How many hours for front suspension refurb

[berettafan]

I need/would like to do the following:

Front bearings,
rebuild front calipers (piston seal likely broken)
Replace ball joints
Diagnose condition of front torsion bars, rubber bushings; replace if needed
replace sway bar bushings
replace tie rod ends (i can do just the ends right? destroyed them when removing suspension during pan repair last year)


Is there a special tool i can buy to ensure a faultless bearing race replacement?

How long should all of this take if i've not done any of these things before and will be working a few hours here and there as time permits?

Any tips, been there done that's or suggestions for best components?

Thanks!

Erik

[175mph951]

Front bearings:
30 minutes...id only replace the races if they're bad and the bearings themselves can usually be cleaned and repacked unless they are broken

rebuild calipers:
depends how easy the pistons come out....1-2 hours

replace ball joints:
again how easy will the nut come off....youll need a torch...15min-1 hour depending on ease.

front a-arms:
rubber busings are a nightmare to remove, best bet is to light them on fire and let them burn off...its the easiest way i find. to remove the torsion bars and a-arms will take you 1-2hrs

sway bar busings:
it will be off if you remove a-arms...bushings are easy to replace just use silicone spray

tie rods:
easy job but id replace the entire assembly if the car hasn't been updated to turbo tie rod ends. also will have to have car aligned when done....

i dont know your mechanically ability but this can all be done in 4 hours if your handy and everything goes as planned

[burgermeister]

Why didn't you take care of all that when you were doing the front pan 2 years ago?? You were surely most of the way there!

I'd plan on a full Saturday to disassemble & figure out what you need, and another Saturday to put it back together. That way the Sundays can be appended if need be.

But I have left handed retarded monkey disease. Also, it's a hobby, not a job, and I work at a leisurely pace so I enjoy myself and some cold beverages.

I took 6 hours to do the front calipers. 4 hours to get the lower ball joints off. 4 hours for the tie rods, and another 3 to take out the rack & re-grease everything. I think you can also just replace the tie rod end - turbo tie rods are overrated IMO). Rotating bushings takes 15 minutes per arm. Dunno about replacing them. Torsion bars are free with A-arm removal. Sway bar bushings should be 30 minutes or less while all is apart. Haven't messed with the bearings yet.

Like I said, left handed retarded monkey ...

Good luck!

[berettafan]

haven't quite gotten to 'left handed retarded monkey' level of competence yet but all in all doesn't sound too bad!

burger i not only WANTED to do the front suspension when i did the pan but also wanted to strip and repaint the entire front trunk in some battleship grey.

we see how that went.

i'm trying to just knock stuff out now as i'm told our house will be a bit more crowded in about 7 months. also trying to complete a bmw project for spring riding...have a deck to finish building...need to lose 40lbs.....

[burgermeister]

Congratulations on the increased crowding thing! It's not the baby that causes crowding, it's all the 'ancillary equipment' - but I'm sure you're well aware. If not, you will be.

Kids LOVE riding in 911's.

(Certain) Baby seats fit fine in the back as long as they're forward facing. BabysRus will let you carry all the display models out to the car to try them out ... highly recommended.

We (4 of us) occasionally take the 911 for a Costco run, as well as much other fair weather family shuttling around. No good place for boxed bulk diapers, but if you take everything out of its box, the front trunk holds a decently full Costco-cart of stuff!

[berettafan]

Thanks! Already have a 4 1/2 yr old who absolutely LOVES daddy's Porsche (even uses 2 syllables when he says it). Asked me again the other day when we can start taking it to school (i take him to daycare in the am) again. Some days he embarasses me when we get to daycare because he's telling everyone who will listen that 'my daddy brought me in the Porsche today.' I use his car seat which doubles as a booster in the front seat. Tried a couple dedicated boosters but the bases were all too wide for my seats (GTS Nurburgrings).

[gsjohnson]

I would think that 4 hours for this is overly optimistic to do it properly. Maybe if you're flat rating at a dealer...

[michael lang]

Originally Posted by burgermeister

I have left handed retarded monkey disease.

I'm still crying that was so funny. I have the same sickness I just didn't know what the name of it was.

[krd]

i'm in the process of doing the same thing, i'm also doing the rear. be prepared for problems ex: stuck caliper pistons. if you do replace bearings use the proper bearing puller, you will also need to remove the bearing races from the hub, also requires the correct puller.

[Highfield]

I started in September 2008 :-)

The above are good guides, but it is never as quick or easy as you imagine - take pictures as well for when it goes back together.

See my thread here :-

73T - Brake & Suspension Refurb - Part 2 - Refurbishment

Ian

[Neilk]

Double whatever estimate is given to you. The dreaded "while you are there" will take over. Rebuilding brakes is super easy, but then you'll decide to get them spotless and that will take an extra couple of hours. Repeat with everything else.

[berettafan]

Ian thanks for that link. i'd read that thread before but forgot about it.

Spent today painting my homemade sport muffler and fixing a flat that i discovered. Even got the rear sway bar hooked up (had one link unhooked forever). Bike should be done in a few weeks and then i'll be ready to get the car done.

But i'll allow a bit more than 4hrs.

[ninesixfour]

Originally Posted by gsjohnson

I would think that 4 hours for this is overly optimistic to do it properly. Maybe if you're flat rating at a dealer...

I would have to agree and would plan for a whole weekend.

[mtnfir]

Originally Posted by burgermeister

Why didn't you take care of all that when you were doing the front pan 2 years ago?? You were surely most of the way there!

I'd plan on a full Saturday to disassemble & figure out what you need, and another Saturday to put it back together. That way the Sundays can be appended if need be.

But I have left handed retarded monkey disease. Also, it's a hobby, not a job, and I work at a leisurely pace so I enjoy myself and some cold beverages.

I took 6 hours to do the front calipers. 4 hours to get the lower ball joints off. 4 hours for the tie rods, and another 3 to take out the rack & re-grease everything. I think you can also just replace the tie rod end - turbo tie rods are overrated IMO). Rotating bushings takes 15 minutes per arm. Dunno about replacing them. Torsion bars are free with A-arm removal. Sway bar bushings should be 30 minutes or less while all is apart. Haven't messed with the bearings yet.

Like I said, left handed retarded monkey ...

Good luck!

I too am a left handed retarded monkey....and I sir take offence at that comment. I prefer to think of myself as "alter-abled" Now, of to the bananas

[sjf911]

I would have to say one long weekend if you already have all of the parts and that may be optimistic to cover everything you have planned. It took me about a weekend just to replace the rubber bushings and I was removing polybronze bushings which is much faster than the OEM rubber. Life, family, trips to the auto-parts store, looking for that last bolt that you can't remember where you put it, and beer runs all decrease efficiency.

[moneymanager]

Did anyone allow for alignment and corner balance?