S3 - Front Lower suspension arm bushes

Schlaag

Schlaag

Bwah
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Hi team! :)

Offside suspension arm, the 'rear bush' has failed :keule:

Are these replaceable on their own or is it a whole new arm & ball joint?

Is it an easy DIY job? Audi I think want £350 for the arm and joint!

I'm not being lazy.. ive tried searching but the search function is broken for me...I keep getting this message

"[h=2]Message[/h]connection to localhost:9312 failed (errno=111, msg=Connection refused)


cheers
Dave
 
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They are replaceable on their own, just hammer the old one out then press a new one in. I'll be doing mine shortly and replacing with solid TT items.

IMO it's worth doing all the arm bushes on both sides all at once.
 
Hi Dave.. yeah would rather replace the lot.

The garage said the arm would be easier as getting old bushes out can be a pain.

Unless there is a cheaper supplier of lower arms than audi themselves.

Can anyone confirm the correct bush for the offside front? its the rear one. Are they all the same?
 
Sounds like the garage are lazy gits! I did a set of mk4 golf front arm bushes last weekend and all it takes is a bit of elbow grease!

IMO I wouldn't fit non-OE arms, I also wouldn't re-fit voided front arm rear bushes when the TT ones are a noticeably better alternative.

This is the kind of bush we're talking about, but source it from a dealer/TPS: Front Track Control Arm Bush, Rear AUDI TT 98-06 | eBay
 
+1 to what dave said about not getting pattern arms. pattern suspension/steering stuff is never the same dimensions or fit - it'll just be a world of badly worn tyres and expense

For the £170 cost of the new arms you could hire a car for a week while you work on yours!

I'd ...
1) Order new bushes
2) Hire car
3) Stick your S3 axles stands
4) Remove arms and take to a garage that will probably charge you 30 mins to an hour to place the new bushes.
(you may be able to do you self if fitting poly bushes)
5) rag the nuts off the hire car
6) refit and take S3 for 4 wheels alignment straight away.
7) ENJOY!
 
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hehe you could also clean you OE arms a bit and spray them red or something!
 
Righty ho.. so if I whip the arms off.. any garage should be willing / able to press out the old bushes

Do I powerflex all of the wishbone ones? I see talk of a TT one for the rear
 
Schlaag said:
Righty ho.. so if I whip the arms off.. any garage should be willing / able to press out the old bushes

Do I powerflex all of the wishbone ones? I see talk of a TT one for the rear
Click to expand...

Good question - the OEM TT one is 'solid' compared to the other ones which have a void.

The void makes the ride more comfy, but breaks down quicker. The solid one should give better longevity and sharper handling.

The poly ones will last even longer and have even bettter handling.

Personally - it's such a ball ache replacing the OE bushes I would always choose to replace with poly bushes. I don't really notice any greater harshness of the poly bushes while road driving and I do like my comfort.

My answer would be yes - poly bush all of it.

Liam
 
schweet! ok... Liam, sorry one last (ISH!) question! .. once the old bushes are out.. it is possible to fit the poly ones myself? or will I need a press / garage for that?
 
Dunno mate. I think poly bushes are easier to DIY install that the OE press fit bushes, especially if you have a decent range of clamps and a vice. At least have a garage as a backup plan to press them in.
 
Polly will go in easier as you'll defo need a vice/press tool for the TT ones. I'm going for the TT rear ones (pol on the fronts though) on the basis that there are some reports of the polly rear bushes popping out when the car is jacked up, however there are reports of them being fine so they might be ok, its up to you really.
 
If you've got the lower arms off the car and the bushes out, is it worth doing fitting DEFCON front bushes that TT owners rave about?
 
What are defcon fronts, I'm confused to which will be the best fit now polly or another type.
 
Defcons are a sleeve (about £100) which makes the Front wishbone hole smaller so you fit smaller bushes and it means less understeer, it's what TT's had when they came out but when they revised them due to saferty issues they made the bushes larger to induce some understeer into the handling as it's safer for normal drivers to deal with.

Mike
 
I looked at Defcons, but given the price and the fact that my car is a daily, I felt it was a step too far.
 
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