MGF Damper replacement trick

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Matt66
Posts: 4
Joined: Sat Mar 18, 2017 4:55 pm
MGF Register Region: Midlands

MGF Damper replacement trick

Post by Matt66 » Sun Mar 26, 2017 8:53 pm

Having replaced my dampers, one problem if you don't have access to a ramp or pit is torqueing up the damper bolts and maintaining the correct A-Arm angle. The workshop manual states you should to the torque up of the damper bolt with the wheel on.

I guess this is so that you tighten the bolt and the wishbone angle is correct or in plane to how the wheel is when the car is on the road.

So an easy solution was thus, I took a piece of about 4" length copper tube and flattened 1 end, on the flat I marked a 'T' for top with a marker pen.

I rotated the wheel so that the studs were the same layout as a compass and removed the 'south' wheel nut (bottom one), slipped on the copper tube over the wheel stud and measured the height off against an offcut of wood which I marked with a marker pen.

I noted the jacking point ridge to the ground height and chocked that with wood offcuts, jacked up the wheel and removed the wheel.

I then let the jack down, so that the body edge contacted my chock, I then put the copper tube onto the lower stud and carefully jacked up under the brake rotor casting (with another jack) to raise the hub to the right height, measured off against my wood offcut and when it was within striking distance torqued up the damper bolt.

This was much closer to where the damper bolt should be than doing it up with no load on the A-Arm.

Jacking under the A-Arm tends to lift the car but I think that this method is about the best you can achieve with limited facilities.

One problem with the MGF being low, is finding suitable jacks that fit under it!
Attachments
Front wheel height checking
Front wheel height checking
Body chocked to 'no load' height
Body chocked to 'no load' height
Rear wheel measurement marked
Rear wheel measurement marked

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