[TonyBray]

My car now has 157.5k miles on it and I think it's time for some front suspension. What's the deal? What part of the A-arm is not considered "rebuildable"? RSBarn has a ball joint kit but I haven't looked at the instructions yet. Can the bushing be replaced by a home mechanic or do I need to send them out? I searched this forum and the DIY forum but found no good info on doing a full rebuild. Anyone btdt?



--Tony

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[flash]

that's the only component i have not changed up there - i'd give pete a call on the ball joint and ask him

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[TheMirror]

I'm also interested in this. What would be a good castor block to use for a street car that sees some Driver Events and Autocross?



-Mirror

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[bob blackwell]

Mirror I used the factory castor block mounts and Delrin bushings when I did mine recently. My mechanic warned that the harder castor block mount (such as Elephant Racing sells) would be very harsh on the street. My car is my daily driver and I am very happy with the new factory castor block mounts. So far the Delrin bushings are not making any noise and the oil will not damage them if I get a leak. good luck, Bob Blackwell.

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[TheMirror]

Hi Bob -



Thanks for the info, that sounds like what I am looking for. Additionally, its cheaper!



Tony -

Defnitiely check with Pete at RSBarn about the ball joints, he has several kits for rebuilding....and if I remember correctly you should be able to accomplish it at home.



As far as what is not rebuildable on the A-arms, I'm not sure. Anyone?

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[mitch968]

Bob, the Delrins aren't affected by oil / ps fluid? If so, I suppose that's a good reason to go with them. No noise with the Delrins in the castor block and not too harsh on the street?



I'm currently solving a power steering leak, but don't want that to necessarily delay my sway bar install. I'll probably need to do the castor bushings at some point (again), since the darned PS leak got back there. I swear someone should analyze the typical leak flow path and come up with a small plastic shield to keep it away from the rubber parts. Even if the PS doesn't leak, everyone is bound to get some oil down on the undertray from a messy oil filter change. (just did that too :-()

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[TonyBray]

"factory castor block mounts" What the heck is a castor block mount? No such animal exists on the 911's/912's/914's I have ever worked on.



--Tony

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[bob blackwell]

Sorry, the Delrin bushings are not in the Factory Castor Block Mounts (the large rubber mounts at the rear of the A Arm) it is still rubber. I used the Delrin bushings on the anti-sway bars front and rear, got them from Jason at Paragon Products. I am also disgusted with the leaking from the power steering reservoir, lines and rack. Maybe the solution will be to use the 1983 944 manual steering rack and just eleminate the power steering fluid entirely! Good luck, Bob Blackwell.

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[Anchorman]

Based on a recommendation from Pete (RS Barn), I just had him install 944 turbo castor blocks in my car. Along with M030 sway bars (with stock M030 bushings) and new motor mounts, the entire front end feels wonderfully SOLID!

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[TheMirror]

Ah yes, thanks for that. I remember reading your response to my other thread and I was a little confused about that exact mod.



Cheers,

-Mirror

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[mitch968]

Yeah, "disgusted" pretty much sums up how I feel about the whole power steering system. I've never had another car with this kind of persistent problem. Since I just flushed my coolant and messed with the AC, I have the "drip trays" off the car. I think I'll leave them off for a while so I can spend some quality time under there cleaning everything up and tightening any obviously loose hoses to try to find this leak. If it weren't for those damn trays, I don't think the fluid would ever make it back to the castor bushings, and I wouldn't have to waste my time taking them off and putting them back.



I chatted with my mechanic today, and he recommended replacing the PS reservoir. He said that over time the screen gets clogged up and can cause a pressure increase and leaks. If I replace it, the leak may subside if the seals aren't too bad. Somehow I doubt that, but I suppose it's worth $20 and an hour to find out.



If my rack is shot, how bad is the manual rack for street driving? I know it's more effort in a parking lot, but how nuts is it? I haven't driven a non-PS car in a while, but I remember liking the direct feel.

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[Anchorman]

As what I hope will be the final step to curing my PS fluid leaks, Pete will be installing a rebuilt rack on Thursday. After that, if there's still any leaks, I'm simply going to encase everything in a plastic bag. <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/wink.gif" class="smilie" alt="" />

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[bob blackwell]

Mitch968, I have driven a 1983 944 with manual steering rack that belongs to a friend and the effort required is not much with street tires. With wider wheels and racing tires it is a bear in the parking lot. Once up to normal speed it feels much better. I think I can get used to it as a daily driver with no problem. Good luck, Bob Blackwell.

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[mitch968]

Was a manual rack standard on early 944's or was that a mod? I had an '83 944 over 10 years ago and can't remember what it had. My current power rack is probably not working optimally anyway, so I'm probably already used to more effort. If it isn't that bad, I might have to keep an eye out for one. Speaking of deleting the power steering, wasn't that mentioned as a possible alternative to the AC delete for a supercharger?

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[bob blackwell]

Yeah, the manual steering was standard ( I don't think power steering was even available until 1984 and later). It isn't too hard unless you use wider wheels with soft compoound tires, and even then once you get rolling it is OK. Good luck, Bob Blackwell.

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[flash]

a note on a couple of components:



the delrin sway bar bushings we put on ron's car wore out, and required not only replacement, but modification to prevent it from happening again - i finally snapped some shots, and will do a write up on the mod when i get back from denver



i have the elephant racing castor blocks and front control arm bushings in my car - i don't think they are too abusive at all - i was expecting that they would be, but have been very pleasantly surprised - keep in mind though, that i like firm suspensions - if you like a compliant one, they may be too rough

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