My turn on the suspension rebuild.. SUCCESS!..Sorta...

[njoconnor]

I'm in the final stages of planning/purchasing the parts for a complete suspension re-do on Blue 72. Had the car up on my mechanic's lift this past weekend, going over plans/intents with him. We both agreed that all of the steering joints were solid (zero play in any direction on them all, and smooth, noiseless operation), but that the boots all needed replacement. Not a huge job at all, but raises a question. I know the joints are "lifetime lubricated" (per the various manuals). When I install the new boots, is there some form of lube I ought to add on the inside of the boot to prolong the "lifetime" of the joints?

I had been somewhat undecided about replacing the original springs, but our inspection resolved that question. We found that the PO had inserted two spacers in the coils of the R front spring, clearly to "correct" a sagging coil spring. So, Blue gets a nice set of color coordinated springs from A/R! New Koni's all round, new control arms, and new bushings front and rear. And, as I was leaving, the starter mis-engaged a couple of times; "Add a new starter to the shopping list!"

Reports as we go along.

Neil

[RRoller123]

You will love that gear reduction starter, and it cuts some weight off the car as well!

[70spider]

Good luck. So far I haven't found it too hard yet, except for the top nuts on the front shocks and the lack of the proper tools .
As for the gear reduction starter it works great. I just have one problem with mine, there is a slight opening in the dust shield due to it being smaller than the original starter.

[DieselSpider]

One of the more universally compatible chassis greases would be the best choice as you should fill a boot with fresh grease when you replace them. A Polly Grease seems to be moderately to fully compatible with more than the others and may be the best choice if you can't positively identify the original grease that was packed in the rod ends/ball joints.

Here is a link to Mobiles compatibility chart:
http://www.mobilindustrial.com/ind/engl ... bility.pdf

If the new boots have a vent flap on them you can use a grease needle on your grease gun to replenish through the vent if you carefully clean the boots and take care not to damage the vent in the process ensuring that you work the steering and suspension wiping off any excess grease that vents out.

[njoconnor]

Thanks, DS....shopping for lube this afternoon.

Question for the group. I'm aware that certain of the suspension fastening points need to be final torqued with the car loaded, and I've seen the recommendations that the car be elevated (wheels on blocks, etc) in order to gain access to the fasteners of interest. Can one substitute regular jack stands, under the suspension hard points (directly under shocks, C-arms, axle ends, etc), in lieu of blocks/ramps under the wheels? Also, a quick list of those points needing torque under load would be GREATLY appreciated!

Ramzi tossed most of the order onto the FEDEX truck on FRI, and it's due to arrive Wed; remainder, i'm sure, later next week. I've missed working on the car since last fall; gonna feel good to get wrenches in hand again.

Neil

[narfire]

I've missed working on the car since last fall; gonna feel good to get wrenches in hand again.

Well Neil, if you ever get the "itch" to muck with the wrenches in the near future, I have some bushings that need replacing as well. Zoot on over.... Still snow on the local ski hills. Daffodils down here.

I washed and waxed the car yesterday after changing the oil. Looking around under the car I noticed one of the lower bushings on the a-arm is not in the greatest shape. Looks like the car will be out of commission for a few days in the near future.
Chris

[njoconnor]

Once the A/R order arrives, I'll have lots to wrench on! But, thanks for the invite. Our daffodils just broke ground (in freezing rain today). Signals the start of the annual Fiat vs yard work derby!

Good day to sort out the garage. Just went in search of a replacement wall light switch, and took way longer than it needed.....

Neil

[njoconnor]

Spent yesterday running errands and restoring minimal order to the garage, all the while thinking about suspension work. Being a bit of a slow Padwan, it took me a bit to recall the gentle instructions of Jedi Jay: "Google is your friend". Ah. Light bulb time. A few searches later, I learn that jackstands at suspension points do work (Thank you, Pete!!), and re-discovered Thad's excellent primer on suspensions over at Mirafiori (and printed same for near future use by self and mechanic). Questions answered, I went back to fidgeting while waiting for the parts to arrive Wednesday.

Christmas in April!

Neil

[njoconnor]

Parts all arrived, and having a couple of spare hours, decided to do some "small" work. Swapped out the PO's rear brake pads for EBC Greens, which went pretty smoothly. While I was under there, PB Blasted all the trailing arm, panhard, and rear suspension fasteners in anticipation of the work coming up. Moved up front; not too much time, so lets PB Blast all the suspension points and stage the front calipers for their replacement with rebuilts. I knew R Front would be a bit tough, since it was clear the caliper was sticking (hence the replacement). But. Wow. Took a bit of kinetic discussion to get it to move. Pads were pretty stuck, but came out with less issue. Spinning the rotor I could clearly see it was warped. Damn. Over to the left, a bit of work, but once the caliper was off, I could see the rotor was fine. Back downstairs to the computer to order new rotors. And smacking forehead for wondering why I didn't check for warpage before sending the parts order in (I did check the rear rotors....both fine).

If I can find DOT 5 between now and tomorrow, I'll be swapping in the new calipers/pads on the front. If not.....the dreaded starter replacement (cue chilling music).

Neil

[wizard124]

I am pretty sure the manual calls for DOT 3 brake fluid.

I am sure I don't know what the difference is

[SLOSpider]

I would not use dot 5 silicone brake fluid. Dot 4 synthetic is all you need and won't hurt any rubber or chances of mixing the two fluids which would be bad.

[DieselSpider]

Some of the OEM spec rubber bits in the brake system don't react well to synthetic be it DOT 3 or DOT 4. New master cylinder from IAP had all the rubber parts turn to putty after a year with DOT 4 Synthetic in it.

[njoconnor]

Thanks for the DOT 5 observations. I was considering the switch based on my (long time trusted) mechanic's recommendation; he favored it due to non-water absorption. However, the comments here reflect the prevailing wisdom I found on a number of other sites. I have DOT 4 in there now (installed/bled in last fall). 5 seems hard to find around here, so maybe that's an advantage! Gonna stick with 4, then, and hope to find it in a different color than clear; helps with the bleeding...

Neil

[njoconnor]

Waiting for son the youngest to show up for some Bimmer brake work, I decided to make some progress on the suspension work. I'm intending to replace all 6 steering linkage boots, and have the new boots with metal bottom rings from A/R. Got the outer drivers side boot off with out issue (recommend the HF ball joint separator tool...nifty). Added some poly grease onto/into the ball joint area, inside the new boot, and...hmmm. Any suggestions on how to get the bottom of the boot over and into the groove on the ball joint? I tried edging it on from one side, doesn't seem to work. Open to ideas....I have 5 more to go!

Thanks

Neil

[njoconnor]

Been a bit, but in between yard chores, progress!

First, many thanks and props to Alan Barnes (aka SoFlaFiat) for emailing an excellent sequence list for dropping the rear axle. 3 1/2 hours of patiece and checking resulted in a smooth drop. Some pix and comments follow.

Staged the car with floor jack under and just barely supporting the rear axle. To protect the diff's drain plug, I bored a hole in a used hockey puck with a wood bit. Fits just right!



Front view before dissassembly. What started as a conversation with Alan about the trailing arms ended up with encouraging me to drop the whole thing and clean/repaint all the components. And fix that leaky pinion seal....



What leaky pinion seal? Got about a cup out of the drive shaft/flange coupling.....



Drive shaft disconnected and marked for reassembly. I scored both flanges with a dremel metal wheel, then used twist ties (one handed operation) to mark the two left most bolt holes of both flanges.



Unbolted the rear brake compensator from the rear axle housing, and suspended the lines with zip ties (another Alan recommendation!).



Down come the trailing arms; the bolts were easier to remove than feared. Used my 120 volt impact wrench.



Uppers only needed hand wrenches...



Shock bolts from inside the trunk.



When the whole shock starts turning, a handy quik clamp does the trick...



Final check for any potential tangles, then slowly release the floor jack, and wheel the axle out!



Soaking the axle with engine cleaner, then scrubbing, wire brushing, priming and painting. Won't be quite as sanitary as Alan's, but better than present!

Again, hope this helps someone out there. First time I've done suspension work (front or rear); I really appreciate all the pix, comments, and encouragement from all of you!

Neil