Well after having my Febi Bilstein Top Strut mouts lying in the back of the van for about 6 months and putting up with a knocking noise for about a year lol, I decided to finally jack up the van, investigate and fitted one top strut mount whilst i was there.
Top Strut Mount fitting was quite easy, didn't bother taking photo's as theres already a good guide for it on here. But as a quick note for torque settings (fresh from memory, I hope lol but please correct if my memorys incorrect)
Also to note, the bearing fits the smoother side facing up, where the spacer sits on.
Hub to Strut Nuts (The Splined ones) - 180nm
Top Piston Nut (The one that sits on top of the spacer which is on top of the bearing) 60nm
Drop Link Nut 44nm
Wheel Bolts - Sorry I forgot, my memory isn't that good then haha, but off top of my head was 108nm or 130nm?
The top nut that holds the top of the strut to the bodywork, does not have a torque setting in my Haynes, but I tightened it by a spanner and holding the center with the allen key, till it stopped, and used the other side as reference to how many threads were sticking through the nut.
The problem I encountered is the splined bolts, after removing them, have lost there "splinedness" Either the bolts, or the carrier, I'm not sure which. As my nuts were not nyloc nuts from factory, I just re used them.
Im hoping that being splined anymore isn't going to cause any bother down the line, as most other struts that have 2 bolts going through in this assembly are just standard nuts and bolts anyways. Time willl tell lol.
Anyways whilst the front end was up, both wheels dangling, I decided to check for my knocking. Anti Roll Bar bushes need replacing, as theres freeplay there and can get a knocking just by hand, and on the other side that I didn't do the Top strut mount, the drop link has also gone. This is the reason I decided to leave that other side till I pick a pair of drop links up, so I can kill 2 birds with one stone.
I've ordered the Poly bushes for the anti roll bar, as decided they will probably last longer, and worth the bit extra money. Anyone used them? and can recommend them over the rubber bushes?
I must admit, my steering feels better after just replacing the one top strut mount, mine were sticking through by about an inch lol. The old one I took out, had rubbed away at the rubber doughnut mount, and the bearing itself was quite gritty and not smooth anymore. Can't wait to get the otherside done, with new bushes and drop links, will feel like a new van lol.
One thing I did notice whilst under there was the driveshaft oil seals. Although there was none leaking out as such, nor any dripped anywhere, they seemed shiny/damp. However the gearbox last year was recon'd so wonder if its just possibly where the driveshafts were removed and some spilliage, but definately something Im gonna keep a eye on, and maybes replace when I do a gearbox oil change next summer. (2 years since box recon'd)
Top Strut Mount fitting was quite easy, didn't bother taking photo's as theres already a good guide for it on here. But as a quick note for torque settings (fresh from memory, I hope lol but please correct if my memorys incorrect)
Also to note, the bearing fits the smoother side facing up, where the spacer sits on.
Hub to Strut Nuts (The Splined ones) - 180nm
Top Piston Nut (The one that sits on top of the spacer which is on top of the bearing) 60nm
Drop Link Nut 44nm
Wheel Bolts - Sorry I forgot, my memory isn't that good then haha, but off top of my head was 108nm or 130nm?
The top nut that holds the top of the strut to the bodywork, does not have a torque setting in my Haynes, but I tightened it by a spanner and holding the center with the allen key, till it stopped, and used the other side as reference to how many threads were sticking through the nut.
The problem I encountered is the splined bolts, after removing them, have lost there "splinedness" Either the bolts, or the carrier, I'm not sure which. As my nuts were not nyloc nuts from factory, I just re used them.
Im hoping that being splined anymore isn't going to cause any bother down the line, as most other struts that have 2 bolts going through in this assembly are just standard nuts and bolts anyways. Time willl tell lol.
Anyways whilst the front end was up, both wheels dangling, I decided to check for my knocking. Anti Roll Bar bushes need replacing, as theres freeplay there and can get a knocking just by hand, and on the other side that I didn't do the Top strut mount, the drop link has also gone. This is the reason I decided to leave that other side till I pick a pair of drop links up, so I can kill 2 birds with one stone.
I've ordered the Poly bushes for the anti roll bar, as decided they will probably last longer, and worth the bit extra money. Anyone used them? and can recommend them over the rubber bushes?
I must admit, my steering feels better after just replacing the one top strut mount, mine were sticking through by about an inch lol. The old one I took out, had rubbed away at the rubber doughnut mount, and the bearing itself was quite gritty and not smooth anymore. Can't wait to get the otherside done, with new bushes and drop links, will feel like a new van lol.
One thing I did notice whilst under there was the driveshaft oil seals. Although there was none leaking out as such, nor any dripped anywhere, they seemed shiny/damp. However the gearbox last year was recon'd so wonder if its just possibly where the driveshafts were removed and some spilliage, but definately something Im gonna keep a eye on, and maybes replace when I do a gearbox oil change next summer. (2 years since box recon'd)
