Hi guys.

Finally got some spare time (and reasonable weather) to replace my wishbone(s) on a 2.5 focus.

I managed to remove the passenger side one quickly but have struggled to replace it with the new one.  It's an aftermarket part and whilst I can attach the front bolt, I'm really struggling with the back bolts.  One goes in fine but I struggle with the second.

If I fasten up the rears first, only one or the other cleanly align. I'm no sure if the chassis has been slightly twisted or if the aftermarket part is slightly out with the bolt hole measurements. There's a possibility that the rear bush is too strong (ie not too soft) as to allow me to push it closer to the chassis for perfect alignment.

I have managed to get a screwdriver through the second hole whilst the first one is in position but it's much narrower than the bolt and when I come to insert the second bolt, it appears to struggle in getting through the upper chassis hole due to the alignment problem. When off the vehicle, the bolts both screw into the wishbone fine and appear to be square to oneanother.

If any of you have had a similar issue and can offer any workarounds or advice (other than 'don't buy aftermarket'), I'd be most grateful.

 

On 11/8/2020 at 9:00 PM, ecoman said:

Hi guys.

Finally got some spare time (and reasonable weather) to replace my wishbone(s) on a 2.5 focus.

I managed to remove the passenger side one quickly but have struggled to replace it with the new one.  It's an aftermarket part and whilst I can attach the front bolt, I'm really struggling with the back bolts.  One goes in fine but I struggle with the second.

If I fasten up the rears first, only one or the other cleanly align. I'm no sure if the chassis has been slightly twisted or if the aftermarket part is slightly out with the bolt hole measurements. There's a possibility that the rear bush is too strong (ie not too soft) as to allow me to push it closer to the chassis for perfect alignment.

I have managed to get a screwdriver through the second hole whilst the first one is in position but it's much narrower than the bolt and when I come to insert the second bolt, it appears to struggle in getting through the upper chassis hole due to the alignment problem. When off the vehicle, the bolts both screw into the wishbone fine and appear to be square to oneanother.

If any of you have had a similar issue and can offer any workarounds or advice (other than 'don't buy aftermarket'), I'd be most grateful.

 

Is the part from a decent 3rd party manufacturer such as Lemforder, Febi, Moog, KYB etc or an "ebay no name special"?

 

If it's the latter then I'm afraid it's likely to be the part is just a crap fit, if the part is a correct fit then you shouldn't have too much of an issue getting it aligned and bolted up.