DPO, Suspension, Etc....

[malice]

Well. I found out today that DPO attempted to have the car towed some point and ripped about a 2x2 inch hole in the boot. This is the first time I pulled the spare up to look under it. Heh.

As far as suspension. If I keep the car. I figure I can knock out the important stuff up front one side at a time. I could do upper ball joint, tie rod end, and trunnion. As far as I can tell those are the things that go pop. But I can probably do each side in minimum amount of time, thus not putting the car out of order.

Then I could tackle the rear leaf. As far as I can tell the thing doesn't have any bad wheel bearings (from sound), but I haven't jacked it yet so we will see.

What are your thoughts on this? Remember, this car can not be un-rollable at the end of the day, and im working with a minimum of tools (ie no air).

 

[malice]

No one has any input on this? Please. I need your thoughts. I've never done a front end on one of these rides, and need thoughts for my hack job. What should I watch for? Im not to worried about working the brakes or wheel bearings over at this point, but otherwise generally what should I look for?

 

[malice]

Also.....Is there a way to tell if the trunion is shot? Or should I just get a minor kit and put it back together?

 

[70herald]

Ok, since no one else answered. These suspensions are very simple. First thing find out if it is loose. Jack up the front end and give both front wheels a real good shaking and find out where there is wobble.

I rebuilt the front end of my Herald (which is for all purposes identical to the spit) on the street (no garage!) with no air tools etc, so it is certainly doable.

Most likely the rubber bushings are shot and should be replaced.
get a hold of all the parts (bushings, trunnion inserts...),. Once you pull it apart it doesn't take any more time to put in new parts than to put back the old. Also get new hardware (bolts for the radius arms etc) I had to remove several of them with a hacksaw or angle grinder.

Note that once you pull it all back together, you really should get the front realigned. Particularly if the bushings were shot.
I wound up putting old the tie rod ends and upper ball joints back in since they were in good condition. The bushings on the other hand were almost non existent.

If you absolutely must have it roll able at the end of the day, just take of one part at a time ie, one half of the wishbone arm, replace the bushing and put it back. I just pulled everything out, and left the car on blocks for a couple of days. Of course I had serious shipwrights disease so the front bearings also were rebuild, and the steering rack and......... The engine was out so there was lots or room!

The rear is no more difficult, and can also be done with everything basically on the car. I swapped the rear trunnions without pulling the axles. Some DPO has "made" new trunnions out of heavy paper.
To push the inserts in, get some long bolts, and various sized pipe bits. (larger and smaller than the inserts) they make very good presses to force the new bits into place.

 

[DougF]

I have never done a Spit front or rear end. Front ends can't be any worse than TR3 and TR6. TR3's, unless you have your own machine shop or a backup front end are nearly impossible to do in one day because of necessary machine work.
The TR6 on the other hand, which is probably more similar to the Spit, is very easy to complete in one day. Your first side will take longer and could spill into a second day but shouldn't. The second side will be a snap.
Follow 70herald's suggestions. Also, study the shop manual thoroughly and have a good game plan. Start soaking all of fasteners with a good penetrant several days before you start the project and repeat it as much as possible(once a day would be good). PB Blaster is probably one of the better ones and easy to find.
Many people allow a penetrant a couple minutes to work and see no results because penetrants need time. The time is dependant on how much corrosion is present.
Also, have a can of propane or mapp gas available. Heat is your friend. A good jack and jack stands are necessary. A stool to sit on while you work is another must. A drift pin is also a good tool for aligning the spring pan.
A good degreaser to clean out the trunnion and a good grease and grease gun to lubricate the works when completed are also necessary.
Combine all of the things mentioned so far on this thread with patience and tenacity, and you should have no problems.

 

[Andrew Mace]

Ok, since no one else answered. These suspensions are very simple. First thing find out if it is loose. Jack up the front end and give both front wheels a real good shaking and find out where there is wobble.

And I will add that there are two critical areas of concern on the front trunnions. One is the bushing kit, which is a big wear item and probably should be replaced every 48,000 miles if not sooner. With the front up in the air, it is easy to wiggle the tire and see any play in the bushing area. Usually, replacement is straightforward, although it is not that uncommon to have the through-bolt seize in the metal sleeve. If that's the case, borrowing a Sawz-All is probably the quickest method of removal. /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/wink.gif

The second critical area of the trunnion is the swivel function on the vertical link where the trunnion screws on. Hopefully this area has been lubricated regularly, but odds are it hasn't. Modern greases are ok, but 90 weight gear oil is still better (IMO, and as originally specified). The "zerk" fitting (or plug to be replaced by same) is on the vertical link itself. If there is damage to the threads on the trunnion, replace it. If there is also thread damage on the link itself, replace that link.

Oh, and if there is any "ovality" on the trunnion where the bushings fit, a new trunnion is in order!

Most likely the rubber bushings are shot and should be replaced.

Quite possible, although I've still got mostly original almost-46-year-old rubber bushings on the Herald, and they're still serviceable. Unless you can detect play here, these could wait until you have sufficient time to renew them. (Odds are you'll need sufficient time to get the old ones out!)

The rear is no more difficult, and can also be done with everything basically on the car....

Often true, but I've found over the years that the rear trunnions are even more susceptible to having the bolt seize in the sleeve, which makes disassembly very difficult without removing the axle assembly from the car. For whatever reason(s), I've found wear (such as found in front trunnion bushings) less common in the rear, but it's not uncommon to find both that bolt seizing AND the link simply no longer pivoting as it should around that trunnion bushing.

 

[malice]

Im am almost certainly expecting trunion issues. I doubt these have been takin care of. The first thing I will do is check it offcourse, but In meantime I will do ball joints, tie rods, and links. Will the spring have to be compressed to work with the ball joint, or is the travel maxed with car on jacks?

 

[70herald]

The spring is held in place by the shock absorber.

One very important thing to look at is the front vertical link where they thread into the trunnion. If they begin corroding at the top of the thread, they can break off. This would not be pleasant while going around a curve. Take a good look at this.

 

[malice]

Ok the shock holds the spring in place. What if though I decide to do the trunions? Will the spring have to be compressed for that? Seems to me there could be some push left and be binding on trunions. ????

 

[Andrew Mace]

No compression necessary. The spring/shock unit can be removed complete simply by unbolting it. A spring compressor is needed ONLY when you wish to renew the shock absorber.

Another little "trick" when doing trunnions: loosen the lower shock bolt just a bit; that will make it a lot easier to R&R the trunnion.

 

[malice]

Ah thanks for the info! I gave the trunnions a look over this morning after I did the valve adjustment and pulled the car out. Looks like they were caked up in some grease. I still haven't put the car in the air to check them more thoroughly. Believe it or not, I don't have a jack and stands yet. I refuse to use the factory unit to work on the car. When I get paid though, one of the first things im gonna get is a set of jacks and stands, and elect impact, impact sockets, pry bar, decent set of wrenches (the ones I have are cheap and suck.). That way I can actually tackle the suspension.

 

[YankeeTR]

Go over all the nuts/bolts with a LIBERAL amount of PB Blaster/kroil or your favorite penetrating oil for several days before you tackle the job. Do it each night...it makes a world of difference.