hello all!
i have the job of changing the front and rear dampers on the drivers side of my moggie to carry out and im new to all this having only owned my 1955 moggie Kitty for two months. (still very exited and polishing it far too much!
any how if you have any tips for me an the best way to do this or the best place to get these from i would be very grateful!
thanks for reading
Are you sure that they need changing? Unless they are leaking they may just need a clean and fluid change. There was a shortage some time ago so check that they are available. Also some companies do an exchange.
The back dampers are easy to remove, you may need a ball joint splitter to separate the drop link.
Never done the front ones, they seem to be ok after 58 years, however the fun starts when you find that the captive nuts in the crossmember are no longer captive and they just spin around on the end of the bolt or drop off completely. The other problem is getting the top pivot link off the damper arm, you will probably have to partly strip the suspension down to remove the link from the top swivel and then attempt to remove it from the damper arm. I think it needs heat treatment to remove it.
If I were you I would settle for an in situ service
Thanks for that (i think) they are most deffinitly leaking i had it up on a ramp in the garage the other day and the back one is very dirty and the front is leeking so will need to be done i think.
please tell me more about in situ service im assuming that you are refering to cleaning and fluid changing??
The back dampers are easy enough to do. It is best to clamp them in a vice and undo the plug at the bottom then pump the old fluid out by moving the arm from end to end before refilling them with fresh 30 grade oil or hydraulic fluid. Once you have the fronts off then you can do them the same way. You may be able to drain the old fluid without removing them
I have not done mine for a long time so you may get some additional advice from others
The front ones are a bit more tricky, unless they too are leaking then go for an oil change, on both sides!
If you have to remove the fronts then you must contain or release the energy in the torsion bars, and make sure the plate they bolt into doesn't fall away from the holes.
The other bit of advice is use the right sized spanner to do them up again not the longest lever you can find and a friendly gorilla.
"Once you break something you will see how it was put together"
No need to worry about the T bar tension - just support the kingpin - remove the upper pivot bushes - then unbolt the damper and remove it from the crossmember. They may not leak too badly with more viscous oil - well worth a try.
they are most deffinitly leaking i had it up on a ramp in the garage the other day and the back one is very dirty and the front is leeking so will need to be done i think.
