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Rear Spring Rattle

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Guy Marshall

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Hi all,

My BN6 has developed a rattle from the front of the rear springs. With an axle stand keeping the axle in its normal position I can move the front part of the spring up and down - you can see the gap where I have put the screwdriver. The guides seem to be in teh right place and there are no broken leaves. Any thoughts other than new springs?


Healey.png
 
There is a rubber bushing between the spring steel and that bolt just above the screwdriver. It may have gone bad. You can buy just the bushing.
 
The picture shows the front connection point to the chassis. I may be wrong but there is just a bolt through the spring. Mine just started doing the same thing. Could a pad have fallen out?
 
Thanks for the replies. The bushing is good - that was my first thought too. The movement is between the leaves in the spring - the inside leaf is firm, but the outside one moves.

I noticed the second guide from the front had maybe slipped forward 3mm so have tapped it back - hopefully that will help.
 
rocketcityhealey said:
Looking closer I see there is a bushing, moss 680-960. I'll be taking the spring off tomorrow. Looks like a polyurethane replacement is available. Anyone use that?
Click to expand...
Unlike rubber bushings which deform, polyurethane bushings tend to squeak when used in a rotating joint. Unless you are racing, I would recommend the rubber ones.
 
So I removed the spring today. The bushing is not the problem. The outer loop was loose on the spring (see photo). The outer loop doesn't do anything other than added beef to the eye.? I just readjusted the hangers holding the spring together with c-clamps. No longer loose. We'll see if the rattle goes away when I drive it.
Leaf spring eye.jpg
 
First, I should say that I noticed that the outer eye was loose on the spring when I had the car on jack stands. The spring is held in place by the inner eye only.
All I did was remove the forward 2 hangers and remove the outer eye piece just to see how it was bent. It's not exactly a perfect fit around the inner eye. I then just put the outer eye back on trying to keep it as close to the inner eye as possible using a c-clamp and my vice. I just reinstalled the hangers while clamped. I didn't add any shims or anything. I put the spring back on and the outer eye doesn't rattle at least on jack stands. I did order some leaf spring liner in case the rattle comes back.
That rattle has bugged me for a couple on months but at least I now know it's nothing dangerous. The outer eye seems to be there only if something breaks. A lot of leaf springs don't have that piece. Related to leaf spring military wrap.
 
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