Moss Motors, Ltd

A tech tip from Bernard Allison

Recently, Bernard had to replace the steel tubes, bolts, and rubber bushings on the bottom links of his 1957 MGA's front suspension. He was concerned about releasing the pressure of the springs and came up with this safe, easy method of doing it alone.

Lift the front of the car and support it with a pair of jack stands under the crossmember. Slack off the nut on the lower link bolt, then slacken the four nuts and bolts which hold the spring pan to the a-arm. Remove the sway-bar link.

Place a jack under the inner edge (the widest part) of the spring pan and lift it to remove weight from the spring pan blots. Remove the two inner bolts, then slowly lower the jack allowing the spring pan to hinge on the two outer bolts. With the front of the car supported on the crossmember, the front suspension will be resting on the lower bump stop and the spring pan will only have to be lowered a few inches to remove all tension from the spring. Once the spring has been removed, the remainder of the suspension can then be disassemble to whatever extent is necessary for the job at hand.

To put the spring back in, simply reverse the disassembly procedure. The beauty of this method is two-fold. The job can be done by one person and as Bernard says, "This method takes away the tension of having the spring jumping around the garage walls." We heartily agree.