TR2/3/3A Alert - TR-3A lower wishbone seals - poor quality

[angelfj1]

During re-assembly of the 3A front suspension, we have identified a potential problem. The quality of the rubber seals used to keep debris out of the rear wishbone bush/shaft is very poor. We obtained the re-build kits from one of the big 3. So, we assumed that the parts were reasonably new and of decent quality. But, if you look closely at the photos (sorry for the poor quality) you will see that the rubber seal is almost totally perished. Who knows how long these seals would have lasted?

This seal is the only barrier to dirt and other debris from finding its way into the bushing/shaft and damaging the shaft surface. Unlike the front of the wishbone, which has grease fittings on either side of the trunnion, the rear arrangement uses a nylon bushing and steel sleeve dry fit (no grease intended). At least the grease will keep dirt out of the shaft/bushing in the front.
Perhaps this is a well known problem on your side of the pond. But, not knowing for sure, I thought I would send off this alert.
Our solution will be to fit custom seals made from black nylon (cut from tubing of the proper ID and wall thickness). I'll send a follow up post when we finish.

Cheers

 

[tdskip]

Thanks for the heads up.

Have you contacted the vendor? What did they say?

 

[SCguy]

Those seals fell apart on my early TR4 front end after my car just sat for a few years. I replaced them with new ones, but as with all replacement rubber bits I pretty much will assume that they will dry rot, crack and fall off in short order. On my TR8 I replaced the rubber strut boots with US made (Napa) replacement boots because of all the problems with aftermarket british car rubber.

 

[billspit]

I bought a front end rebuild kit for my old TR3 from the one of the big three back in the 1980s. I put the kit in and the same seals cracked and fell off within one year. The car had not even been driven. I called the seller and got a poor response. Basically, they said that was the best there was! The kit was manufactured by QH. The seal between the upright and bottom trunnion wasn't much better.