rear axle bushes

[pal1972]

had my bora ('00 X) to the dealer to sort out the boot unopening! needs wiring loom! but they told me the rear axle bushes were splitting! I have noticed a loud thud from the rear when going over pot holes and it has been getting worse! anyhow, they told me they are 'expensive' to replace - didnt give me price though. Anyone tell me waht i'm in for to get these done? can you buy after market ones and have them fitted elsewhere??

[TDiBoraSam]

Might cost a couple of hundred quid to get them done. It's not an easy job to do.

Stay away from Powerflex bushes, they're far too hard and noisy. Replace with standard rubber ones.

[Volk]

Was told by garage that at some point mine will need doing and cost would be around £250 in Dec 08.

[pal1972]

thanks for the replies, took it to a local garage and its costing £120 fitted!! so saved a canny bit off the dealer price!!

[TDiBoraSam]

Sounds like a good price. Just make sure they remove the old ones and fit the new ones properly, rather than hacking them out crudely etc. I know they can be really hard to remove and fit.

[DiverDave]

Had mine replaced year before last. Can confirm that they are a pain to replace! My brother is in the motor trade (luckily) and his place couldn't get the old bushes out and neither could another garage. In the end i had to take the axle to VW to get them to just remove and fit the bushes which cost me £70 in labour.

Im sure the parts also cost me around £70 and then i had to pay labour costs to my brother so it wasn't a cheap job.

[tallpaulselfrid]

I've done two sets of these now and they are indeed a total cnut!

Best, quickest and easiest way is to drop the axle right out, which would add to the garage cost as the brakes will need to be bled.

The bushes need to be pressed out and new ones pressed in. They are a very tight fit and require lots of pressure.

For me it's a days work. So to get it done for £120 is pretty good value. I just hope they're doing it right!:(

[Crasher]

I was watching someone do them cheaply the other day, they were fitting them inside out and not clocking them to their alignment point, something I see a lot.

[Bora16v]

Had same problem with mine got a good mate in a garage :D so got them done but yes there were a nightmare but its best to get them done asap otherwise to many complications ie suspension coils breaking:zx11: and the exghaust bracket will eventually break and be more expensive in the long run. Just a few things to think about