Wishbone advice.

[bikergraham]

My MK 1 2002 Multispace has just had its MOT and thankfully passed, but I'm told that the wishbone arm bushes are rotting. So I thought it may be easier to replace the whole arms including the ball joint instead of trying to force in new rubbers. So here's my quandary , I noticed there's a lot on ebay but I'm concerned about the quality , so I thought about europarts ,but they are around £70 a side including the ball joint, whereas Mr Auto has them for £27 per side [ BOLK ] , are BOLK parts any good ? I'm a bit concerned because its a very important part I'm a little worried about the quality. Has anybody else fitted new wishbone arms and if so what did you use and where did you get them ?  Thanks ,any help / advice would be great.

[jamesg]

I'd personally stick with lemforder or TRW for ball joints.

"BOLK" is mister autos own brand. Wouldn't touch it myself, probably just sourced from where ever they can get them cheapest. Could be china, who knows?!

Also try carparts4less, it's owned by eurocarparts but cheaper. There is normally a discount code for here as well.

[cancunia]

Also try carparts4less, it's owned by eurocarparts but cheaper. There is normally a discount code for here as well.

The easiest way to get the price from CP4L is to copy & paste the part number from the ECP website to CP4L. They're both doing weekend discounts at the moment, CP4L is 16% (code 'payday'). I've often found CP4L the cheaper of the 2, only difference that I can see is they take a bit longer to send things if you take the free shipping.

You could also check GSF, they currently have 60% off (GSF60), they have their own brands but also 'premium' brands. Hmm, seems that GSF are out of stock for the TRW part.

[ffrenchie]

Has it got the pressed steel or the cast wishbones, the pressed ones are about 1/2 price of the cast ones and the ball joints are bolted on them.

[jj9]

Comline, Firstline, QH, FAI, Febi, Moog, etc are all decent enough and do the job, would imagine BOLK would be along the same lines.

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[geoff]

Just had a quick look and found Comline ( which are ok ) for £19 posted... ebay 192458118466

I've noticed that lots of parts get sold off cheaper as the vehicles get older and closer to being obsolete.

I recently started looking at front brake discs and pads and found Mintex at £43 delivered, then noticed Monroe dampers and springs at £32 to £36

Cheap doesn't always have to be crappy if you keep your eyes open and wits about you.

[jj9]

Be aware they there were two ball joint pin sizes, 16mm & 18mm, you need to make sure you get the correct one for the vehicle.

As ffrenchie points out some vehicles had the pressed steel wishbones and some had the cast steel version, but I think I'm correct in saying that they were interchangeable?

I think the cast version was supposed to be a heavy duty version, but I don't like the built in ball joint idea on them.


Put your VIN number in at the site below and it should list the parts used on your vehicle.

https://www.catcar.info/citroen/?lang=en&l=


The comline version that geoff has spotted looks ok to me, that's what my car would be getting.



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[cancunia]

AFAIK, the 2.0 HDi has uprated springs and certainly on mine has the cast wishbone, maybe this is for the heavier engine. If you have cast wishbones, I'd suggest replacing one with the same as the existing so that both sides match.

Looks like replacement bushes are available and looks like they are not too difficult to change as they're in steel cups, maybe worth reconsidering that option?

[jj9]

My 1.6 HDi also has the cast wishbones, I think they may have become standard fit after a certain year as they are the same as the arms on the Xsara Picasso.  

If I was changing both arms I would be happy to go with the pressed steel option, if you get 2-3 years out of them happy days.

I really wouldn't mess on (and I quite like a mess on) changing the bushes when you can get a whole new wishbone for £19 and just bolt it in place, job done.


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[cancunia]

Yeah, if it's £19 for a new wishbone complete with a new BJ vs £10 for some bushes it makes sense. Personally I'd prefer that both sides match just in case Mr MOT has any doubts.