.
My car arrived in great shape for something 17 years old but I expected to fix a few things. I've got the classic front end clunk and shake of bad ball joint and A-arm bushings. Oh, it's gonna be so nice after it's done.

I had a '10 Miata MX5 for a while and it's a fantastic car, great little go cart. I hated to sacrifice it at the time but life is like that.
When it came time to get another convertible for our fun car, I decided on a little more comfort and to relive my youth with a Jag.
I am NOT second guessing my decision and neither is the Mrs. She loves it. TM

 

The aftermarket foam lasted a year for me. Before that I replaced the oem in 2013 so the factory ones had about 10 years of life in them. They weren't crumbling, just replaced them since I was doing shocks at the time. I dont believe the OEM foam deteriorates nearly as fast as the aftermarket ones.

 

I replaced my failed Welsh mounts today. Took a few pics of the failure. First is the bad news...

In my case the center bushing fell apart.


It was very crumbly as if it had reached the end of its life. I think this would not have lasted much longer even if I had not hit a large pothole.


On the good side, the outer bushing seemed to be in good shape.


So in my case when the Welsh mounts failed it was a lot of noise from the shock movement, instead of the outer failing and causing tire wear before you catch it. I considered that a win.

When the foam mounts failed it was always the outer foam that collapsed. Inner foams were intact.

So my replacements were Welsh again. I whined a bit to them about how long they lasted but I guess 40K and 3 years was considered reasonable. I got no sympathy.

 

Were there any visible signs of wear-and-tear just by opening the hood and looking down into the top of the shock mount where they bolt up?

 

One the side where I hit the deep pothole it was very visible by the offset of the shock nut.


On the other side these was some noticeable crumbling upon close inspection but the shock nut was not so offset.


I took both sides apart and both were in the same state of inner decay. Outer rings were fine on both, seems like they were maybe made of different material compound.

 

Thanks for the details. Our Welsh poly shock mounts are still looking and feeling normal after slightly more than 4 years and 21,500 miles. I presume that deterioration is typically a combination of age, miles, and general road conditions. I will start paying closer attention to them but I certainly hope that they still have quite a bit of life left in them....

I believe it is likely that installing new shocks at the same time one decides to install the Welsh poly shock mounts will provide more longevity. That is what I elected to do back in January 2016....

 

A bit confused regarding the above pics with the deteriorated poly bush. We did the Welsh poly upper mounts early on (10/2015 @122k) when they only provided the poly mounts. We drilled out the rivets on the OEM housing and tightened the poly mounts with their enclosed bolts kit. The bolts squeezed the upper & lower parts of the housing together and we re- riveted both.. Do not remember there being a separate or 2 piece bushing for the kit. We did install the poly spring packer below onto the shock shaft. Our shock shafts has shifted a bit but the poly material show no signs of deterioration. We installed New Front Springs w/i last 6 months (@ 145K) but no evidence of the poly mounts having worn. Used the " Remove Liners and sway bar end mounts method" so no upper control arm involved. Appears to have corrected the inner tire wear we experienced. Any help on the 2 piece or inner bush?

 

Maybe I wasn't clear enough when I said "I took both sides apart..."

I drilled the rivets to expose the inner bushing and show the carnage.

 

Thanks, the worn parts are one from each side, if correct. Did the large washer wear the center of the big poly mount and create the round portion shown? Looks like it cut a circle the size of the washer. We have no such indication this is occurring at present. Perhaps since we did ours so early on, prior to being able to purchase the entire pre-assembled, perhaps there was a different formula on the poly? We paid a local shop to mount the new Suplex springs. Very pleased with the Suplex product.

 

Just found this thread on XK8 front upper shock bushing replacement ... I am halfway through replacing mine on my '03 XK8. I replaced the upper bushes in 2015 and got about 20,000 miles from them - they were crumbling (will post pix later). I got them from Parts Geek and was unaware of the foam vs poly choice. I am pretty sure I got the foamers. Anyway, the bottom bushes on the shocks (original) are shot after 134,000 miles so I am replacing them with Bilsteins and I have new Uro bushes from Rock Auto - could be foam but not sure (they're yellow). Anyway, too late now - they are on the struts; ride height will be up there now, curious about how it will feel/ride with the new shocks. Already did sway bar links and the rear shocks and bushes (& swaybar links) are the next project (yay!).

 

Bart, you will be smiling. Expect a nice improvement. In a way I'm glad for you that you're doing the rear sway bar links at a later date. If you did them all at once you'd never appreciate the improvement that new rear sway bar links makes. It was a real nice surprise for me and improvement repeated the 2nd time I replaced them.

Hey, you may not have seen it / remember, but we had a great thread on using Energy brand poly washers for the rear sway bar connections. Price =dirt cheap compared to the more popular brand that is more frequently mentioned (polyflex?). They last just fine, mine are in for years no wear.

No negative inferred about poly flex, they are great I'm just suggesting a much less expensive solution with same results.

You will have to drill out the hole in the bush for the thicker bolt on our cars but they sure do beat the oem rubber bushes IMO.

If you want a photo of the package just ask. Think I have it from last years discussion.

John

 

Thanks, John. Thanks for your comment and suggestion. Looking forward to the improvement ... yes, my "aft equipment bay" has been rattling quietly for years (I just turn up the music louder) and it's about time to check all that out. If you can point me at the previous discussion on that, or any pix, would love to get that.