Club 80-90 Forums

Further to my post earlier, I took the broken tie bar off this evening - here are some pictures of what I found.



Broken tie bar - just rear of the rubber bushes.



Closer look, you can make out that nearly half of the bar was corroded through - but why??



This is quite frightening, this is the part that passes through the bodywork...note that the spacer is almost non-existent & that the bar has corroded to an' hour-glass' shape. This picture below shows the relevent end on the new bar!

That wasn't too good...I'll try again!....pics sorted now.

can't help you with your question (it rusted, corrossion happens) ...but it's on the wrong bin

this is actrually very common

i have seen this on good and bad vans

some vans without any other rust and in nice condition have bars this worn!

its something i recomend people check at somepoint on one of the services, not difficult to check. ideally just fit new bushes /spacers whilst your at it.

I bet the hole in the front X member isn't round anymore either - double bad.

Strangely enough Si......it's ok....I've got a couple of your stainless spacers on the way.....I do have an initial theory on why the initial corrosion started though.

Lots of these vans have been tied onto breakdown trucks & the like, the most obvious place to do it is over the tie rods ( mine was brought from Germany to Wales & then to Norfolk) - winding them down too tight could cause the initial fracture (maybe quite minute) & hence the corrosion that follows.

Your thoughts???

My thoughts is that they keep passing MOT's so people presume they are okay.
Same as front dampers really, they never leak, and because they don't look knackered people think that they are okay when actually they are not.
Nothing to do with recovery trucks.
In 5 years I have changed countless radius rod bushes, in 5 years I have removed probably 3 or 4 bushes that have been fit to go back on, ditto for the sleeves.
I can almost guarantee that if you have not had them changed then they are knackered.
We fit loads, we sell more.
Some people opt (as we sometimes do) to just fit the outers as a bit of preventative measure along with the sleeves until such time it's worth doing the inners, like replacing a ball joint or something.
Early vans are dead easy, the radius rod simply bolts off, later vans can be a pain as if the inner nut is moved then you are into having to set the caster angle, which is a bit of a bind, so it's easier to do the bushes by fully dismantling the suspension and swapping the bush rather than the labour intensive cleaning of threads and removing the rod from the lower arm and doing it that way, and then having to do a complete wheel alignment afterwards.
If the outers are knackered, change them and the sleeves, if the inners will go a bit longer do that and always have it in the back of your head that they will need doing next time the suspension is stripped.
Ask any customer from my workshop that has had this done what state the bushes were in when they came out as most customers if they are present when I do the job will be shown it stripped on the ramp and what a mess they are when in pieces.

I even think that there are some pictures on the Brickwerks FaceBook page, in "Workshop" gallery.

Does anyone know where you can buy replacement radius rods new?
I want an early pair but none of the "usual" places list them.
As Billy says the breakers don't find many good ones either.
Mike.

CycloneMike wrote:Does anyone know where you can buy replacement radius rods new?
I want an early pair but none of the "usual" places list them.
As Billy says the breakers don't find many good ones either.
Mike.

Simons larger post above may give you a clue... 7th line down from the top!

VWCamperfan wrote:

CycloneMike wrote:Does anyone know where you can buy replacement radius rods new?
I want an early pair but none of the "usual" places list them.
As Billy says the breakers don't find many good ones either.
Mike.

Simons larger post above may give you a clue... 7th line down from the top!

Thanks I know he sells the bushes but not the rods I was asking about.
Not in the web shop anyway.
Any other ideas or clues????

i do have a pair of early ones ready.....

billy739 wrote:i do have a pair of early ones ready.....

That's good news.
Hope I won't need to sell one of the wifes kidneys or swap them for a unicorn!
Do you want to pm me a price?
Ta