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MG TD TF 1500 - How to Determine condition of rear springs

I am going to have my rear shocks on my '52 TD rebuilt this winter. Is there a simple way to determine the condition of the rear springs?
P.W. Lester

If the rear ride height looks fine , ie not drooping, and is level side to side, that is good. If the front silentblock bushing has never been replaced, it is likely shot, same with all of the rubber pads and shackle bushings. Of course need to check for a broken leaf, but likely the car would list. George
George Butz

The car looks ok to me but I'm sure your right about the bushings. Seems every little job, like having the shocks rebuilt, leads to other problems that also have to be dealt with. It's a good thing I really like this car. :-)
P.W. Lester

it might be worthwhile to just purchase new springs and poly bushings, rather than rearching the old ones,,,
What condition is the car in???

Steve
Steve Wincze

The rear springs on my TF-1500 bottomed out when I drove over a slight depression in the road. The shocks leaked a little, but I assumed that the springs were shot.

I had the rear shocks rebuilt by Peter Caldwell at World Wide Auto Parts. Simple to remove and reinstall. The car rides (almost) like a new car! I probably still need to recondition the springs, but now I can put if off a little while longer.

I know nothing about springs so I searched for info about rear springs before I had the shocks rebuilt. Here are some of the links that I found to be informative:

> TD Rear Springs thread:
http://www.mgexp.com/phorum/read.php?46,2338631,2338631#msg-2338631

> Rear Spring Replacement thread:
http://www.mgexp.com/phorum/read.php?46,2655457,2655457#msg-2655457

> Rear Spring Cleanup thread (archive):
http://www2.mg-cars.org.uk/cgi-bin/gen5?runprog=mgbbs&access=&mode=archiveth&subject=8&subjectar=8&thread=201405011409074388

> Click on "Rebuild 2014 - TD/TF Suspension & Steering" in this link:
http://www.tregister.org/downloads_rebuild.php

Info in the link as presented at Rebuild 2014
by Barrie Jones ...

Rear Springs On the car -
TF rear springs should be flat
TD rear springs should be curved an inch

Rear Springs Off the car -
TF rear springs curved 2.85
TD rear springs curved 4.10

> Section I "The Rear Road Springs" in the TD/TF Workshop Manual:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BxisXBEpc-IWdHBJQmhEYkRZLWc/view?usp=sharing

Good luck with your springs,

Lonnie
TF7211
LM Cook

Steve W.: The MG is no show car by any means but it runs well. I installed a 5 speed conversion and rebuilt the brakes and Carbs. Interior is presentable(in my opinion)but there is always something that could be better. I drive it quite a bit and am comfortable with old paint and a few chips and imperfections. Lonnie, thanks for the links and the info. My springs may be just fine. I always wonder about this stuff just because of the age of them.
P.W. Lester

I rebuilt my TF rear springs last winter, as the car was bottoming out at the rear. The springs proved to have retained their original profile according to the measures given in the WSM ( And above in this topic). All the rubber was however shot. New Nylatron inter leaf pads, new polyurethane bushings, new silentbloc bushings and new leaf retaining pads made a whole lot of a difference - no bottoming out any more. I should add that I also replaced the dampers with the Moss telescopic kit.

regards,

Jan
Jan Emil Kristoffersen

Well, I can live in ignorance or suck it up and ask. What is a silentbloc and why is it so named?
P.W. Lester

The "silent bloc" is the trade term for the front rubber bushing. Years before I do believe that just a bolt and a distance sleeve was used as the front spring pivot requiring periodic greasing. Adding the rubber bushing in the front I do believe quieted the action, or removed potential squeak and the greasing of the front pivot.

The rear springs are quite good on the TD. If the leaves are not broken, taking them apart, cleaning, and installing new rubber parts usually brings them back to the specified free camber.

The rear shackle bushings are easy to replace and poly is the way to go. The front may still be in good shape, and could be left until worn out.
...CR
C.R. Tyrell

C.R., thanks for the explanation. I well remember old cars squeaking when I was a kid and now you don't hear that so much even on poorly maintained ones.
P.W. Lester

To add to CR's answer, the silent bloc bushing is an outer thin walled steel cylinder, with a rubber layer, with a steel sleeve in the center that the bolt passes through. The outer casing is clamped in the spring eye and does not move, the bolt/nut clamps on the inner cylinder, with the in between rubber allowing for movement and rotation. George
George Butz

Is there any specific trick to getting the front silent bloc bushing out? Can it be done with the spring in place on the U bolts and rear shackles?
John Quilter (TD8986)

If replacing the springs ensure the circular rubber pads fitted between each leaf on early TD's are not too thick (avoid those from Moss) as this increases the camber of the springs with disastrous effects on the rear apron & guards, as the rear shackle then has a nasty habit of rearing up. See pic in archived thread. John you could try the threaded rod & socket trick & just wind it out. Cheers
Peter TD 5801
P Hehir

Not sure if can be done on the car. If off the car, you can take a chisel or screwdriver and tap it into the gap between the leaf and the curled round eye of the spring, which opens the eye up and the bush will come out. Also, tape off or cover the hole in the end of the round crossmember before you remove them, or the nut or bolt can drop into the hole. George
George Butz

When I rebuilt my TF in 1972 (60th Birthday on 28 January - the car) I cleaned and greased all the spring leaves, then bound them with friction tape - an old trick. Beautifully smooth ride, but you do lose some internal friction damping so you need good shocks.

David
D A Provan

This thread was discussed between 28/12/2014 and 01/01/2015

MG TD TF 1500 index

This thread is from the archive. The Live MG TD TF 1500 BBS is active now.