E30 Zone

I've been using an old Audi A4 banger for a bit....and this evening the front suspension decided to go wrong....

Basically it needs a new lower control arm, but it's only got 6 weeks MOT left - a Lemforder arm is 100 quid, a plain one 50-60 plus labour.... so I'm cagey about doing the work and then getting a big MOT bill in 6 weeks. I have a suspicion there's a control arm on the way out on the rear left too. The car only cost me 400 so worst case I'll scrap it and take the couple of hundred quid hit.

Advice?!

This is the arm it needs..

http://www.eurocarparts.com/search/616440425/p/home

Great cars but they do like to eat front suspension components. I had an R plate TDi and loved it - only failed the MOT on the arm that yours now needs.

If all it needs is the one arm I'd get it done - £400 is cheap for a decent banger like an A4 - you'll get at best a couple of hundred weigh in and then have to spend at least another couple of hundred to get an MOT'd but unknown replacement turd.

Try an email to meatballs82 to see if he can do anything on the price of that arm.

Not sure if these guys may be any cheaper

http://www.allgermanparts.co.uk/ourshop ... nsion.html

Hmmm, I've been getting a bit of groaning from the rear left for a while, which might be a subframe mount or something along those lines. So do I get both sorted and have a halfway reliable banger with a years ticket? Or cut my losses? I might get £300 for it to someone who's handy with spanners and wanted to sort it out and sell it on..

Cheers BeemerLad but they want 74 quid... but if I was going to keep it for a year I might spend the dough on decent arms..

snakebrain wrote:Hmmm, I've been getting a bit of groaning from the rear left for a while, which might be a subframe mount or something along those lines. So do I get both sorted and have a halfway reliable banger with a years ticket? Or cut my losses? I might get £300 for it to someone who's handy with spanners and wanted to sort it out and sell it on..

Cheers BeemerLad but they want 74 quid... but if I was going to keep it for a year I might spend the dough on decent arms..

What losses ?

If theres nothing else wrong with it or likely to fail shortly and it costs you £200-£300 to get it fixed and MOT'd thats got to be better than flogging it for £300 and then spending the same £200 - £300 you would have spent fixing it on something which won't have a full ticket and may have a load of expensive repairs lurking under the surface.

My local MOT place has been doing MOT's for £30 for the last Year or so - if you can get a similar deal why not just put it in now and see if theres anything else which needs attending to and then make a decision.

Personally I'd fix it.

Think you're right....I just hired a Kia Picanto to get up and down to work the next few days....bloody hell, it's a piece of crap!!

better the devil you know I'd say, always a risk taking on another cheap turd. i'd fix what you have got.

Yep...that's the plan....anybody got an idea what i can expect to pay in labour on that job? I'm thinking it can't be more than 2-3 hours..