MOT Advisories

Guys
My 90 passed its MOT, got an advisory on rear suspension damper bushes showing sign of wear but still acceptable. And rear brake discs showing corrosion
Question - can the bushes be replaced, rather than changing the complete damper, and if so how easy is it to remove and replace.
Have replaced discs on other vehicles so should not be an issue on the defender, or are there any issues I should be aware of.
Thanks in advance

re the discs, there's a bit to come off before you can get to the disc itself like the caliper and the hub assembly and you may need a big hammer!

Std armstrong shocks are about 15 quid a corner, complete with bushes.
Discs are a lot more involved on a land rover as they are bolted to the inside of the hub and not clamped between hub and wheel as per normal cars, not hard but you will need a 1/2 bi hex socket for the calliper carrier bolts and the disc to hub bolts., 17mm socket for the halfshaft bolts and 52mm socket for the hub nut.

Thanks guys
Surprised at cost of shocks, noting they are around £60 at Euro car parts, but as mostly road use the cheaper Armstrong Shocks may be a cost effective option.
(particularly as I'm potentially out of a job next week, the Scottish contingent will have seen the BiFab issue on the news)
Now where did I leave that 52mm socket ?
Cheers

The issue with getting old dampers off to change the bushes is that the bottom nut can get corroded on, you can end up damaging the body trying to stop it turning or you end up cutting them off. Worth a try at getting the nuts off first, if it works bushes could be changed, if it doesn't then you may need to cut and replace

just use an exhaust clamp around the body to stop it turning

Remember if your 90 is a Td5 (or newer) you will need a proper 1/2” drive 52mm socket rather than a box key which is fine for older models, as there is a lot more torque involved.

I’ve ended up having to replace a cv and drive flange before, trying to get a disc off, as they were so solidly rusted together!

a long reach 52,mm socket

Deep!

Glasgie said:

Guys
My 90 passed its MOT, got an advisory on rear suspension damper bushes showing sign of wear but still acceptable. And rear brake discs showing corrosion
Question - can the bushes be replaced, rather than changing the complete damper, and if so how easy is it to remove and replace.
Have replaced discs on other vehicles so should not be an issue on the defender, or are there any issues I should be aware of.
Thanks in advance

Click to expand...

I have a big box of standard new bushes as I have replaced my defender & d1 with polybushed ones I will have a look tomorrow if there are any of the ones you need I don't want anything for them

Armstrong are OEM dampers, there is nothing wrong with them.

You can replace the bushes only. I did it years ago and my shocks are still fine. They press in easily with a vice, g-clamp or even hammer. You don't need any special tools.

sp00k said:

You can replace the bushes only. I did it years ago and my shocks are still fine. They press in easily with a vice, g-clamp or even hammer. You don't need any special tools.

Click to expand...

A good splatting of Vaseline works wonders

sp00k said:

You can replace the bushes only. I did it years ago and my shocks are still fine. They press in easily with a vice, g-clamp or even hammer. You don't need any special tools.

Click to expand...

..........and plenty of lube.......

Oh, OSD beat me to it....!!

The bushes can occasionally split when you squeeze them into the top yoke of the damper, but I've done them twice. Just split the nuts off the bottom mount imho, but I'm lazy....

Finally gave up and replaced the dampers with new bushes in situ last time (mid-priced somethings....), revealed that the old ones were indeed comprehensively knackered, not much money very well spent....! Cheers, A

Oldseadog said:

A good splatting of Vaseline works wonders

Click to expand...

It does in most instances!!