Suspension problems.

[Wonko_The_Sane]

A few months ago, i was driving at 30 round a right hand bend...and the rear end let go, big style. Recovered it OK, no damage was evident. Took it to a tyre/suspension place for a check-all seemed OK.

However..steering has never felt sure since..worryingly so. Too imprecise and not grippy. 2 days ago, the rear PS tyre was flat, so I changed it only to see that the outer edge of this rear tyre was rubbed bald. Now, Pre Xmas that was fine...so off I went back to the tyre place to get a new tyre.

"Oh, I reckon suspension problems mate..". Took it to Kwik-Fit for a free check, and it seems the D/S/R damper/suspension unit is leaking, and both are soft. At 14 years, I could believe it. I've been quoted £73 for both, fitted. Is this a good price?

Could this have lead to the dodgy handling? They reckon the front shocks are tired too..but they're less than 2 years old.

Add to that, the engine is literally drinking oil, and the exhaust really smells of burning oilsmoke..all in the last few months. This is NOT a high mileage engine..60k at most..however, the previous owners used it for short trips to the shops..so engine wear could be possible I suppose. It just seems to have developed a bit fast.

Add the ever present rust to the mix, and the clanky engine on startup..and the old girl isn't having the best time of it. MOT isn't up until September..but the suggestion is that I should start car hunting sooner rather than later..:banghead: I have a garage full of dashboards and spares too, for all the good they are right now!

I've been offered a 100k miles TD Citroen BX auto as a loan..I think I'll pass..nice car..but every garage I ask, they say "no"..:laugh:

Aren't cars fun...sigh...

[D87 SMW]

There is a set of rear shockers for the Maestro/Montego on eBay for only £5.00 - and they are p:censored: easy to fit too.
£73 - no way! :eek: :rolleyes:

Clicky Clicky (http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2459813175&category=27376)

[Mat_C]

You can get the rear shocks for 15 quid each. You can also bet on having to change the upper mounting rubber (6 quid each from rover).

I would also give the rear beam bushes a look - on mine the metal collar inside the bush had corroded to such an extent it was pushing the bush out of the beam!

The lower mounting bolts of the shocks could/will be a right pain - I wouldn't trust kwik-fit to do this. They'll probably have to be cut out (you can get replacements from rover) and if the person hasn't done it before he can really screw the mouting part of the frame/threads.

[Beaker]

Originally posted by F170 GGT
There is a set of rear shockers for the Maestro/Montego on eBay for only £5.00 - and they are p:censored: easy to fit too.
£73 - no way! :eek: :rolleyes:

Can I ask how many pairs of Shocks you have fitted before to assume it is easy Steve?

Provided you have the correct tooling (spring compressor) and the bolts will come undone easily it can be straightfoward. But if the bolts won't come undone it can be quite frustrating and nightmarish.

Shocks are as Mat_C says around £15 each from the motorfactors. So I would say £73 for both fitted sounds a reasonable estimate if you don't want to attempt any DIY

[D87 SMW]

Originally posted by Skatiechik
Can I ask how many pairs of Shocks you have fitted before to assume it is easy Steve?

Provided you have the correct tooling (spring compressor) and the bolts will come undone easily it can be straightfoward. But if the bolts won't come undone it can be quite frustrating and nightmarish.

Shocks are as Mat_C says around £15 each from the motorfactors. So I would say £73 for both fitted sounds a reasonable estimate if you don't want to attempt any DIY

Yes you can ask, Lindsey. I am sure I have told you often about my two year course on this particular subject, but it seems you may not have the right idea...
As it is still a componant of a car, suspension, surprisingly, is covered. This, as I recall, included the removal and refitting (after commenting on it's condition) of the rear shock absorbers. Now, as I have actually done this, I can use my opinion to suggest that it is a fairly easy task to complete.

Whip them off eBay while they are there. Saves a lot of money at the end of the day.

:cool:

[E_T_V]

If you go to a suspension place asking if there is anything that needs replacing they always say yes. There have even been instances where certain companies have said that a damper is leaking oil, only to be told that they are gas units and so have no oil in them! (They'd sprayed some old oil on them to get some work)

Having said that rear dampers quite often are neglected (including my original ones at 110k :o) I'd replace them if you can but I doubt that would cause abnormal tyre wear.

As for the oil smoke, it is most likely the valve stem oil seals which can be fairly straight forward to replace depending on the engine and nothing serious so long as it doesn't drink too much. Also have you changed the oil recently, if you've used too thin an oil it'll get burn much faster. try 15w40 or even 20w50 if it is really drinking it.

The price quoted doesn't sound too bad, but if you can DIY then you'll save yourself a packet and get a good look at the suspension at the same time.

[G Force]

Originally posted by Skatiechik
Provided you have the correct tooling (spring compressor) and the bolts will come undone easily it can be straightfoward. But if the bolts won't come undone it can be quite frustrating and nightmarish.


Hi. Just to agree, the bottom bolts can seize to the inner bush of the shocker, but you dont need spring compressers on the rear springs to replace the rear shocks as the spring fully extends before the nut on the shock is removed.

cheers gary ;)

[E_T_V]

Oooh I didin't relise that the bolt was long enough to decompress the spring fully. Thanks.. Saves me some hassle when I do ours. I recently bought a full set from e-bay for 25 quid plus postage which was £7.50 I think. Can't complain at that :D

[Wonko_The_Sane]

thanks for the replies..:) The oil is 20/50 or 15/50, and was replaced 6 months ago. It's still drinking a sumpfull in 3 months though..but it does have a few leaks.

The bearings sound hellish if you don't leave it to idle after a cold start for a few minutes..well, I say bearings..it sounds like the pistons playing steel drums! It DID have a failed autochoke when I bought it..it may have had that a few years...:banghead:

I may give it to Kwik-fit..or I may have my trusty mechanic do it, with bits from the motor factors.

Hey ho..

[Austin-Rover]

Originally posted by F170 GGT
I am sure I have told you often about my two year course on this particular subject

They didnt teach you how to stop noisey tappets did they Steve?



Shame, as you could have helped me sort them out on my car - unless your still up for it. Bring the Haynes...

[E_T_V]

A sumpful every 3 months... I decided mine was bad when it went through a sumpful every 150 miles :D

[D87 SMW]

Originally posted by RDGelder
They didnt teach you how to stop noisey tappets did they Steve?



Shame, as you could have helped me sort them out on my car - unless your still up for it. Bring the Haynes...

Well yes, I could easily do the tappets if the nuts weren't welded on. :rolleyes:
I suppose someone with superior knowledge could teach me how to ignore them... ;) :p

[E_T_V]

How much of the course have you completed steve?

I've done over half of my welding course but I'd not class myself as an experienced welder.

:eek:

[D87 SMW]

Originally posted by E_T_V
How much of the course have you completed steve?

Err - the lot. Three weeks ago.

:) :D :cool:

[b466bmf]

Originally posted by F170 GGT

I suppose someone with superior knowledge could teach me how to ignore them... ;) :p [/B]
yes steve ,what you do is fit a louder radio ,that works for me
ps. works well on wheel bearings too :) :laugh:

[e692wtt]

And knackered driveshaft...;)

[Maria]

And rattly dash :D

[SimonR]

Originally posted by Maria
And rattly dash :D

And a Lady that won't shut up about the bloody engine temperature! (again!) :)

[SimonR]

Originally posted by Wonko_The_Sane
I've been quoted £73 for both, fitted. Is this a good price?

Could this have lead to the dodgy handling? They reckon the front shocks are tired too..but they're less than 2 years old.

Add to that, the engine is literally drinking oil, and the exhaust really smells of burning oilsmoke..all in the last few months. This is NOT a high mileage engine..60k at most..however, the previous owners used it for short trips to the shops..so engine wear could be possible I suppose. It just seems to have developed a bit fast.

Hi Wonko, sorry to hear of your Maestro maladies.

Taking those points in turn, I think that £73 is a high quote - I took my car to QF with a similar problem a couple of years ago and they tried to rip me off in a similar way. I then took it to National and they replace the Handbreak cable and rear shocks for around £60 IIRC. As others say you may just want to do it yourself as it's not too much of a job and you can get the shocks on the cheap.

Now Oil: Am I right in thinking that this is an S-Series engine? If so, then (speaking from experience) there are a few things you can check. Firstly take a look in the air cleaner element chamber. Is there oil in there, around the bottom of the element? When I first got my car at 75,000 miles it was very smokey and it turned out that oil was getting into the air as it passed into the carb. A good clean out solved the problem for a while, until....

The dramatic oil loss was mainly due to a leaking crankshaft oil seal, the evidence for which is an oil leak on the gearbox side of the engine that you can't trace or fix. If your breather has ever been blocked then this could have caused it.

My advice would be to clean it all out, remove all traces of oil and then park the car over clean newspaper to see where the leaks are coming from.

If your valve stem oil seals really are leaking then it doesn't look too much of a job to replace them, same goes for the camshaft oil seals in the head. I haven't tried either job but they look simple enough in the haynes if you have the time and can do without the car for a while. I think I'm right that the seals you'd need are present in a normal gasket set.

Most of that is also true if your car is an R-Series.

[Wonko_The_Sane]

You're right, it's a post '90 S series. The air cleaner etc is oil free...the engine (bless it) it plastered though. Cam carrier seals, timing belt end crankshaft seal, all gone bang on me. Irritating.

If it's the valve oils seals, I am right in thinking it's a "head off" job? If so...maybe I could go to an engine recon place and say "that, plus valve clearances, and a few other seals while yer at it..please..".

I love the car...but it's getting worrying really..the fuel economy is naff too recently. The missus has me looking at P reg Corsas...I admit a smaller engine would be better for me..but I still love the Maestro..:rolleyes:

[talkingcars]

In my experience of fitting rear shocks £73 is a resonable price. As has been said the bottom mounts can (or in my case always do) rust and removal is time consumming.

When buying shocks from ebay make sure they are the correct ones, turbo maestros, montego estates and possible diesels have a higher ride height than other models.

James

[Quality]

Originally posted by Wonko_The_Sane
The missus has me looking at P reg Corsas...I admit a smaller engine would be better for me..but I still love the Maestro..:rolleyes:

Buy a 1.3 Maestro, should solve the mpg problem, without the cost of depreciation.

Or get a 1300 Allegro Estate :cool: