front suspension mcpherson struts

[boiler]

Hi all.
May be a stupid question but I had my stag jacked up at the front and removed the caps on the front suspension under the bonnet. When turning the wheel on one side the castle nut turns and on the other it doesn't. What should happen?
Thanks.

[StagNL]

Not really a silly question at all.  The castle nut should fix the strut piston rod to the inner part of the top mount.  The inner part turns inside the outer via a few bits of snugly fitting tubes.  If the lubrication between the tubes gets dry, they tend to seize.  The turning is then no longer performed by the top mount but rather the piston rod itself as it turns inside the insert cylinder housing.
This happens to a lot of cars with this design.  There are new parts available but you may get away with a good clean up and re-lube.
Another more costly and labour intensive method is to fit a roller bearing in the top mount.  I chose the replacement parts when rebuilding the suspension.
Remember, there is advice to squirt some oil into the top mounts under the rubber caps and it for this reason.

Julian

[nang]

Worst case scenario, shaft has seized and rubber mount has torn away from the housing. Did it to me a few years ago and was noticeable  as I had no power steering. With power steering you may not notice it .
Tony.

[boiler]

Thanks for replying.
Looks like a strip down job. It passed the mot today as well.

Thanks all.

[StagNL]

A strip down will be the best option to solve the problem of seizing bushes.  Mine passed many MOTs in the same state, but that is not to say it was unsafe.

Julian

[Sienna PI]

Hi!
Which grease should be used on the collar etc?

[StagNL]

No idea what is the best but I think I used a standard lithium gear grease.

Julian