Another suspention rattle thread, sorry!!

[Manni78]

Hi all,
So my beloved bingo van has developed the infamous front suspention rattle and im 99% sure it is coming from the top mounts.
Ive had this problem before on my previous Combo van and as im pretty good with the spanners i will replace these as i did before myself.
The issue i have is the price my local Citroen dealer has just quoted me for the parts! (Marshalls Citroen in Cambridge) £95 per side which to me seems extremely expensive!!  
Is this how much other people have paid, or have they got the shock i did and gone the pattern route?

Cheers, Rob

[taxibloke]

Hi, I will go the extra 1% and be 100% sure that it is the top mounts! remove the clip and peel back the bulkhead sound proofing and have a peek at the clearance between the rubber edged washer on the top of the shock and the body, ITS HUGE! Now jack the front up and observe how it drops, Thats the play that is causing that frustrating rattle. Now, If I was a total idiot and didnt know that Citroen Tech Guys were Gods, I would remove the top nut whilst holding the shock centre with a 7mm hex wrench, take off the top washer and fill in the void with a very large (45mm internal diameter) thin rubber washer placed on the inner side of the suspension turret and all would be silent again. But Im not that stupid of course, and like the Techys said, "You will have blood on your hands, the vehicle will never handle correctly". No. No. Im sensible. I will take my Two Hundred Pounds, tighten my trousers so they cannot be pulled down, and hand it over. Just make sure they fit the slightly taller 'upgraded' top mounts, otherwise the rattle will return.
Still the Best Vehicle on the road though!
Cheers.

[Manni78]

You sound like you work for Citreon!? 
I think you may have misread? The £200 is for the parts only, not fitting!!

[taxibloke]

I Suppose, In a way taxi Drivers DO work for Citroen. As GUINEA PIGS! Due to the high mileage we do (Like many Van Drivers) we are usually the first to come across faults (usually on Citroen C4 Picasso's), But once out of warranty its time to work on the Vehicles ourselves as Citroen prices would soon put us out of business. Thats what is Great about the Berlingo, They are a Simple Design and any Simpleton (like me) can work on them, keeping them on the road and keeping them earning money. Still, I think if you buy pattern top mounts they might not have that extra bit of rubber to take up the slack. And Remember, £200 buys a hell of a lot of large thin rubber washers (45mm internal diameter)
Cheers.

[Dawntreader]

Maybe a dumb question Taxibloke, but can you point me at a source for these 45mm internal diameter rubber washers?
i haven't had a look at the strut top yet, but if i get the right washers then maybe all will become clear as to where to fit them if i have one to look at whilst looking at the strut top thanks, mel

[taxibloke]

Hi, They crop up from time to time on a well known auction site, or 45id O Rings are just as good, Or you could just cut them from a Rubber sheet. Once you have removed the nut and top washer you will realise the size of the void that has to be slightly filled. But Remember, It's a real 'Heath Robinson' way of doing things, and Unadvised.
Cheers.

[mikep1973]

I replaced the strut top mount in my MK2 yesterday and the new mount had a much bigger "gap" in it than the ruined one - the nut thus sits higher up and there's no play.

Citroen didn't have the correct washers in for the strut top - there's one below the strut top and one above the metal cup. They had the one that goes below on top of the damper, but not the ones that go on top of the metal cup anywhere in stock!

Sent from cold, windy place.

[daywalker072]

interesting taxibloke, i had mine replaced 2 times under warranty ive noticed now it is cold and wet the rattle has gone and re appear wen it gets hotter again.

[Dawntreader]

Thanks Taxibloke, i have found the 45 ID O rings on the well known auction site just wasn't sure if the thickness was correct. I had an old Jag years ago and the rubber mountings in the power steering rack had gone soft. this meant ther was an appreciable amount of steering wheel movement before the wheels actually started moving. i reasoned that the gaps at each end of each mount could be filled with a rubber disc to stop the movement. this was very effective and made the car a totally different beast to drive. the gaps were there by design to allow some movement of the rack to soak up road wheel shocks so that they were not felt at the steering wheel, but not as much as i had with soggy rubber bushes.
it sounds like the strut top mounts have a similar function but with maybe a little too much movement.
Many thanks, Mel