Front struts next! Thoughts?

BX Tech talk
Post Reply
tim
BXpert
Posts: 324
Joined: Thu Apr 22, 2010 5:51 pm
Location: somerset
My Cars: 2 1992 BX TXD estates
x 1

Front struts next! Thoughts?

Post by tim »

Having had the White One off the road (see below) I haven't been able to attack the Red One. Hopefully this will change by the weekend, and I can start thinking about the next job, which is a front strut overhaul. It would seem we have a problem in that Pleiades will do a recon exchange one for close on £150 without the VAT. Fackn'ell! But the original seals kit is seemingly no longer available and the cost is due to the fact that they have to do machining work to accommodate the alternatives they use. As Martin said, without machining facilities the kit wouldn't be much use to me or anyone else.
So is there any virtue in stripping down, cleaning and reassembling a strut without changing seals - I know that the car had a hard life as a tug before I acquired it; the return pipes pop off occasionally, apparently a sign of a worn strut; and they don't rise up terribly smoothly. Until it warmed up recently she sometimes needed a twitch of the height lever to persuade them to start moving. One gaiter is also shot and needs replacing. Can anyone help with a good used one - Pleiades don't have any.
If a stripdown and cleanup doesn't work, then is there any other alternative....... Andy has given me his seized one to play with, so I may know more if I manage to strip it down.
User avatar
Jaba
1K Away
Posts: 1893
Joined: Tue Jul 05, 2005 7:54 am
Location: Usually in the garage
My Cars: BX GTi, C3 Auto
x 80

Re: Front struts next! Thoughts?

Post by Jaba »

If the return pipes are blowing off then there is to much leakage past the worn seals, so it is past its use by date I am afraid as you will never cure that problem without new parts - or perhaps you could cannibalise the two struts to make a useable one.

Alternatively you might be able to free off the spare seized strut by putting a little LHM in it then leaving it upside down for a few days to allow the LHM to soak into the thrust bearing. This is what I do when I have a stiff and creaking one and it seems to fix them for a few years because the thrust bearing just dries out over the years unless fresh oil or fluid is applied by this method.
Worth a try anyway as an easy and cost free repair.
The Joy of BX with just one Citroën BX to my name now. Will I sing Bye Bye to my GTI or will it be Till death us do part.
B-Hive
BXpert
Posts: 403
Joined: Tue Aug 28, 2007 1:55 pm

Re: Front struts next! Thoughts?

Post by B-Hive »

tim wrote:
So is there any virtue in stripping down, cleaning and reassembling a strut without changing seals - I know that the car had a hard life as a tug before I acquired it; the return pipes pop off occasionally, apparently a sign of a worn strut; and they don't rise up terribly smoothly. Until it warmed up recently she sometimes needed a twitch of the height lever to persuade them to start moving. One gaiter is also shot and needs replacing.
.
Hi

I am of the belief that most strut issues are down to pump pressures, fluid cleanliness, and general pipe wear..
That said, pipes popping off could be attributed to loose connections,,,yes there may be more return fluid than if they were new but try some new strut hoses, and/or some mini clamps etc

Stickiness of the struts is well documented here, and a strut flush,some citrobics, and strut lube seem to fix most problems unless the car has done 500000 miles..

If you need to tweak the height lever I would suspect that the height corrector needs a flush which would be achieved by a system flush..the linkages could prob do with some attention as well... all quite easy and cheap

All the best... luck
Current
85 BX GT Mk1..
86 BX TRS Mk1
87 BX TRi


Gone
85 BX TRS mk1 auto... SOLD
90 BX TRi..parts....cubed
Tinkley
1K Away
Posts: 1502
Joined: Sat Jun 06, 2009 11:27 am
Location: N Hants England
x 8

Re: Front struts next! Thoughts?

Post by Tinkley »

Note from the Drop Link thread, with different length drop links you may NEED to tweak the height corrector to get the thing balanced correctly. Still agree with regular fluid changes etc.
User avatar
Way2go
Over 2k
Posts: 7279
Joined: Fri Jan 13, 2006 3:15 pm
Location: RCoBerkshire
x 2

Re: Front struts next! Thoughts?

Post by Way2go »

2BXORNOT2BX wrote:,,yes there may be more return fluid than if they were new but try some new strut hoses, and/or some mini clamps etc
I wouldn't recommend that as although it might be a short term fix, when the struts let go there is more fluid than the octopus can cope with and you risk blowing it apart. Leak-offs don't mean a flow and the original strut return pipes had a ball valve in to help pump the spasmodic low level leak-offs back to the tank as the suspension operated. :o
1991 BX19GTi Auto
Post Reply