Porsche Enthusiasts Club Forum

Hi all,

After a nearly a year off the road i'm getting the 944 ready for the MOT. I noticed one of the ARB brackets had broken so tried to replace last weekend as well as fitting the extra 'trianglation' support brackets.

I got as far as removing the ARB because the inner ARB bush OD seemed much larger than the bracket ID, I believe they should be a tight fit but I had to prise open the bracket in order to get it around the bush, there is still a 20mm gap between the bracket flanges too much gap to even get the nut and bolt on without clamping - does this sound normal? The bushes are purple so I guess not OEM, mid OD was measured at 40mm.

I have a '86 / '87 944 lux, but heres the thing - my ARB measures 24mm inner OD 16m end OD, sounds like I have a '86 turbo ARB . Now I remember when my ARB broke broke before, the mechanic said it was a right PITA to fit the bushes, could this be because they ordered the smaller ID bushes and stretched them over the larger bar in turn making the OD larger as well?

I have now decided to replace all the bushes and droplinks for the ARB as the other inner bush is split. I am thinking of spending extra for poly bushes. Looking on design911 I can find all the powerflex bushes I need except for the 24mm inner bushes, no 24mm for superpro either. So the only option I have is OEM unless you guys know where I can source a 24mm poly bush?

Was hoping to get this sorted this weekend but prob left it too late for mail order, would there be anywhere near Bristol I could source, or are these bushes to specialized?

Cheers,

Rich

Try here http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/items/__porsc ... 459_228459

Cheers for that, I found some 24mm ones but only from the US.

Your ARB maybe a later spec Porsche 944 type. Check factory specs before going to the US, as you should be able to find the correct part in the UK. Poly bushes are fine but don't give you much lateral tolerance for normal road use...

hi i have just replaced all my poly bushes, both floflex and powerflex do all sizes. floflex are cheaper but sent me the wrong parts and were not very helpful on the phone so i have powerflex bushes which i fitted at home on the drive, not a difficult job. good luck

Thanks for the input. I just bought the 24mm ones from here http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Porsche-944-944S-1982-1991-Superpro-Front-ARB-Chassis-Mount-SPF2923-24K-/190602332031?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item2c60c8c77f#ht_500wt_922
Should be ok I hope.
I still have standard bushes for the the rest of the suspension so hopefully the ride wont be too harsh. I believe I may also need some special grease to stop any sqeaking.

I am probably going to buy Powerflex for the rest of the ARB at design911. Just waiting to receive my membership number as I believe there is a 5% TIPEC discount, can anyone confirm this?

Rich

These drop link Powerflex bushes seem to be a right pig to fit, the soap didn't seem to work. Instructions say I should be able to fit by hand. Any tips anyone?? or am I just too weak!

Jaws of a vice with 2 bits of wood to protect edges.

Not that type of soap, use washing-up liquid - it will work.

Thanks for the replies guys, I still cant get the damn thing in by hand, out of desperation I even cut a chamfer round the outer edge of the bush. Looks like I will have to buy a vice tomorrow.

At least I managed to treat all the surface rust on the ARB today>

Good news & bad news;

Good news - I got the bushes in by hand - combination of cutting the chamfers, soaking the bushes in hot water, using a spoon to cup the top of the bush and pushing down with all my weight whilst the wife pushed in the sticking out bit of the bush with the side of a screwdriver.

Bad news - Being a complete numpty I didn't think to check the bushes fit onto the ends of the ARB before hand. The fit is slack to say the least, ARB end dia is 16mm Bush inner dia is 18mm - 1mm clearance all round. This is what I've got>http://www.design911.com/Drop-Link-Polyurethane-Bush-for-Porsche-944-Front-POWERFLEX/prod7645/ there is a choice of 2, but the other one is for the larger ARB's which I would have thought had larger dia ends.

The old rubber bushes fit snugly around the end of the ARB.

Any chance this is how its meant to be?

" Any chance this is how its meant to be?"

No - Should be tight fit.

Explains why it was so much trouble to get them in the drop link

Rich,

If you end up going for originals the talk to the OPC in Bristol. Their parts manager is called Duncan Manning and he is really helpful and knows a lot about the older cars, he's been with Dick Lovetts for 25 years or more. Don't forget that TIPEC members get a 10% discount.

Originals from OPC are only a few pounds. I did mine last year and was surprised at how cheap they were.

Cheers guys,

I may have to go original, thanks for the info Mick.

Looked at the Superpro ones http://www.superpro.com.au/superpro-parts?id=SPF2922-18K but these are for 18mm ends, same as the Powerflex ones.

I must have a strange ARB with 16mm ends