Total MX-5 – July 2019

Summer 2019 | TOTAL MX-5 |^65

15

So... wearing protective glasses and ear-defenders, take a ball joint
breaker or drift and hammer to split the joint. Once it ‘breaks’, the
wheel hub and brake disc will flop forward giving access to the damper.

16

Once more with the help of your trusty lever, pull down the lower

wishbone and pull the damper up through the top wishbone, and

then cannibalise the top mount and bump-stop from the unit.

19

With both sides of the front done, refit the wheels and lower the
car onto its suspension. Check all the relevant nuts underneath are
tightened sufficiently, except those needed for suspension alignment.

20

Refit all of the top mount bolts front and rear, and reassemble the

boot. Now get the suspension aligned by a specialist – and if you

have to drive there, first tighten the adjusters on the wishbones.

17

Assemble the new coilover unit and supplement with the old
rubber boot, bump-stop and top mount. Of course you could buy
new replacements, but ours still had life left in them.

18

Again, trial fit the coilover: with the Gaz, adjuster to the outside.

Lever down the wishbone, feed the unit into the strut turret,

reattach all bolts and nuts, remembering the split-pin.

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02392 644 588