Front strut tops rust

[kieran.l]

Was looking for the strut returns so that I could put LHM into the creaking struts but discovered something more scary in the process The tops of both front struts are very rusty Opinions and advice welcome

[mds141]

I thought it was only XM's and Xantia's that suffered rusty strut tops. Kieran, I sent my XM struts away to a company in Lithuania for a refurbishment. Not sure if they can do the same for a BX, as the XM struts are rubber bonded. Here's the link to kinGAS. http://www.elastomer.eu/index.php/en/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[adamskibx]

That's very unusual I think. It could be a good thing that it is a replaceable part easily sourced from a scrap car, and it looks like the surrounding metal is, mainly, OK. On a side note I found that there is a hole on the inside of the strut top where you can see the shiny piston of the strut, and pouring LHM onto/into this does wonders I found. But yes, I would look out for a way to get new strut tops as it should be a reasonably simple job to swap them.

[MULLEY]

I'd rub them down to see if its just surface rust, hopefully it doesn't go too deep, they would have originally been wrapped in rubber so that you couldn't see the metal. If they rub down ok, i'd just treat them with some kurust & possibly paint them with some of that anti rust paint & then just keep an eye on them, they probably look worse than they actually are

[kieran.l]

Thanks for the advice guys. So it sounds like this isnt a very common thing? What happened to the original rubber? To be honest I was quite shocked to see them so bad! Would it be worth taking them out to rub them down with a wire brush and paint as you suggest Mulley?

[citsncycles]

The old rubber will have perished and come unstuck from the steel. I'd definately remove them to clean up. As I understand it there's rubber underneath aswell, and it's this that's the important bit to still be bonded to the steel. If it's still all together then a clean up and paint of the exposed steel should preserve things.

[MULLEY]

My TXD has rusty strut tops, infact you could argue that as the rubber ages, it lets moisture in & therefore it makes matters worse. Just clean them up & paint them, i'm sure they will be fine.

[Defender110]

My two current BX's aren't rubber coated and if you look here; http://www.bxclub.co.uk/forum/viewtopic ... 13&t=17136" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; at my blue TGD at the bottom of the page, this is virtually as it left the factory?

[B-Hive]

Was looking for the strut returns so that I could put LHM into the creaking struts but discovered something more scary in the process The tops of both front struts are very rusty Opinions and advice welcome

Crap your country is severe on cars!!!

[Dollywobbler]

IIRC, BXs at least don't tend to suffer from the same catastrophic strut failure that can strike XMs and even C6s. Which is some comfort at least!

[demag]

Uggh! C6's as well?!!

[Dollywobbler]

Sadly so!

[MULLEY]

That seems way too new to have rusted away? perhaps it was something else fracturing, BX's are over 20 years old, i just can't see how a C6 strut top would have rusted quickly enough in that short space of time.

[B-Hive]

That seems way too new to have rusted away? perhaps it was something else fracturing, BX's are over 20 years old, i just can't see how a C6 strut top would have rusted quickly enough in that short space of time.

Its not from rust, AFAIK it is the rubber that gives way..Yes its strikes Early Xantias and XMs here.... Thought they would have sorted that issue out on the C6 which had a new list price of over $100,000 here

[MULLEY]

Aha, shit design then.