Bottom Arm

[venetian-red]

My 2001 Passat Estate 130TDsI needed a CV gaiter recently for the MOT, so I thought it was only fair for the garage MOT'ing the car to be given that job, which they did fine. While they were doing the job, with the weight off the front suspension, they advised me that one of the 'bottom arms' needed replacing. I can hear a 'clunk' when I go over speed bumps etc. now, so the diagnosis seems spot on. My question is twofold;
1) What type of job is this; is it a DIY job, if so any help on how to do it would be much appreciated.
2) The inevitable question, as a guide how much does the job cost done on a DIY basis or if it is a complex job, how much should the garage charge?

Thanks.

[LeonHurden]

i cannot help for costing. try euro car parts or GSF but be shaw you ask for the better quality part. they normally have two and the cheep one is poo.

it should be a simple enough job to do. if you own spanners above a 19mm and taux bits as well as a jack and axel stands then i would think you have the "technical ability" to do the job.

one tip. if you have not got a ball joint separator you can usually free them by hitting the hub bound part of the joint sharply or leaving the nut on the top of the thread so as not to flare it making it much harder to split.

bare my bad spelling and sentence structure. if that all makes seance to you go out and do it. its nice fixing your own car.

[yaman]

My 2001 Passat Estate 130TDsI needed a CV gaiter recently for the MOT, so I thought it was only fair for the garage MOT'ing the car to be given that job, which they did fine. While they were doing the job, with the weight off the front suspension, they advised me that one of the 'bottom arms' needed replacing. I can hear a 'clunk' when I go over speed bumps etc. now, so the diagnosis seems spot on. My question is twofold;
1) What type of job is this; is it a DIY job, if so any help on how to do it would be much appreciated.
2) The inevitable question, as a guide how much does the job cost done on a DIY basis or if it is a complex job, how much should the garage charge?

Thanks.

The last part of this guide deals with the lower arms,

http://www.audiworld.com/tech/wheel43.shtml

A competent DIYer would be capable of doing this in around
2 hours, don't worry if it takes more.

Its more than likely the lower rear arm (banana-shaped),
and to get the bolt out, you have to lower the sub-frame
a little. Don't fully tighten this bolt until the suspension is
compressed to normal (road sitting) height.

They start at around £30.

A small independent would charge around £50 labour.

Regards
Jim