Upper arm bush going bad after 2000 miles?

[tiger0529]

Hello all,

I purchased a pair of adjustable upper arm back in July this year and installed them on my 91 spider. It's only been a couple of months & less than 2000 miles, but the rubber part of the upper arm bushing at the body (right by the tpo shock absorber mount) came out of the metal sleeve of the bushing... When I checked with the vendor, I was told that I shouldn't have assemble the arms with the tires in the air. That is, once I loosely assemble the parts, I should lower the car to the ground and get any slack off before I tighten all the nuts & bolts. If this is true, would someody please tell me how I can accomplish this (I think there is not enough space to use wrenches or ratchet on suspension when the car is on the ground)??

Thank you always,

tiger0529

[dwc]

I've done such repairs by lowering the car while jackstands are under the lower balljoints (or rear axle), which will fully load the suspension and allow room to work. Nonetheless, it seems that the quality of many aftermarket parts we all buy has really gone into the toilet. Why do bushings that I replaced 20 years ago on one Spider still look better than those same bushings replaced on another Spider just a few years ago? Same seems to be true for motor mounts.

Regards,

Dean
Lutz, FL
'74 & '87 Spider Veloce's

[spider76]

I can't answer your question but I'm curious as to where you purchased the arms and what brand they are. Were there any instructions telling you to preload the suspension before tightening them? Just curious and would like to know how they are supposed to be mounted before I do something like you did. Thanks!

[papajam]

Pivoting rubber bushings with bonded inserts (or sleeves), on any vehicle, and unless specifically stated to the contrary, should be tightened only when the bushing is in the neutral position. For suspension bushings, this means that the vehicle should be at rest on the ground and normally loaded. If the bushing is tightened with the bushing in rebound (unloaded), not only is the sleeve to rubber bond stressed, but the bushing will add to the spring rate effectively raising the vehicle a little.

From Alfa info sheet 21.69.4.2.

[tiger0529]

First of all, thanks to all those who wrote me a reply so far.

I guess it was my mistake that I tightened the bolts/nuts when the tires were in the air... I learned another lesson, thanks to all of you here at alfabb.

As to the identity of the vendor, I am not going to disclose it here since they have been terrific and extremely helpful to both my mom (owns alfa repair shop in Japan) and me for years. The brand of the arms is... well, it is FLAP, which some people absolutely hate, but it seems that it was simply my mistake that caused the bushing to wear out prematurely so I am not going to attribute this occurrence to the company who makes them.

Thanks to you all again,

tiger0529

[spider76]

Glad to hear that the vendor was so helpful. I wasn't asking to throw any flames their way but just out of curiosity. Since they did work things out, naming them would let others know that they are good to deal with. Do parts like the adjustable arms come without any instructions?

Jim, as usual, you are the man!

[papajam]

Quote:

Originally Posted by spider76 Do parts like the adjustable arms come without any instructions?

[PSk]

Quote:

Originally Posted by papajam Can't recall ever seeing a set of shocks with bleeding instructions.

[papajam]

Shock bleeding.