New Lower front wishbone bushes - replace, upgrade or full new arms ?

[qwertyuiop7]

80,000 miles done and the front end doesn’t sound or feel as fresh as it once did. So new top mounts, new drag links and some new lower wishbone bushes. Top mounts and drag links are simple, just swap for new ones. Bushes not so. What would be the best way forward, replace the whole lower wishbones for some new Myle ones, probably the easiest but most expensive solution. Swap the tired bushes for OEM replacement ones, probably cheap but looks a right nightmare of a job without the proper press tools or swap them for Powerflex ones ? Fairly expensive but by the looks of it , putting them in is easier and doesn’t need any specialist tools, but not sure how they would effect the overall ride comfort?

The van is a full camper used as a daily drive. Fitted with KW ST-x coilovers, H&R antiroll bars front and rear and 17” VW steel wheels with 235x55 tyres

Any thoughts on the the best long term solution ?

Thanks

 

[Spazpecker]

Poly Bushes are great

 

[Paynewright]

The VW OEM bottom arms have voids in the rear rubber bush whereas the aftermarket arms tend to have solid rubber bushes. I fitted Meyle bottom arms and have been pleased with them. Bought from Murrays Direct.

 

[n10n]

Here’s what my front control arm rear bushings looked like after 34k miles. Light shining through side cavities and literally torn, not really reassuring. Now replaced by Powerflex.

 

[t0mb0]

Just had ours replaced with polybushes, been fine so far.

 

[Lubrown]

View attachment 158860

Here’s what my front control arm rear bushings looked like after 34k miles. Light shining through side cavities and literally torn, not really reassuring. Now replaced by Powerflex.

Mine also needed replacement around 36k miles. Also went with power flex (poly bush) and like it. The comfort seems good to me and I hope they’ll last a bit longer.

 

[Skippygriff]

View attachment 158860

Here’s what my front control arm rear bushings looked like after 34k miles. Light shining through side cavities and literally torn, not really reassuring. Now replaced by Powerflex.

Hi, did one of my bushes today and wondered if you bothered with alignment or tracking after replacing. Mine was an advisory on mot, couldn’t see through it like that.
Also wondered what you used to get your out. I had a nightmare

 

[n10n]

Hi, did one of my bushes today and wondered if you bothered with alignment or tracking after replacing. Mine was an advisory on mot, couldn’t see through it like that.
Also wondered what you used to get your out. I had a nightmare

I did the alignment but I also changed pretty much everything on the same go: shocks, top mounts, drop links, arbs, ball joints, steering rod ends and the bushes.

For removal, I used a kit like

The larger bush was a doddle with the kit but the press plates were too big to clear the wishbone for a straight push/pull on the smaller one so had to improvise a bit. Fortunately the smaller bush came out just by pulling from the center

 

[Skippygriff]

I did the alignment but I also changed pretty much everything on the same go: shocks, top mounts, drop links, arbs, ball joints, steering rod ends and the bushes.

For removal, I used a kit like

The larger bush was a doddle with the kit but the press plates were too big to clear the wishbone for a straight push/pull so had to improvise a bit. Fortunately the smaller bush came out just by pulling from the center
View attachment 187032

Yeh the front bush does look a lot easier. I knocked something up in work to pull it out. Was a struggle. Went in ok. I might invest in one of those kits I think. Might change the bushes completely if the oem ones go all the time.

 

[n10n]

Yeh the front bush does look a lot easier. I knocked something up in work to pull it out. Was a struggle. Went in ok. I might invest in one of those kits I think. Might change the bushes completely if the oem ones go all the time.

The kit didn’t really work for the front (smaller) bush, rear bush was the easy one

All in all I think replacing the entire wishbone with something like Meyle HD makes more sense than changing individual bushes, unless going for polyurethane ones. Full wishbones with solid bushes are not that expensive considering they should last ages.

 

[Magpie1832]

We use the oxy acetylene to burn them and use a big hammer to get them out. Not had a problem with them. Can't get them in the press. I've been debating whether to do mine. They are on 45k now and passed MOT today so not sure.

 

[Chilledpharaoh]

Just fitted Powerflex front control arm bushes, and new ball joints.
The slight van 'shake' at 65 + mph under power, has gone completely. Steering is slightly more positive at all speeds.
Haven't noticed any 'lack of give' or firmness going over bumps.
Highly recommended!

 

[Mike23864]

What are people paying as a matter of interest? I’ve just had both front arms replaced- £190+ vat per side for the arms and £60+vat fitting.

 

[Magpie1832]

Euro arms are £160-£180 +Vat for the regular customer. Labour wise its only an hour per side max so depends on hourly rate. We are £45 an hour at work.

 

[Louisvz]

Hi Everyone, I'm considering replacing my T6 Multivan bushes with SuperPro poly ones. However, when I look at the vendor site there are quite a few bushes that can be replaced. Seems like about 4 on the front control arms, 4 on the back control ams and another 4 for the anti roll bars. I'm mostly trying to fix the old issue with front tyre outside edge wear. From what I've read it seems roads here in New Zealand have as much camber as the UK. I have also noticed knocking when turning from time to time. similar symptoms that others reported on the forum and noted to be fixed by replacing the front control arm's rear bushing.

My question is which of the bushes should I aim to replace? Should I do all at once or just the rear connection of the front arms? We have very poor vendor service for this kind of thing in New Zealand so I'll have to get the parts from Australia and get a local mechanic to fit them for me which is going to cost a pretty penny. I'd like to focus the costs for this on only the changes that will affect the front tyre outside shoulder wear and the knocking issue.

I am running standard suspension components and standard suspension height but larger wheels (255x45x19) which have almost exactly the same circumference as the original 16" wheels the van came with but are quite a bit wider as you can imagine.

I really appreciate any advice you fellas can provide.

 

[FerrisBFW]

I did the alignment but I also changed pretty much everything on the same go: shocks, top mounts, drop links, arbs, ball joints, steering rod ends and the bushes.

For removal, I used a kit like

The larger bush was a doddle with the kit but the press plates were too big to clear the wishbone for a straight push/pull on the smaller one so had to improvise a bit. Fortunately the smaller bush came out just by pulling from the center
View attachment 187032I used a Park Tools headset cycling press. Worked a treat on both bushes

 

[fax001]

The van has spent the day at the garage having a full service and an MOT.
For the third year in a row the front lower suspension wishbone arms have both been replaced as the bushes were so badly worn.
The garage cannot replace the bushes on their own, as the OEM part comes with them built in.
Not only is this bad for the environment, as the whole unit is thrown away, but there is also the cost.
Judging by the comments on the forum I am not alone in having this issue.
I can see from other threads that it is actually possible to replace the bushes. That said it does not look like a DIY job unless you have the appropriate tools to remove the bushes, which are not designed to be removed.
I really do not want to have to go through this again next year.
The garage will not fit parts that I bring to the garage, as they cannot warranty them, so the Meyle units are off the table for the moment.
Are the wishbones the same on all T6 models or do they vary between T26, T28, T30 and T32?
I clearly need more beefy bushes but do not want to compromise comfort too much.
My van is a t28 running stock suspension and wheels.
I would welcome the thoughts of the forum on this.

 

[Paynewright]

Find a different garage - Meyle have solid bushed unlike the OEM ones. Meyle also sell replacement bushes.

Ask for the old wishbones back and get them refurbished at your leisure!

 

[t0mb0]

The van has spent the day at the garage having a full service and an MOT.
For the third year in a row the front lower suspension wishbone arms have both been replaced as the bushes were so badly worn.
The garage cannot replace the bushes on their own, as the OEM part comes with them built in.
Not only is this bad for the environment, as the whole unit is thrown away, but there is also the cost.
Judging by the comments on the forum I am not alone in having this issue.
I can see from other threads that it is actually possible to replace the bushes. That said it does not look like a DIY job unless you have the appropriate tools to remove the bushes, which are not designed to be removed.
I really do not want to have to go through this again next year.
The garage will not fit parts that I bring to the garage, as they cannot warranty them, so the Meyle units are off the table for the moment.
Are the wishbones the same on all T6 models or do they vary between T26, T28, T30 and T32?
I clearly need more beefy bushes but do not want to compromise comfort too much.
My van is a t28 running stock suspension and wheels.
I would welcome the thoughts of the forum on this.

We had a garage that said they couldn't replace bushes without swapping out the entire arm at significant cost. I spoke to another garage who said they could swap bushes with no problem so I had some poly bushes fitted by them. In summary, swapping bushes is perfectly possible and going through the expense of new arms every year seems very extreme compared to just sticking some poly bushes in and forgetting about it.

 

[fax001]

Find a different garage - Meyle have solid bushed unlike the OEM ones. Meyle also sell replacement bushes.

Ask for the old wishbones back and get them refurbished at your leisure!

Unfortunately I don't have the old wishbones. They have gone back to the manufacturer as they were replaced under warranty.
Sadly no warranty now left if the same thing occurs next year. Apparently the 2 year warranty runs from the first fitting, not the most recent replacement !