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Exmo Suspension


Dave Ed

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Guest Gargoil

Thanks for doing all the leg work Steamer. Are there any markings or part numbers on the new dampers?

Any chance we could get this pinned (by a moderator) next to the other subject of EXMO suspension turret problems?

 

http://www.rhocar.or...?showtopic=3966

 

In fact, I think it would be a good idea if we could have a "knowledge bank" somewhere on the forum where common or tricky problems and answers could be stored. Maybe split in to the different models.

Or is this too much work and taking the fun out of the forum?

Edited by Gargoil
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  • 7 years later...
On 1/23/2015 at 10:48 AM, richardm6994 said:

Just to update this;

 

The front dampers are not Sierra P100 damper inserts.

Are they Cortina P100 damper inserts.........well I'll never know as they never turned up and I got a refund from Paypal.

 

Luckily, Dampertech had a pair left over from the 'old-days' and was able to sell them to me at £150 for the pair......and these were the last pair!

 

So anyone wanting replacements in the future, you have 3 options;

1) Take the risk on Cortina P100 front damper inserts - however these are as like hens-teeth

 

2) See if Dave at Dampertech can make you a pair......(my photos with the dimensions on was enough for him to know exactly what the damper were).

 

3) Koni do an adjustable damper - part number 8610-1436 which looks almost the same.....the only difference that matters being it's diameter is 43.5mm (1.5mm bigger than the exmo dampers) and so the spring-seat collar that presses onto the dampers would have to have it's bore skimmed out slightly. K300 ltd quoted me £400 for a pair of these dampers......not cheap but at least there is something out there that would do the job.

 

 

I believe the reason my dampers had started leaking was due to there being no angular movement where the top of the damper bolts to the top suspension arm.

I'd never noticed or realised this before, but as the damper moves up and down it's travel, it needs to pivot a couple of degrees where it bolts to the top suspension. Because I'd reinforced my suspension arm, there was absolutley no movement or flex in the arm so as a result, the damper rod tried to pivot where it slides into the damper body....and over time the seal gave up.

 

To combat this, I've had to put some flex back into the where the damper bolts to the top suspension arm....and I've done this by basically using a rubber washer in a aluminium cup......

 

 

http://s1060.photobucket.com/user/richardm6994/media/4337848D-4B86-4180-ABE6-F0BC17138808_zps8ydttaqo.jpg.html]http://i1060.photobucket.com/albums/t457/richardm6994/4337848D-4B86-4180-ABE6-F0BC17138808_zps8ydttaqo.jpg[/url]

 

http://s1060.photobucket.com/user/richardm6994/media/52CD87FD-CF16-47FD-8C5E-2CDD0BDAA912_zpswq0fglxo.jpg.html]http://i1060.photobucket.com/albums/t457/richardm6994/52CD87FD-CF16-47FD-8C5E-2CDD0BDAA912_zpswq0fglxo.jpg[/url]

 

http://s1060.photobucket.com/user/richardm6994/media/55050460-5031-4F53-8D07-B0961DC97E19_zpsbjyyzymi.jpg.html]http://i1060.photobucket.com/albums/t457/richardm6994/55050460-5031-4F53-8D07-B0961DC97E19_zpsbjyyzymi.jpg[/url]

 

http://s1060.photobucket.com/user/richardm6994/media/FFC82B52-9231-4CDE-948F-5FE21231894E_zpsasovynvk.jpg.html]http://i1060.photobucket.com/albums/t457/richardm6994/FFC82B52-9231-4CDE-948F-5FE21231894E_zpsasovynvk.jpg[/url]

 

http://s1060.photobucket.com/user/richardm6994/media/30CAEDCA-4DA3-4FE2-B11A-C92F84954F3D_zpsxpozvjhq.jpg.html]http://i1060.photobucket.com/albums/t457/richardm6994/30CAEDCA-4DA3-4FE2-B11A-C92F84954F3D_zpsxpozvjhq.jpg[/url]

 

http://s1060.photobucket.com/user/richardm6994/media/97D6937B-3ABA-4734-962E-30BD48EEC224_zpsjzmlepwh.jpg.html]http://i1060.photobucket.com/albums/t457/richardm6994/97D6937B-3ABA-4734-962E-30BD48EEC224_zpsjzmlepwh.jpg[/url]

 

http://s1060.photobucket.com/user/richardm6994/media/3D8982B8-88BE-4D4F-B1AC-47A1B9E7AEC3_zpsjtfwz1g1.jpg.html]http://i1060.photobucket.com/albums/t457/richardm6994/3D8982B8-88BE-4D4F-B1AC-47A1B9E7AEC3_zpsjtfwz1g1.jpg[/url]

Apologies, reigniting an old one here, but did you make these or buy them from somewhere? 

I have done less that 100miles in my exmo and have noticed today that both shocks are leaking. Admittedly they are many years old and have been sat under a tarp, but nonetheless very frustrating seeing as they are not an 'off the shelf' product anymore. 

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I am afraid that I can't offer a solution, just sympathy. My Exmo has been under a tarp for 17 years before I started the rebuild. The bars that go through the oil seals were spotted with corrosion that has caused the chrome plating to flake and produce a rough surface which would quickly destroy the seals. Before refitting the shocks to the car I have carefully sanded and polished the affected areas, using a Dremel type tool with polishing compound etc. However, since the chrome is gone in these areas, its only a matter of time before some rust will set in. So I'm living on borrowed time. Leaking shocks will be an MOT failure at some point ..... so I too need to find a way to replace the shocks, not as urgently as you however.

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Yes, beginning to wish I had done the same. Mine didn't look rusty, I'm assuming it's the rubber seals that have perished but either way it's extremely annoying. 

I've been in touch with Dave at Dampertech and to be fair to him he responded straight away with a solution and good info...however, they cannot be repaired apparently and are no longer made, so my only option according to him is to replace with a GAZ equivalent, which is £320 for the pair! 😒

I now have a couple of options;

1. Hunt for a replacement seal kit, I believe this is all that I need in order to repair these dampers. I assume all I need is a kit for a damper with the same diameter...probably more to it than that, but worth a try.

2. Go for the replacement units from Dampertech. Dave said that these have a 50mm body dia, I explained that my RH dampers are 42mm, but he has stated that 50mm is the correct size for mcpherson struts as they are load bearing. I just need to check the sierra hubs to see if it will accommodate a 50mm strut...and then find £320 down the back of the sofa. 

3. Chop the front of the car off and engineer a double wishbone setup. Something I don't have the time, expertise or money to do.   

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I am considering your number 1 option at one stage, when I won't mind being off the road for a spell. The tough bit here would be removing the pressed on cap that holds the seal around the top of the strut. Although £320 quids might be required..... what is that nowadays, just a 3 or 4 of fill ups at the petrol station. Did Dampertech Dave give you a part number for what is needed ?

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I gave up pretty quickly on option 1 after I realised what is involved, with my lack of the correct machinery and knowledge I think it will just be a long stressful swearing session. 

No part numbers from Dave, we've agreed a price, but not actually worked out how to do it yet. The main problem is trying to make something that can reliably take the loads in a mcpherson strut setup, but also fit under the narrow Exmo suspension buttress. 

I've given Dave lot's of images of the Exmo setup, dims, also shared the solution that Richard came up with, so that we can try and find a solution. Fingers crossed, I'll keep you posted.

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  • 1 month later...

Good news! These arrived this afternoon from DamperTech. 

Have fitted one of them, looks good, fits but the spring is a tight fit under the buttress...as expected. 

I've also added a 10mm thick rubber ring that is fitting between the spring top mount and underside of the chassis. Wasn't happy with the ride on the previous spring/damper and seemed crazy to have a spring in direct contact with the chassis. Every mcpherson strut you look at has a rubber mount of some sort, haven't figured out a way of encasing the bearing in rubber yet, but this will hopefully be an improvement nonetheless. 

I'll fit the other one tomorrow and hopefully that'll be me back on the road again after a couple of months...fingers crossed!

20220817_151128.jpg

20220817_153302.jpg

20220817_153306.jpg

Edited by LewisH
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For any other Exmo owners that are interested, please see below the drawing for the struts. They were £300 for the pair of dampers, £50 for a pair of springs and £15 delivery + VAT £438.

Forgot to mention above that they are also adjustable so we can play around with ride height and spring loads. 

img688.jpg

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I have reused the bearing from the old RH setup for now, but I'm not convinced that this is the correct type of bearing to be used for this due to the type of load it is taking.

Pic below of the bearing, is this a thrust bearing?

It's just the spring seat that is adjustable. 

20220629_145603.jpg

Edited by LewisH
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That looks like a ball bearing, that will be capable of supporting and axial (thrust) load as well as a radial load. However you need to make sure that only the outer race is in contact with the fixed reaction point on the chassis when the nut is clamped up, or else it won't be doing anything if the end face of the inner race is also in contact with the upper spring seat washer. 

Edited by RallyChris
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If this is original kit, there was a large diameter thick washer, same diameter as the spring that sits directly on top of the spring, the hole at the centre of this washer is large enough to sit just on the outer ring of the bearing. The bearing then goes on top of the large washer. A small but thick washer then goes on top of the bearing wich sits only on the centre ring of the bearing. The body buttress then sits on this washer and the bolt is tightened down. So the shock absorber inner rod is fixed to the buttress and the inner part of the bearing. The top of the spring, where the body weight bears, pushes up on the outer edge of the large washer and therefore the outer ring of the bearing, and therefore via the bearing balls (if it's a ball bearing) to the centre ring and then up via the small washer to the buttress. As standard, with SS Exmos, the pressure of the body weight on this small washer caused the SS to crack around the butress hole, so most people put a thick plate on the underside of the butress to spread the pressure.

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  • 1 year later...
On 8/17/2022 at 5:11 PM, LewisH said:

Good news! These arrived this afternoon from DamperTech. 

Have fitted one of them, looks good, fits but the spring is a tight fit under the buttress...as expected. 

I've also added a 10mm thick rubber ring that is fitting between the spring top mount and underside of the chassis. Wasn't happy with the ride on the previous spring/damper and seemed crazy to have a spring in direct contact with the chassis. Every mcpherson strut you look at has a rubber mount of some sort, haven't figured out a way of encasing the bearing in rubber yet, but this will hopefully be an improvement nonetheless. 

I'll fit the other one tomorrow and hopefully that'll be me back on the road again after a couple of months...fingers crossed!

20220817_151128.jpg

20220817_153302.jpg

20220817_153306.jpg

Thank you for you post, my Exmo is more than 2 years in a barn because the font damper are broken 😪

Do you have some information on Dave numéro or email adress ? I will order a kit like this one 😊

Thank you lewish.

Regards.benny

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