MG T-ABC

I've not been active on this site, but I have recently started to restore TC8584 and I have ran into a potential issue with the rear dampers as follows:

The dampers have smooth resistance through the full range both up and down. The potential problem is that there is significantly less resistance on the down stroke compared to the up (but still a reasonable amount). I guess that this could mean

I) they are supposed to be like that, in which case no problem
ii) There is not enough resistance on the down stroke (in which case I guess that I may be looking at professional restoration)
iii) There is too much resistance on the up stroke (in which case a good clean out may fix it)

Is there any guidance anywhere on how much resistance there should be. e.g. If I have the lever arm horizontal and not connected to the car, how much weight would need to be added to make it drop.

If I do need to have them restored, where is a good value place in the UK to get this done?

Steve

All hydraulic dampers are designed to have different damping characteristics in bounce and rebound. The rebound resistance is greater than the bounce. From your description it sounds as if yours are operating in reverse - down being the rebound stroke, where the resistance should be greater.

I'm not qualified or experienced enough to suggest a reason for this inversion - others may be able to help and this may be of general interest.

If you decide to go for a professional restoration, I've used and can recommend Stevson Motors, although they won't be cheap.

An alternative to Stevsons is Raj Patel in Leicester, recommended to me by John James
Tel 0116 244 8103. Probably nearer for you and may be more reasonable cost.

Richard Withington wrote:An alternative to Stevsons is Raj Patel in Leicester, recommended to me by John James
Tel 0116 244 8103. Probably nearer for you and may be more reasonable cost.

Thanks for the advice. I spotted mention of Raj on another thread and I've just given him a call. I'm going to take the dampers for him to inspect next week and he's given me a price for a full rebuild if needed.

I've heard good things about his work compared to Stevson and he's cheaper and closer, so a no brainer really.

The annoying thing is that the previous owner seems to have restored the dampers so they don't leak oil from the usual place, but they don't work properly either!

I would certainly recommend Raj (he does the ones for Moss) and his workshop is worth seeing!

He did my Luvax dampers.

I would suggest if you can move them by hand they probably aren't doing anything.

Yes Raj is good. Collected a pair of rear dampers he'd restored last week. Both done for less than £200
Ian

I've dropped my dampers off with Raj for refurbishment. I'll report back in due course It was worth the trip just to see his workshop!!

Ian - just on the off chance, are you the same Ian Fletcher that I used to work with on contaminated land projects a few years ago when I was with British Gas/Secondsite/National Grid?

Steve

No Steve not that person. I worked in education in Warwickshire.
Yes workshop is an eye opener. Thought my garage was untidy until I saw his workshop. Don't think a Health and Safety inspector has been near! Asked him if he ever though of getting the scrap man in but he said it was all usable stuff!
He's thinking of retiring in the next couple of years, then where do we go for damper refurbishment?