MOT failure- what to do next?

BigDee2

asbokid wrote: »

typical main dealer! you might be able to work out the size of the nut from the CV joint kits listed on ebay. most of them include a nut.

Are going to fit a s/h strut, or put a new shock on your old strut?

I ordered a new shock for the old strut, which was delivered today.

I'm still awaiting delivery of the stretchy gaiter, which should be here tomorrow.

Got most of the tools from Screwfix today, the remainder will be tomorrow.

Tomorrow evening I'll be using this stuff (which I think may be better than WD40): http://www.screwfix.com/p/3-in-1-oil-pro-penetrant-spray/79096

just to get it working overnight and then I'll start on both repairs on Friday.

Fingers crossed......the thought of trying to undo those corroded nuts & bolts and possibly breaking 'em is scaring the hell outta me.

Worst case scenario, if I do break any bolts, where can I get replacements? Not worth going to Toyota due to supply delays.

I've got my MOT retest (free) booked at the same garage for early next week. Hopefully, the work won't slip into the weekend.

Quick question....when doing this kind of DIY work, would an Air Compressor and Impact(?) Driver be worth investing in? Would it make the job a lot easier?

Thanks.

asbokid

BigDee2 wrote: »

I ordered a new shock for the old strut, which was delivered today.

I'm still awaiting delivery of the stretchy gaiter, which should be here tomorrow.

Got most of the tools from Screwfix today, the remainder will be tomorrow.

Tomorrow evening I'll be using this stuff (which I think may be better than WD40): http://www.screwfix.com/p/3-in-1-oil-pro-penetrant-spray/79096

just to get it working overnight and then I'll start on both repairs on Friday.

Fingers crossed......the thought of trying to undo those corroded nuts & bolts and possibly breaking 'em is scaring the hell outta me.

Worst case scenario, if I do break any bolts, where can I get replacements? Not worth going to Toyota due to supply delays

Didn't mean to worry! The top bolts fixing the strut will undo easily. They've been protected from the elements, and are low torque any way. You're only doing one side of the suspension so the likelihood of sheering those few bolts is quite low.

I've seen lower BJs that are so corroded there was no visible thread left on them and where the corrosion was so bad, it's impossible to work out where the hole once was for the split pin!

And worn track rod ends are par for the course. Watch the rubber on them though, because it's easy to tear them. Is that lower BJ bolted to the wishbone? Sometimes they are riveted which is a PITA because you have to grind off the rivets to replace them.

Think of it this way... if a bolt snaps when you're undoing it then that's a good thing.. it means it possibly was no longer safe as a fixing!

I buy new fixings from an old-fashioned agricultural engineers. They let you sift through their boxes, and only charge a few pennies per bolt. Other people have said how helpful they have found the bolt fixing sellers on ebay. The local motor factors carry a certain amount of bolts. If you get stuck for something obscure, have you got a car reclamation yard nearby?

I've got my MOT retest (free) booked at the same garage for early next week. Hopefully, the work won't slip into the weekend.

Quick question....when doing this kind of DIY work, would an Air Compressor and Impact(?) Driver be worth investing in? Would it make the job a lot easier?

Air tools save a little time, but are not essential. If you're going to do it properly, you will want to torque every bolt by hand anyway. The untrained lazy youngsters in the tyre shops who use an air wrench on every bolt are causing a lot of damage to cars.

Buy a good compressor if you do get one. The ones from the DIY stores don't have enough grunt for anything heavier than inflating the tyres or light paint spraying.

BigDee2

Hi again,

Thanks for the advice.

The gaiter was due to be delivered today but hasn't turned up.
I'll have to call the Post Office Sorting Office tomorrow to see if they have it. It was sent 1st class post. Fingers crossed.

Got pretty much all the tools now.
I've collected the hub nut from Toyota today, so I'll pick up the socket locally.

Any advice on not damaging the rubber on the TRR and BJ?

I bought the scissor type BJ remover. Motor Factors said they're better.

To re-confirm (sorry), the BJ remover is used on the TRE and for the BJ itself, use lever to push down the BJ out of the suspension arm?

I'm not sure what the part the BJ is connected to, lower suspension arm?.

I'm hoping to get both jobs done tomorrow, assuming the gaiter arrives.

Thanks a lot.
Regards.

optimus_primera

I never use joint splitters, i find a couple of well aimed sharp blows with club hammer on the part where the ball joint fits to is enough to shock the joint apart.

asbokid

BigDee2 wrote: »

Any advice on not damaging the rubber on the TRE and BJ?

Just be careful! Don't nip them.

I bought the scissor type BJ remover. Motor Factors said they're better.

I think the scissor type are a bit safer to use. You're less likely to damage anything. You can ensure they are positioned accurately, as you are tightening them.

To re-confirm (sorry), the BJ remover is used on the TRE and for the BJ itself, use lever to push down the BJ out of the suspension arm?

You might find that you can do the job without separating the hub from the wishbone. All you need to do is get enough space to pull the driveshaft out of the hub, so you can attend to the CV boot.

If you can't get that space and you do have to separate the hub from the wishbone, you don't have to use a BJ splitter to do that.

Once the retaining nut and split pin are removed from the lower ball joint, you usually can just lift the hub off the spindle of the lower ball joint, perhaps levering the wishbone downwards with a length of timber.

What you often find is that the whole ball joint rotates as you try to undo its retaining nut. If that happens, insert the BJ splitter and tighten it so that it presses down on the ball joint. This stops the joint from rotating as you are undoing the nut. Obviously you can't do this with the fork-style BJ splitters, so that's another advantage of the scissor type.

I'm not sure what the part the BJ is connected to, lower suspension arm?.

The lower ball joint (LBJ) is bolted (or occasionally riveted) to the lower suspension arm (aka the wishbone).

The spindle of the LBJ passes through the lower fixing hole of the steering hub and is retained with a nut, with a split pin used to stop the nut loosening.

I'm hoping to get both jobs done tomorrow, assuming the gaiter arrives.

Good luck. Maybe warm yourself up with the (easier) rear suspension job first!

BigDee2

Yes, I intend to tackle the shock absorber first.

I realised I also need to get a 15/16 socket (if I remember correctly) for the spring compressor, as per instruction. The largest socket I have doesn't fit.

I'll update tomorrow on the progress.

Thanks for all the advice.
Best Regards.

BigDee2

.........any other advice in the meantime is still welcome.

asbokid

BigDee2 wrote: »

Yes, I intend to tackle the shock absorber first.

I realised I also need to get a 15/16 socket (if I remember correctly) for the spring compressor, as per instruction. The largest socket I have doesn't fit.

Where did you get that measurement of 15/16 from? Is it the screwfix compressor? It's strange that it's imperial. Not worth buying a socket especially when the metric equivalent would be fine.

I'll update tomorrow on the progress.

Yeah do! There must be a better forum that this one though. Some of the car club forums are brilliant and put the main dealers to shame. The members have a mine of collective wisdom on maintenance and repair of their particular vehicle and an eye for fault diagnosis that is based on their expert past experience of that specific model.

BigDee2

Hi,

I did not manage to get the repair work done.

Having had all the tools and advice ready, I was unable to undo the strut bolts with the 2ft breaker bar, then extending it to 3ft with scaffold pole aswell. I used my whole body weight but the bolts would not budge. I think at this point I decided that it was more specialist equipment that would be required to do the repair work. I asked the local Motor factors about replacement bolts and they did not stock them and I certainly wasn't going to wait for Toyota. if they broke off. Plus, if I left it any longer to the do the repairs I would have to pay for a new MOT test.

I tried my best and I'm upset I could not do it and I'm absolutely gutted and disappointed.

I feel bad that you all advised and encouraged me to the job and I couldn't. So apologies for that but I feel ready to tackle another job another time if it came to it.

As I said before, I tried to prepare for the job by using the penetrating spray and giving the bolts a knock with a hammer.
It seems this was not enough. I reckon these must be the original parts.

After a couple of hours on Friday morning, my missus was getting upset about being without a car for over a week. So I ended up called up the garage where I got the MOT done and spoke to the mechanic. He agreed that he would charge me £100 for labour (which is what he said originally) for both jobs and will use my parts.

I had a late delivery of the CV boot on Friday, so if he's happy to use my parts, he will do the job for me. He said that he'd do the MOT re-test (free) before it expires on Wed morning. Hopefully I can get the car back to the missus asap. I think you understand

I'll update the total cost to do these repairs when I get the car back. At least I got the parts as cheap as possible rather than pay the garage prices, so I know I saved there.

Thanks a lot.

BigDee2

Got my car back today from the garage with the new MOT.

Cost:
Labour: £100 (cash) for both repairs.
Parts: £34 - I supplied them.
MOT re-Test: £Nil

All in all, I guess that was not a huge amount to get the car back on the road. It would have cost more if the garage supplied the parts and added VAT to that and on the labour too.

The missus is happy she's got the car back!

Thanks to all for the advice on this post, especially asbokid & mikey72.