MOT time - bushes

[aaa888]

hey all

i was told that my polo 9n has ''O/S/F and N/S/F rear track control arm bushes worn'', where exactly are these parts and how much do they cost to be replaced?

[SimonCorrigan]

hi not sure if this is right thing but changed the bushes on my car a few weeks ago using this guide - http://briskoda.net/technical-guides/fa ... de/101781/

parts wise it cost about £60 for the bushes, lube and new bolts etc. not sure how much a garage would charge but it was a bit of a pain in the arse and not as easy as the guide makes out but chuffed with the result.

I have the makeshift bush pulling tool if needed. cheers, si

[RUM4MO]

I'd add, don't worry about the thought of fitting Seat Ibiza Cupra (solid) bushes to your Polo - this upgrade will improve the feel of the steering etc and should mean that you will never need to get these parts replaced again. I got them fitted to my wife's 2003MY Polo 1.4SE almost two years ago by a VAG indie who has the kit to sort out the four wheel re-alignment. Taking these cars to bits at the front means that the front<>rear wheel alignment and camber settings gets lost, this will cause the car to feel not as sharp as it should and increase uneven front tyre wear. As quite a large bit of the labour charges for this work is down to re-aligning the wheels - the rear wheels settings are fixed but the front needs to be set to centre on the rear wheels. Because of all this extra work, I abandoned all thought of doing this work myself and left it to a good local VAG indie. Even if you manage to use the kit of DIY bits to change the rear TCA bushes on the car, I'd reckon that a full re-alignment is still "good to do" as the rear of the TCA is now more positively located and the car will have lost its alignment anyway by the time has come to need the bushes replaced.

[SimonCorrigan]

hi did the work myself (well with a couple of willing helpers!) and then took it to merit tyres who carried out wheel alignment and got a nice before and after read out. to be honest i wouldn't do it again as it took three (long) days but this did include fitting coilovers and whiteline arb front and rear as well as the bushes.

[RUM4MO]

hi did the work myself (well with a couple of willing helpers!) and then took it to merit tyres who carried out wheel alignment and got a nice before and after read out. to be honest i wouldn't do it again as it took three (long) days but this did include fitting coilovers and whiteline arb front and rear as well as the bushes.

Yes, I understand what you mean, I priced up taking the TCAs complete with consoles along to a VW repair dealer (they only service/repair and are not authorised to sell VWs) - but that would mean lots of messing about which I was willing to do as my wife was on holiday from work - it is her car, then the four wheel re-alignment would still need doing - again maybe by this VW dealer. First they would not fit the Seat Cupra parts and second the saving was only about £100 with me removing and refitting these assemblies. I was getting seriously worried by tales of cracked consoles so I did not fancy doing this job myself. At one time there was a tool available to let you do this work while the consoles were still in place - but that tool company vanished. Next I priced the complete job including the four wheel re-alignment and cambelt change at a good local(ish) VAG indie - and went down that route.

[GR33NIE]

Common fault on the 9N's I think, mines had the same issue

[jaydeezey]

Very top of picture is the rear console bush.
Very bottom of picture is the front wishbone bush.
Far right of picture is the lower ball joint.

[K.I.T.T.]

Hello folks, just thought I'd ask here rather than start a new thead.

I'm looking to get uprated dampers and stiffer springs sometime next month and thought It would be a good idea to upgrade the bushes whilst I'm at it. The guide only metions Seat Ibiza Cupra console items and powerflex front wishbone front bushes. What about the rest of the bushes? What's the minimum I should look at replacing if at all? To do the whole car is about £150 in parts, not sure if it's worth it on my not-so-fast remapped 1.4 TDi, if it had the 1.9 TDi maybe...or am I underestimating the improvement? Also, which size bushes do I need for the front (stock) ARB? Has anyone uprated the front ARB?

I'll also be looking to add a Seat Sport Strut brace.

If I don't "need" to change all the bushes, could you tell me what I need from here: http://www.jkm.org.uk/performance/powerflex-skoda.htm (under Fabia)

(Not buying from there, just thought it's a good page showing all the options)

Cheers,
Ash

[SimonCorrigan]

these are the bits I used.
Ibiza Cupra Front Wishbone Console Bushes - 6LL407183
Powerflex Front Wishbone Bushes – PFF85 - 601
not sure about the other bushes.
the arb on my 1.9 was 19mm but uprated mine to a whiteline which came with new bushes. if your doing the work yourself i have the make shift bush pulling tool.
cheers, si