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Rover 416 Bushes (Mainly)

Just having a pre-mot look about under a mate's Rover 416. All seems ok but various bushes seem to be suffering from varying amount of (maybe superficial) perishing although all seem 100 per cent solid with no undue play.

I used to have a 414 myself and remember the swing arm bushes being a weak point.

On this one there is definately perishing of the rear bushes. I have no idea if the examiner will deem it to be excessive but would like to be prepared for it to fail.

So, my plan is take the car in and if it fails on bushes an nothing else, have the guy fit new bushes, avoiding the retest fee but suffering labour on bush fitting.

However from my days with the 414 I reckon that pattern bushes from the motorfactor often last under two years so I'm tempted to buy OE bushes in advance and leave them in the pasenger footwell in case it fails.

My questions are:

1) Are OE bushes gonna last significantly longer than Pattern? 2) Is there a cheap source of OE bushes? 3) Is there a 'good' brand of pattern bushes? 4) Is there a way of determining if the bushes will fail? Surely it's the whim of the MOT tester?

MOT's have become a real pain in the arse since free retests ended.

Reply to
toad
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1) Not necessarily if you get HD pattern bushes or go the polybush route. Are you going to have the car that long? A 416 isn't a newish car so maybe it's only got a couple of years in it anyway. 2) Local factors. 4) See if there's any play in them. Cracking is at the whim of the tester.
Reply to
Conor

HD? Polybush? Sounds interesting. Some more detail?

I've been thinking that for 4 years during which it's needed two sets of swing arm bushes. If there only =A320-40 difference I'd rather have bushes that lasted.

No play at all in any of the bushes.

Reply to
toad

All garages by me still do a free retest. It depends where you go. I can't see why you and others think that safety is a pain or why you're prepared to let your mate drive around in a car knowing it has a possible problem. If you really don't have a clue you're not doing your mate any favours. Either the items need changing or they don't. Leave your mate to take the car to the garage and get the MOT and repairs. Then you can see if you were right or not without additional expense to him.

Reply to
malc

How is paying for a retest safer than not paying for a retest. On the face of it in safety terms there is no difference. Can you elaborate?

What makes you think I let my mate drive his car round with a possible problem? Please elaborate so I can put your mind at rest.

What make you think that I believe myself to be doing anyone a favour?

I don't think there's anyharm in finding out about advantages and disadvantages of bushes. If the car needs no work I'll have learned something new, if the car needs work he'll know what to ask for.

See if I was right? See if I was right about what? I haven't expressed any opinion about his car [1], I've simply asked a question about bushes on a newsgroup. Can you clarify what you think I will be right or wrong about?

I'm a little confused by your post. I've left it unsnipped so you can have another go and explain what you mean.

[1] Clue: "I have no idea if the examiner will deem it to be excessive "
Reply to
toad

Reply to
toad

toad (toad snipped-for-privacy@yahoo.co.uk) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying :

Quite possibly. OEM drop links for my XM last FAR FAR better than pattern - somebody on the email list has been getting through pattern ones (various brands/sources) every couple of thousand miles, yet OEM ones last years.

Possibly. You're really looking for a marque-specific parts supplier. For a Rover, it's entirely likely.

Again, ask the marque-specific parts guys.

Nothing has changed in the official free-retest regime for MOTs. Garages have started interpreting them more strictly, though, and restricting the "goodwill" freebies they used to give.

Reply to
Adrian

I've had a car pass with a very worn suspension balljoint (~5mm movement at the wheel) and another fail on "worn bushes" when in fact they were new, so don't rely on an MoT to ensure your car is safe if you also can look for yourself.

Reply to
adder1969

Couldn't agree more - Malc seems rather mixed up, in fact.

Last year on a motorcycle I was given 'Front wheel bearings' as an advisory on my So's motorcycle.

Needless to say I take her safety *very* seriously so I decided just to do them there and then. Before I ordered the bearings I checked for play. Curiously I could find none at all.

So I left it but checked before every long trip we did just in case. I never found any play. This year the same MOT tester passed it with no advisorys.

To argue you shouldn't check things yourself on the basis that you're not an expert is insane. (and seems an odd view to offer on an newsgroup with rec.cars.maintainence in it's title!)

Malc still hasn't come back to clarify what he meant.

Reply to
toad

HD - Heavy Duty Rubber.

Polybush - Polyurethane bush. Extremely hard and long wearing but can be noisy and make the ride harsh.

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Reply to
Conor

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