Suspension strut bearing/bush worn? VZ Commodore V6

[gman794]

Hey Folks

I was looking under my bonnet today and i noticed there is a gap of about 5mm between the strut tower and the top mounting plate on my passenger side which I suspect means the bush/bearing assembly is stuffed. I don't have any obvious clunks or noises.
I have attached 2 photos one of my drivers side strut plate where it contacts strut tower and one of passenger side, the one with the huge gap is the passenger side

not long ago i did have a loud clunk on the drivers side which ended up being the bush/bearing on that side and once replaced the clunk vanished however there was no gap when the right side was playing up.

I did suggest to my mechanic that seeing he is changing my drivers side bearing/bush that he may as well change the passenger side and he said the passenger side is fine which 3 weeks ago it probably was, I only noticed the gap on the passenger side today and i look under the bonnet regularly so i say this is very recent.

can someone please look at the pics which i have added a link for both and give me some insight, I suspect it is the bush/bearing that has collapsed therefore creating the gap.

cheers
Gordon

pic below is passenger side
I

pic below is driver side

suspet

 

[Darcon666]

Yep... Bush gone.

 

[gman794]

Yep... Bush gone.

Thanks mate, I thought so.
I asked me mechanic to change it when he did the drivers side one even though it was fine at the time is best to do them in pairs. looks like it's going back to them. they'll have to charge for me for a new bush obviously but the wheel alignment I’ll ask if they will cover that as they should have changed both at the same time.
Thanks for responding.
Cheers
Gordon

 

[MYVESSV8]

cactus, should always do these sort of things in pairs

 

[Tonner Matt]

As MYVESSV8 has said...These things should be replaced as a pair
I replaced my strut top mounts & bearings only a couple of weeks ago for the exact same reason.
The passengers side mount was protruding up into the engine bay the same way yours is, but the drivers side was still sitting flush.
Upon inspection after removal both sides were showing obvious signs of deterioration and wear.

 

[ALCMCQ]

How many K's have you covered before these popped?

 

[rcsv6]

Buy the parts and do it your self it's easy. If you can't borrow some Spring compressors And have to buy them still heaps cheaper to do at home. Jack the car up and put it on stands, take the wheels off, undo the top strut nut using a 10mm to stop strut spinning and a 24mm spanner, undo the top calliper carrier bolt on the back as its in the way of the bottom strut bolt it's 19mm but don't move calliper, remove top sway bar link pin nut and push it out. slide out the brake hose this has flat sides and needs to be twisted to remove then slide out the abs sensor cable next remove the 2 strut bolts at the bottom behind brakes 19mm and 22mm, pull the strut out. Put Spring clamps on and watch that they are seated fully on the Spring, never put your face over the top when doing this, tighten clamps evenly until the top mount becomes loose and then undo the nut at the top that holds it all together, should be 24mm. Make note or take pics of the placement of the washers. Remove zip tie and hose clamp that holds the rubber boot in place. You can now remove the mount and Spring. The bump stops might be gone and you should put new ones in since you have it all apart, replace the mount and put everything back making sure you tighten everything and put mild strength lock tight on brake bolt and bottom strut bolts and since your wheel alignment would have been all over the place from the movement happening with the top mounts being stuffed you will need to get that done.

 

[Tonner Matt]

Buy parts do it your self it's so easy don't know why people pay for it to be done

It's easy for people to sit back behind their keyboard and rattle on about how easy a job replacing strut tops is.
Some people won't feel at all comfortable doing these kind of repairs (or others) on their vehicle so employ the services of a mechanic.
Not every one is an expert or has lots of hands on mechanical experience.

 

[Benboy]

For someone with little of any mechanical experience or 'nous' such an undertaking could prove to be beyond their capability. Could result in personal injury (if adequate safety precautions not taken) or mechanical failure or road safety issue if the job is not done to an acceptable standard. To those who advocate doing the job rather than an outside mechanic, that's great and a sure fire way to save some money. The writ-up on doing the job was appropriate.

 

[rcsv6]

I'm only trying to help and really it's 3 nuts and 3 bolts after wheels off the only danger is not seating Spring clamps right take your time watch the YouTube video but don't take brakes off as in video take pics of washers placement if you want or place them on ground in order and as taken off take your time double check everything is done up tight and enjoy how much better your car drives and buy something nice for your self with the money you saved