Nearside front suspension leak
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Not many rules really, this board being aimed at technical issues, it shouldn't fall foul (hopefully) of some of the more personal issues that can affect forums.
Rule 1 - Is that you need to think very carefully before posting anything technical or asking anything technical relating to the security system of the car - See 'Security Issues' sticky for more info.
Rule 2 - We (MGF Register) do not support copyright infringement and therefore references to CD ROM, PDF versions or paper copies of the workshop manual (for instance) should not be posted on the forum. We don't want to get into trouble and we'd rather sell you a genuine hard copy through our Regalia shop anyway!
Because advice is honestly and freely given in this technical section, much of it will be amateur experienced based, so any information is given in good faith and is not guaranteed as correct.
Nearside front suspension leak
We have an MGF which keeps sinking on the nearside, couldn't find any leaks, bit of a mystery. So I put some UV dye in the system to see if we could locate the problem. Well it sank again, once again no sign of any leak, till I used the blacklight.
The area in front of and to inside of the front nearside tyre lit up like a Christmas tree. There is a leak somewhere in that area. Has anyone got ideas what the most likely candidate is?
The area in front of and to inside of the front nearside tyre lit up like a Christmas tree. There is a leak somewhere in that area. Has anyone got ideas what the most likely candidate is?
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Re: Nearside front suspension leak
Pressure tube maybe?
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2004 TF 135 in Monogram Spectre, black leather, RHD
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2001 ZR 160 in Solar Red, LHD, LPG conv
Classic:
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Re: Nearside front suspension leak
Have you removed the black plastic cover under the bonnet? The tube from the nearside filler valve to the sphere may be ruptured but only leaking when the suspension moves and over pressures; guess how I know.....
Re: Nearside front suspension leak
We have and with the dye the leak should show up.
My guess is a leaking suspension displacer.
Re: Nearside front suspension leak
Had it apart and found the problem. The displacer is blown, it has been fitted with a Mike Satur schrader valve, fitted like a tyre valve. The fluid had blown through this valve, indicating an internal failure.
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Re: Nearside front suspension leak
Are you sure that it isn't the valve itself that has failed?
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Re: Nearside front suspension leak
I doubt it James - there's no way the fluid could get to the nitrogen egg unless the dividing membrane has failed.talkingcars wrote: ↑Thu Jan 23, 2020 10:09 pmAre you sure that it isn't the valve itself that has failed?
With a Mike Satur re-gassing nipple, how much of the valve is inside the 'sphere? I'd be worried that the failure may be during fitment.
When the rear sphere failed on mine, it leaked outwards and downwards towards the displacer cone and knuckle joint.
It is possible that front 'spheres fail differently - particularly if you've hit a pot hole or a sleeping policeman by accident at speed...
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Re: Nearside front suspension leak
Surely even if the membrane has failed, the fluid shouldn't get past the valve?Rob Bell wrote: ↑Fri Jan 24, 2020 8:47 amI doubt it James - there's no way the fluid could get to the nitrogen egg unless the dividing membrane has failed.talkingcars wrote: ↑Thu Jan 23, 2020 10:09 pmAre you sure that it isn't the valve itself that has failed?
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Re: Nearside front suspension leak
Nothing should be getting past the valve, unless the valve has been opened, or is faulty. To me, this sounds like a double fail
Re: Nearside front suspension leak
My guess is the failure mode is due to how the valve was fitted. It was fitted like a tyre valve to a rim, except such a system wasn't designed for this application. The valve failed, releasing all the nitrogen, the membrane was compressed by the fluid in the system and failed. The fluid then leaked out of the failed valve.
It wasn't a massive leak, we only spotted because we filled the system with UV dye. Using a UV light it fairly easy to see where it had been leaking.
It wasn't a massive leak, we only spotted because we filled the system with UV dye. Using a UV light it fairly easy to see where it had been leaking.