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Car Forum / Alfa Romeo Cars / May 2008Can front shocks be reconditioned?
I've got a 2005 1.9 multijet diesel sportwagon. The front end is bottoming out really badly, even on relatively minor dips in the road, with the front spoiler scraping worryingly on the road. Unfortunately it is out of warranty, as the mileage is very high (102,000 miles) Is it possible to get the front shocks reconditioned, or are they fully sealed units which can only be replaced? If they can be reconditioned, does anybody know somewhere around Bristol that they can recommend. Alternatively, are there any good aftermarket shocks that people know of? Cheers Charlie > I've got a 2005 1.9 multijet diesel sportwagon. The front end is > bottoming out really badly, even on relatively minor dips in the road, [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > can recommend. Alternatively, are there any good aftermarket shocks > that people know of? It's more likely that the engine undertray is knackered. Unless you're certain that there's a problem with the springs/dampers I would look there first. The solution for me (2000 2.4JTD SP3) was simply to remove the undertray. D A Stocks >> I've got a 2005 1.9 multijet diesel sportwagon. The front end is >> bottoming out really badly, even on relatively minor dips in the road, [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] >first. The solution for me (2000 2.4JTD SP3) was simply to remove the >undertray. This is *not* a good solution. Next time he hits the road, there's nothing between the road and the sump! My old garage pointed out that they had experience of this and it wasn't pleasant. "You need a new engine..er..that'll be..thousands.." Makes no sense, for an 80UKP part you risk writing off your car.  SignatureZ Scotland Alfa Romeo 156 2.4JTD Veloce Leather 'Oil' be seeing you.. (Email without 'Alfa' in subject will be auto-deleted..sorry!) In alt.autos.alfa-romeo, >>> I've got a 2005 1.9 multijet diesel sportwagon. The front end is >>> bottoming out really badly, even on relatively minor dips in the road, [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] > they had experience of this and it wasn't pleasant. "You need a new > engine..er..that'll be..thousands.." The undertrays get damaged when hit a few times. This causes them to sag and have much less clearance than an undamaged one. You will scrape the road much more often, even with good dampers. Removing the undertray will get rid of that problem. The flimsy plastic tray does not provide much protection for your engine. I have heard that removing it can cause more wind noise and a tray will keep your engine compartiment cleaner. Removing the tray will not solve the cause of it getting damaged and will not help against hitting the front spoiler. My 156 had such a sagging undertray that it hit the road on the slightest bumps. Fixed the tray with a few strips of aluminium and fixed the diving nose with a set of Bilstein B6 dampers. That really solved it. :-) SignatureStef (remove caps, dashes and .invalid from e-mail address to reply by mail) >In alt.autos.alfa-romeo, >> [quoted text clipped - 21 lines] >The undertrays get damaged when hit a few times. This causes them to >sag and have much less clearance than an undamaged one. At that point the under tray has had it. Just replace it. There's a vastly better polypropylene one, from Alfa, that lasts years longer than my original fibrous one. > You will scrape >the road much more often, even with good dampers. Removing the undertray >will get rid of that problem. The flimsy plastic tray does not provide >much protection for your engine. No..this is not correct. What it does is allow the car to sledge on it. Except in a more severe case, this does protect the sump from tearing, gouging and even denting (due to spreading the impact load). Obviously, if you don't bottom your car out properly, you won't notice it but particularly if you have a heavier engine (> 4 cylinders) I wouldn't risk it - it's just not worth it. SignatureZ Scotland Alfa Romeo 156 2.4JTD Veloce Leather 'Oil' be seeing you.. (Email without 'Alfa' in subject will be auto-deleted..sorry!) >>It's more likely that the engine undertray is knackered. Unless you're >>certain that there's a problem with the springs/dampers I would look there [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > > Makes no sense, for an 80UKP part you risk writing off your car. I agree that you need to take more care on roads that you don't know - if I hit something I'm not sure about (it hasn't happened yet) I would stop immediately and check for leaks. D A Stocks A quick update - I rang around and was surprised at how cheap replacement units are (how often can you say that?). I've only ever bought motorcycle shock absorbers previously, and they tend to be very expensive, so I started off thinking that each shock would be about £400. In fact the OEM shock works out at £63.33 + VAT and the spring £49.53 + VAT. In the end I went for aftermarket KYB shocks, and have got both front shocks and springs for £185 incl VAT and delivery. £185 I could do without spending, but still pleasantly surprised. About 2 hours to fit apparently, and as I use my local garage rather than an offical dealer, I should get away with under £300 total. Cheers Charlie > A quick update - I rang around and was surprised at how cheap > replacement units are (how often can you say that?). I've only ever [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > fit apparently, and as I use my local garage rather than an offical > dealer, I should get away with under £300 total. And you probably didn't need the springs either. Are you *sure* your undertray is OK (no, I'm not trying to ruin your day) SignatureCatman MIB#14 SKoGA#6 TEAR#4 BOTAFOF#38 Apostle#21 COSOC#3 Tyger, Tyger Burning Bright (Remove rust to reply) 116 Giulietta 3.0l Sprint 1.7 145 2.0 Cloverleaf 156 V6 2.5 S2 Triumph Sprint ST 1050: It's blue, see. www.cuore-sportivo.co.uk >> A quick update - I rang around and was surprised at how cheap >> replacement units are (how often can you say that?). I've only ever [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] >And you probably didn't need the springs either. Are you *sure* your >undertray is OK (no, I'm not trying to ruin your day) It's a good point. Even if the undertray looks good, it can be sagging by a couple of cms toward the middle rear which seems to make an incredible difference to grounding. SignatureZ Scotland Alfa Romeo 156 2.4JTD Veloce Leather 'Oil' be seeing you.. (Email without 'Alfa' in subject will be auto-deleted..sorry!) >>> A quick update - I rang around and was surprised at how cheap >>> replacement units are (how often can you say that?). I've only ever [quoted text clipped - 14 lines] > by a couple of cms toward the middle rear which seems to make an > incredible difference to grounding. I was on the verge of spending ~£600 when Jamie fixed mine. C SignatureCatman MIB#14 SKoGA#6 TEAR#4 BOTAFOF#38 Apostle#21 COSOC#3 Tyger, Tyger Burning Bright (Remove rust to reply) 116 Giulietta 3.0l Sprint 1.7 145 2.0 Cloverleaf 156 V6 2.5 S2 Triumph Sprint ST 1050: It's blue, see. www.cuore-sportivo.co.uk >> It's a good point. Even if the undertray looks good, it can be sagging >> by a couple of cms toward the middle rear which seems to make an >> incredible difference to grounding. > >I was on the verge of spending ~£600 when Jamie fixed mine. Same here - I thought my suspension was on the way out. Main Dealer hadn't even bothered to put two of the retaining bolts in. Once all was as the manufacturer intended, the car was *vastly* better. SignatureZ Scotland Alfa Romeo 156 2.4JTD Veloce Leather 'Oil' be seeing you.. (Email without 'Alfa' in subject will be auto-deleted..sorry!) >>> It's a good point. Even if the undertray looks good, it can be sagging >>> by a couple of cms toward the middle rear which seems to make an [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > hadn't even bothered to put two of the retaining bolts in. Once all > was as the manufacturer intended, the car was *vastly* better. Still nose heavy, but not worth the cost IMHO. SignatureCatman MIB#14 SKoGA#6 TEAR#4 BOTAFOF#38 Apostle#21 COSOC#3 Tyger, Tyger Burning Bright (Remove rust to reply) 116 Giulietta 3.0l Sprint 1.7 145 2.0 Cloverleaf 156 V6 2.5 S2 Triumph Sprint ST 1050: It's blue, see. www.cuore-sportivo.co.uk >>>> It's a good point. Even if the undertray looks good, it can be sagging >>>> by a couple of cms toward the middle rear which seems to make an [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > >Still nose heavy, but not worth the cost IMHO. Quite. However, I'm also 7 years older than when I got it and don't feel the need to charge over 'rough ground' as much as I did when I was younger!! :-o The 'fix' is to replace it but the 159TI 2.4 has the following flaws: Rubbish colours No sunroof Doesn't look as good They've admitted (with their Prodrive collaboration) that they still can't do UK-style suspension. lardy? *70 hp* more than mine and it's only 1.3s quicker to 60!! Very slow seller Gah! SignatureZ Scotland Alfa Romeo 156 2.4JTD Veloce Leather 'Oil' be seeing you.. (Email without 'Alfa' in subject will be auto-deleted..sorry!) >>>>> It's a good point. Even if the undertray looks good, it can be sagging >>>>> by a couple of cms toward the middle rear which seems to make an [quoted text clipped - 20 lines] > lardy? *70 hp* more than mine and it's only 1.3s quicker to 60!! > Very slow seller Expensive...... SignatureCatman MIB#14 SKoGA#6 TEAR#4 BOTAFOF#38 Apostle#21 COSOC#3 Tyger, Tyger Burning Bright (Remove rust to reply) 116 Giulietta 3.0l Sprint 1.7 145 2.0 Cloverleaf 156 V6 2.5 S2 Triumph Sprint ST 1050: It's blue, see. www.cuore-sportivo.co.uk
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