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Ford Focus MK1 2004 - Rear Suspension (Please Help)


Verma-02
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Hi,

I have a Ford Focus MK1 2004 (facelifted). Ive had work done to the rear suspension being the ‘Lower Arms’ or ‘Wishbone’ or ‘Track Control Arm’ – I’m not completely sure of the actual name of that part. I will attach photos of the original problem.

There a photo which shows original problem (labeled), Theres a photo which shows otherside of same part (labeled), Theres 2 photos which shows the after, Theres 2 photos which shows the Anti roll bar, There a photo which shows the before, Theres a photo which shows the welded nut on knuckle which the lower arm bolts into.

One of the questions is – Does the Nut need to be welded to the bolt in order for it to not move or will a locking nut do the job? (When the nut is tight to the bolt as per photo 3/4 is there any chances of this coming undone?)

Another thing is, if you hadn’t noticed.. My Anti Roll Bar isn’t attached because the arms may be the wrong part for my Focus MK1. I will also attach a photo of what the Anti Roll Bar/links looked like before.

Many Thanks

Rear Driver Side - Lower arm (Before) (2).JPG

SCOK2997.JPG

IMG_0940.JPG

ONHV7507.JPG

roll bar - (for forum).jpg

After pics - (for forum).jpg

After pics - (for forum) 2.jpg

Rear Driver Side - Lower Arm (Before) (for forum).jpg

Rear Driver Side - Lower arm (Before) (3).jpg

Wishbone bolt - after (for forum).jpg

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The welded nut (captive nut) that has come loose is ok to be replaced by a suspension locking nut or a nut with some thread locking glue.The same happened to me and the unwelded nut has been in place for six years now without a problem.I think it's good practice to torque all the suspension nuts up correctly as well👍

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Richard - Thanks for your response.

Ok so with the Nut, i'd rather to use a locking nut for the fact of the nut being in place & secure.

Is there any kind of locking nut you could advise or suggest?

Is there any experiences you've had with this kind of work?

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On 2/25/2020 at 11:49 PM, Verma-02 said:

Richard - Thanks for your response.

Ok so with the Nut, i'd rather to use a locking nut for the fact of the nut being in place & secure.

Is there any kind of locking nut you could advise or suggest?

Is there any experiences you've had with this kind of work?

Good morning i've replaced all the rear suspension on my MK1 except the crossmember by myself👍

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I am in the same situation as the OP.

So I hope this post will help focus the discussion (Pun intended!):

i)

Rear LCA DS.jpg

 

ii)

Rear LCA labelled.jpg

 

iii)

Fresh REAR FF Knuckle B.jpg

 

iv)

Wheel Side LCA Bolt - Welded and labelled.jpg

 

v)

Fresh REAR FF Knuckle A.jpg

 

As I am in the exact same position as the OP.

 

Need to replace both my REAR LCA's on my Mk1.5 Focus too.

 

My LCA BOLT receiving nuts (Wheel Side) - cannot be salvaged.

 

A) What are the different approaches members used to tackle/resolve this specific issue?

 

My thanks to all those willing to contribute,

 

Alpro.

 

(apologies for spelling/grammatical mistakes - done all of this on a small screened mobile phone).

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1 hour ago, Alpro said:

I am in the same situation as the OP.

So I hope this post will help focus the discussion (Pun intended!):

i)

Rear LCA DS.jpg

 

ii)

Rear LCA labelled.jpg

 

iii)

Fresh REAR FF Knuckle B.jpg

 

iv)

Wheel Side LCA Bolt - Welded and labelled.jpg

 

v)

Fresh REAR FF Knuckle A.jpg

 

As I am in the exact same position as the OP.

 

Need to replace both my REAR LCA's on my Mk1.5 Focus too.

 

My LCA BOLT receiving nuts (Wheel Side) - cannot be salvaged.

 

A) What are the different approaches members used to tackle/resolve this specific issue?

 

My thanks to all those willing to contribute,

 

Alpro.

 

(apologies for spelling/grammatical mistakes - done all of this on a small screened mobile phone).

photo 1 yes it is the rear lower control arm.If the bolt is seized try some heat on the nut, sure that will work👍

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Hi williamweb,

Thank you for responding.

The issue both I and the OP are facing is that the nut is seized, rusted & no longer viable.

In this scenario - I need help from fellow members about what to do?

Is the only solution to replace both the knuckles - over a single welded NUT that is no longer usable?

Are there alternatives to this?

Surely me & the OP can’t be the only ones that’ve faced this scenario?

 

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if the captive nut is mangled just knock it off with a bolster and hammer.I'm not sure if there is enough access to grind it off but you could try👍

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Could you help me understand the specifications of a replacement nut should be - or guide me to where I can find out.

I just want to make sure, that I get the right thing before the new mechanic starts the work.

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13 hours ago, Alpro said:

Could you help me understand the specifications of a replacement nut should be - or guide me to where I can find out.

I just want to make sure, that I get the right thing before the new mechanic starts the work.

I'm fairly sure the nut is a flanged M12 with a 1.75 coarse thread and the spanner size is 19mm.If  i'm wrong get back to me and correct me, i've tried for you👍

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1 hour ago, williamweb said:

I'm fairly sure the nut is a flanged M12 with a 1.75 coarse thread and the spanner size is 19mm.If  i'm wrong get back to me and correct me, i've tried for you👍

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Really appreciate you taking the time. I’ll check this out and get back to the forum with an update.

 

Thanks again,

 

Alpro

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You need it to be nyloc too, or else apply threadlock. I've a feeling it could be the same nut as used on the front pinch bolt on a mk3 Mondeo. I'll see if I can find the Ford part number                    try this one: 1000419      it googles as a flanged m12 nut, but not sure if it's a self-locking one. 

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The reason I’m double checking - is that this is the only family car we have. I’m fearful of:

A) Getting the wrong specification of NUT.

&/or

B) Not securing it enough (i.e does it need a tack weld or not, once fitted).

I just wish Ford would sell the nut by itself in the UK. 

Please keep the suggestions & ideas comming.
 

 

 

 

 

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23 minutes ago, Alpro said:

The reason I’m double checking - is that this is the only family car we have. I’m fearful of:

A) Getting the wrong specification of NUT.

&/or

B) Not securing it enough (i.e does it need a tack weld or not, once fitted).

I just wish Ford would sell the nut by itself in the UK. 

Please keep the suggestions & ideas comming.
 

 

Don't panic ha ha.Your local Ford parts department should have a M12  suspension flanged nut for a MK1👍

 

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8 minutes ago, williamweb said:

Fill your boots on Ebay👍

I bought a massive tub of stainless nuts, bolts and washers of all types about 25 years ago and have never failed to find something suitable in there for whatever I'm trying to re-attach!😀

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Stainless won't do as they don't have the same strength rating as steel ones. Also, unless it's a flanged nut, it'll be shorter (about half the length) so not as many threads  to hold the bolt tight. 

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3 hours ago, williamweb said:
3 hours ago, Alpro said:

The reason I’m double checking - is that this is the only family car we have. I’m fearful of:

A) Getting the wrong specification of NUT.

&/or

B) Not securing it enough (i.e does it need a tack weld or not, once fitted).

I just wish Ford would sell the nut by itself in the UK. 

Please keep the suggestions & ideas comming.
 

 

Don't panic ha ha.Your local Ford parts department should have a M12  suspension flanged nut for a MK1👍

 

Yeah? No part number = no part. These days parts people are also numbers people.                                                                                                     Alpro, take a look at the bolt and you should see some numbers on the top of the head. These are the tensile strength rating of the bolt. You need a nut with the same rating. Reply here with the number and I'll dig out my spare M12 pinch nut and see if it's rated the same. 

Stop Press! Is that bolt the special one with the cranked head? If so, then it's the one that is used to adjust the tracking on the rear wheels, which might explain why the nut is welded on to the knuckle.. turning the bolt will move the knuckle. Hope someone else can confirm (or otherwise) this thought? 

Else, try Finis code 1381967.  Googling it, you'll see its an M12 locking flanged nut. 

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It's called building a relationship with your local and discussing your situation, yeah

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33 minutes ago, nicam49 said:

Yeah? No part number = no part. These days parts people are also numbers people.                                                                                                     Alpro, take a look at the bolt and you should see some numbers on the top of the head. These are the tensile strength rating of the bolt. You need a nut with the same rating. Reply here with the number and I'll dig out my spare M12 pinch nut and see if it's rated the same. 

Stop Press! Is that bolt the special one with the cranked head? If so, then it's the one that is used to adjust the tracking on the rear wheels, which might explain why the nut is welded on to the knuckle.. turning the bolt will move the knuckle. Hope someone else can confirm (or otherwise) this thought? 

I can confirm you are wrong.

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CLARIFYNG:

Asking about securing the WHEEL SIDE of the arm. For that side - Ford (UK) only sell the BOLT separately - no receiving NUT.

Instead - they choose to make the recieving NUT an integral/stock part of the Knuckle arm (from factory).

WHY??? (Opinion/guess only) - In order to replace this tiny receiving NUT - you are now forced to into buying and fitting an entire new Knuckle arm ($$$).

I suspect that there is a different approach in the US, where the NUT might be a standalone part.

As the welded nut that is part of the Knuckle arm, is no longer usable - what approaches/solutions can fellow members suggest?

One of the suggestions was to simply grind off the damaged (welded) NUT from the knuckle arm, then grind down the welds/tacks - and separately source a replacement NUT (from somewhere):

A) What would be the correct specifications (Assuming the bolt is the correct Ford BOLT) for the new NUT?
B) Would this new NUT then need to be welded to the arm?
C) What other options are there in solving this problem - other than replacing an entire Knuckle arm?

P.S: I agree that the workmanship in the photos show very poor workmanship. After the was orignally work done it was caught (how badly it’s been done) at the annual MOT – and is now asking how to fix the problem.

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You don't replace a knuckle because of a damaged captive nut unless you have more money than sense👍

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Okay - so at this point we know it’s an M12 bolt.

I am unsure what grade of steel the nut needs to be.

I am unsure what the specifications in terms of thread pitch it needs to be.

Surely the thread type/pitch needs to be matched carefully?

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I said 1.75 coarse thread in an earlier post.I find it unbelievable that your local Ford parts department can't find you a M12 flanged suspension grade nut.They are using them all the time.I've got one in my garage i can let you have.

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