MOT advisory

[00mike00]

There wasn’t much wrong to be fair. Just the usual, filler neck corroded, which I’ll deal with soon.
The other mention was MacPherson strut corroded. How do I go about doing this job myself and where to get the bits?

Thanks

[steve bain]

thats just the front suspension. Either take it off and upgrade or replace with secondhand. all depends on your budget. Having said that when they say mcpherson strut corroded i assume you have the original suspension and its just really rusty. if the inserts are good and not leaking, you could just clean them up and give them a lick of paint. I once got an advisory for corroded springs which were just a year old but the paint had cracked and they went rusty. they are covering their backs.

So to summarise, take rust of with wire brush, and paint them.

[mark1gls]

I gave mine a good brush down with a wire brush and painted them with the epoxy mastic I mentioned in your other post.

They are getting hard to get hold off so if you can clean them up and save them it will save you a lot of money.

There is a big nut on the top which you undo and the shock slides out, just make sure you loosen the nut when the strut is on the car as it can be a little rusty and done up tight.

[james butler]

i powder coated mine and it came out loverly.
just a word of warning if you undo the bolts holding the shock body to the hub you will loose the camber position so make sure you find a way to re align it back up after

[mark1gls]

Picture of strut removed from the car. You will also need spring compressors to separate the strut. Also a good time to fit some new strut top mounts.
Febi are the ones to go far.

[00mike00]

thats just the front suspension. Either take it off and upgrade or replace with secondhand. all depends on your budget. Having said that when they say mcpherson strut corroded i assume you have the original suspension and its just really rusty. if the inserts are good and not leaking, you could just clean them up and give them a lick of paint. I once got an advisory for corroded springs which were just a year old but the paint had cracked and they went rusty. they are covering their backs.

So to summarise, take rust of with wire brush, and paint them.

Ok, I did have a look on Youtube and see that it’s the name for the assembly. I can see that they are corroded but it does look like surface only to me. Did you paint the springs to or just brush them down?

I gave mine a good brush down with a wire brush and painted them with the epoxy mastic I mentioned in your other post.

There is a big nut on the top which you undo and the shock slides out, just make sure you loosen the nut when the strut is on the car as it can be a little rusty and done up tight.

Mark, I’ve just bagged some from Ebay. haha! I’ll let you know how I get on.

Picture of strut removed from the car. You will also need spring compressors to separate the strut. Also a good time to fit some new strut top mounts.
Febi are the ones to go far.

Do I really have to remove the spring for this job? Where would you suggest getting the top mounts from?
I’ve only used spring compressors once with the guidance of someone on the forum actually, it was a long time ago and I remember feeling a bit unnerved! Haha.

[mark1gls]

You could just paint the strut on the car then you don 't have to remove anything or get camber etc set up again.

As it's just an advisory there is no rush to get it done this week, but to do the job properly you really need to take the strut apart to get to the inside of the cup where the spring sits, that's a real mud trap there is a small hole to let the water out which gets blocked with dirt and stones so I do poke a screw driver in mine every now and then to clear the hole and I can just about get my fingers in there to clear out the mud.

It's one of those jobs where if you have things apart you may as well change/renew some other bits so save you having to remove the strut again and get the camber set up again. I would wait for some nice warmer weather so the paint dries quicker and it's nice to be outside

Things I would replace/check
Strut top mount. (lucky if you can get 4 years out of a set)
Bump stops if old and cracked.
Bump stop covers but only if cracked.

This place sells all the parts and Febi is the better make, I've just fitted a set of Meyle mounts and they are rubbish or lots of mounts and kits on ebay.

http://www.vwspares.co.uk/scirocco_suspension.php

There is 2 types of bump stops and dust covers your's will be the later type.

DO NOT GET THIS TYPE..
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/VOLKSWAGEN-GO ... Sw44BYkME2

You will need a very bent spanner to remove the top nut on the shock as you you have to hold the shock shaft with an allen key to undo the nut.

I got a socket like this as it has a cut out to fit in the allen key but CHECK THE SIZE of your nut as there seems to be a couple of sizes I think mine is 21mm? You may need to check which size allen key you need it's either 6mm or 7mm? DO NOT remove the nut with out compressing the spring.

Fuel injector removal socket.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/FORD-MONDEO-T ... Swr7ZW5-NP

Or it could be 22mm

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/LASER-TOOLS-E ... SwVupTnrbl

[steve bain]

As mentioned you have two options.

1. take wheel of, wire brush anything which looks rusty, slap some rust treatment (hammerite make one) on it and give it a coat of hammerite or high zinc paint. It will look tidy and all is good again and will take half a day of work whilst drinking beer in the sun. It will probably last a fair few years before going a bit brown again. You can paint the spring too if you wish. I very much doubt the rust is a concern as the metal is so thick. cost about £20.

2. take it to bit. End up getting the towers powdercoated, replace all bushes, top mounts etc. Decide to treat yourself to uprated springs and shock inserts. Decide to get the wishbones powdercoated whilst you are at it as they look scruffy, replace all the bushes and ball joint. upgrade to polybushes. End up buying a pack to do engine mounts too. Best get the mount bracket powdercoated too. Infact may as well strip the brackets off the engine and get them all done as its not that expensive. decide you may as well get a lower strut brace at the same time. notice your brake pads are a bit low, go on ebay for pads and end up buying a big brake conversion kit. upgrade to rear discs and 22.2mm m/c whilst at it. end up fitting braided hoses and new lines. rebuild the front end. take apart to paint hubs, replace bearings and fit new guards. Paint calipers. get the alignment done and you are good to go.

Personally i would go for option 2 but would probably carry on! to get my car through an mot i ended up doing a 2 year resto.

Seriously though,

you can remove the whole strut assembly in one piece and paint it. Or get spring compressors and remove the top mounts and spring to do a more thorough job. In the past i have used a swan neck spanner off ebay (£5 or so) and allen key. I have also clamped a socket with mole grips too but that may not work if theyre a bit stuck. Now i just use my god send of an impact gun! you will need to get your alignment reset afterwards (£35 ish)

You can get the spring off and on without a spring compressor but to save £10 it just isn't worth it.

Personally if i were you i would wire brush them, treat and paint them on the car to save you money realigning etc. All depends on what you want to achieve.

[mark1gls]

What ever you end up doing find the hole at the back of the strut at the bottom of the cup and clear it of any stones etc if your car is a daily and gets wet/muddy, not much of a problem for far weather car.
I clear mine when every I jack up the front, you can even get to it both side if you just jack up 1 side of the car and turn the steering wheel.
I've seen strut spring cups rust away and the spring will have nothing holding it in place.

More info and pictures here.
https://vwgolfmk1.org.uk/forum/index.ph ... lace-front