Topic

Hello all

As I have told in a previous post, I am about to change the engine of my 2003 135 TF, going for a reconditioned Freelander Specialists one. The car has 72K miles on the clock and definitely is a keeper, so I would like to take the chance and change the engine/gearbox/subframes mounts/bushes that might break in the near or not so near future.

New to the subframes world, I am at a total loss on what is what when I search in the internet. Also, I don't know which mounts/bushes could be more prone to fail in the next say 70K miles. Neither I do about the convenience or not to go for polybushes, etc.

The TF now has a new full Soft ride suspension which has done wonders in terms of comfort and handling.

I would be most grateful if someone could help me on this.

Regards, Pedro

Are you doing the work yourself?

When I swapped my subframes I replaced everything that showed signs of wear.

No, I am not. What you say would be the sensible thing to do. Have a look underneath every couple of years and fix whatever it takes. But I would like to take another approach.

The car is just fine now. Has been painted thoroughly and there was not a trace of rust anywhere. But the idea is to take it to Mallorca, where rust grows like fungi, and spend the next 20 years there (hopefully). So I would like to change whatever might be more prone to rust in the future (like footwells or bulkhead hinges in a Series Landie), when a good artisan to fix things would be much harder to find. Not to talk about spares.

And, of course, many rubber mounts and bushes are going to fail eventually.

So I would like to change in advance not the whole underside, but things that now that could be affordable now that the car is going to be in the workshop. And swapping to stainless s and poly when possible.

I´ve had a look at MG Mania web site and have sent them this same question, they seem to sell many of the parts I could need

Might I recommend contacting MGTnTfBITZ in Glossop. These folk have served our community over many years. Darren & his team know every part of our cars & which parts are prone to failure under normal & duress conditions. Their workshop is an object lesson in keeping things in order & the parts you buy from them are the parts they use in their workshop; you will not be fobbed off with pattern parts unless it’s as good or better than OEM.
Speak to Darren, explain your requirements & I’m sure he’ll sort you out
M

I bought a TF with an engine knock (no oil) and after removing the subframe I found rust holes in it. I did exactly as Talking cars, I bought a decent subframe and had it galvanised, all new ball joints, autobush’s, wheel bearings and a Bilstein kit.

Thanks so much for the quick answers

I am a BITZ customer, and a very satisfied one indeed. In a previous thread we have already mentioned this. Currently I have several items in its basket, getting ready for a new order.

I sent them an email (about this and other subjects) some days ago but I’ve got no answer yet, it was during Easter holidays and maybe they were abroad, or maybe I did something wrong, I’ll have to check it.
Certainly I am looking forward to reading Darren’s opinion. He and Jill are most helpful and knowledgeable.

I couldn’t find much in his web site on this subject, though. There were more related items in MGMania’s one, with some SS (certainly not bolts) and poly parts. That’s why I asked them as well

I will wait for the answers and order the parts I’ll need, most likely on both web sites.

Thanks so much again for your help,
Pedro

They had closed for 2 weeks for holidays but should be back now if you try them again

One bit of advice is to buy a hand pallet truck, I bought one off eBay for about £35. You also need a strong pallet the size of the subframe. It make the job so much easier than trying to wheel the subframe out on the road wheels. When it comes to reinstalling you find it ridiculously easy.

Red110 wrote:

I´ve had a look at MG Mania web site and have sent them this same question, they seem to sell many of the parts I could need

I doubt you will get a reply from MG Mania unless someone has taken over the business. They did honour existing orders but I believe they may now have ceased trading due to a bereavement.

Thanks again for the answers, I sent MGBITZ another email and will wait for them to write back

I hadn't heard that about MG Mania. Its sad when a good vendor goes. Is it known if they have gone for good ( eg the main person there has sadly died) or business may return at some point (eg death of their relative or loved one) ?

MGB281 wrote:

One bit of advice is to buy a hand pallet truck, I bought one off eBay for about £35. You also need a strong pallet the size of the subframe. It make the job so much easier than trying to wheel the subframe out on the road wheels. When it comes to reinstalling you find it ridiculously easy.

When I changed mine I literally had the space the car sits in and about 3 feet to the side to work in, and because it was my front drive I couldn't leave stuff lying around. As a result I left the engine in the bay and dropped the subframe off it. I rested the engine on breeze blocks which was easy when taking the old frame out as I cut it up as it was scrap. Harder when putting the new one in but I managed by jiggling things around.

However the main point of my post is that I slid the frames around on thick cardboard thus greatly reducing the height I had to get the body to.