Mk4 Rear axle bushes - changing

[randall977]

I'm not keen to pay loads of money to have my rear axle bushes changed by a garage; has anyone done this job - any tips? I've found genuine ones on eBay for about £35 per pair (delivered) - is this okay?

[mkpp786]

Can get them cheaper from GSF PARTS or EURO CAR PARTS. More reliable service too, you dont know what your getting from ebay,

I brought my bushes for something like £20 from GSF parts.

[amz]

Can get them cheaper from GSF PARTS or EURO CAR PARTS. More reliable service too, you dont know what your getting from ebay,

I brought my bushes for something like £20 from GSF parts.


Which one's did you buy from GSF for £20 mkpp786? I still ain't got round to doing mine. Have found a private garage mechanic willing to do it for £100 labour + parts. The only thing is I ain't sure which part(s) to buy. Don't really want to go for inferior products, that will wear off over a few months or even one-two years.

[randall977]

I would only buy the genuine part in this particular case - I wonder how much they are direct from VAG - sometimes eBay are more expensive!

[amz]

I would only buy the genuine part in this particular case - I wonder how much they are direct from VAG - sometimes eBay are more expensive!

I've always thought along the same lines... buying genuine parts is the best way forward BUT the downside is that they aren't the best in some respects (primariliy price-wise). I had a Pierburg MAF fitted, as opposed to the genuine Bosch part. Haven't regretted fitting the OEM!

I'm considering to buy the Lemfoerder bushes from EuroCarParts for about £25.

[mkpp786]

Which one's did you buy from GSF for £20 mkpp786? I still ain't got round to doing mine. Have found a private garage mechanic willing to do it for £100 labour + parts. The only thing is I ain't sure which part(s) to buy. Don't really want to go for inferior products, that will wear off over a few months or even one-two years.


To be honest i dont know which ones they were. I went into GSF parts and the guy advised me that the ones he gave me were the right ones. I have heard that buying other brands may not work as good for various reasons.

Im not totally sure, but when i went into VW they quoted me around £50 for the bushes. Not sure about the exact price, if i find my estimate sheet ill let you know.

£100 labour + parts isnt a bad price to be honest. Might be worth going to vw, getting the parts, then letting the garage do the work.

[Eshrules]

just my 2 penneths worth, normallyi dont bother with genuine parts, i will save money and cut costs, where possible and safe to do so, but the rear suspension is such a pain to sort, it's probably worth paying that little bit extra.

if you're going to a main dealer to have it done, the price will include genuine parts.

if you're using a private/independent garage, sometimes it can work out cheaper to let them get it at trade and stick their margin on, it can sometimes still work out cheaper than you getting from a parts supplier etc

[amz]

Thanks for the input eshrules and mkpp786. The private garage doesn't have the time to go to get parts... I've told them that I've completely useless getting parts and may even end up getting wrong one's, but they said that EuroCarParts and GSF Car Parts will advise me of the correct ones if I go there.

It makes sense them getting discounts on their trade cards, and keeping the extra profit/margin as long as I get my work done to a good standard with the correct parts. I've read somewhere about OEM parts having a negative impact with the handling/ride/suspension of the car aswell. Not sure what to do though, as EuroCarParts are doing the parts for about £16 inclusive of VAT. Will phone VW and ask for a quote on the parts. Will definately be getting the bushes changed for £100 from the private garage sometime VERY soon though. Also looking into getting the wiper blades replaced while I'm at it for about £15! Lol

[Eshrules]

i must admit, that is a first about the OEM fitment having a negative impact on the suspension/handling, not just because the rear suspension doesnt really have much bearing on the handling of the car, you'd notice it far more on the front. bushes aren't such a component that i would have thought would affect the handling of the car once worn, or even if replaced with a poor substitute.

re the garage not having time... tosh im afraid, complete and utter. what garage is it your using? if they dont have the time to order parts (which,by the way, any garage does) then what makes you think they're reliable in terms of their workmanship?

IMHO, i'd steer clear of a garage that told me i had to source parts myself. not only does that leave a possible margin of error with you, but the warranty for the parts would lie with the supplier, not the garage. so should a failure occur in the future, you're going to have the pain and hassle of determining whether its poor workmanship or the part that has failed.

if it were me, id be steering clear and going to a better independant garage.

[randall977]

VW offered to change the rear bushes for £250 inclusive - so I went for it; not too bad a price as my local specialist wanted the same (or possibly more) to do it. It's done the trick and the car now drives silently - no more vibration at high speed either.

Just need to change the front strut top mounts now...

[amz]

£250 fully inclusive is VERY cheap - especially from the main dealers! I bought the rear axle bushes this morning for £30 (£15 each) from GSF. EuroCarParts have a huge backlog with these bushes (I was counting on them to supply me, but have been waiting far too long).

Was hoping to get the car sorted today, but had to re-schedule... car goes into the garage this Saturday, so hoping the metal clunking sound goes away after having the bushes replaced. They are TINY to what I had imagined them to look like... small like little cups!

[randall977]

Yes I thought £250 was good - up until then I was going to do it myself but it would have been a heck of a job. VW can do it pretty quickly as they have the correct tools - I think it took them about 1.5hrs. I've lost a bit of faith in my local VW specialist as their prices seem to be the same as the main dealer - but with the main dealer there is more come-back.