Couple of suspension problems

Girlfriend's car has had a recent health check, got these two flagged up.

An advisory - "Slight play in nsr ARB link". Presumably the rear anti roll bar link is knackered and both sides will need replacing. Difficult job? (I've not done any work to this car, never even looked underneath so dunno what to suspect.

MOT failure - "NSF lower suspension arm bush splitting". Again, a difficult job to tackle?

I'm an experienced home mechanic so hopefully shouldn't run into many problems, was just wondering if there are any potential trouble spots.

Also, where are the best places to get Mazda spares, apart from ebay? I need a front crash sensor and they don't seem that easy to find. Dingbro?

Sway bar links- easy. Maybe 30 minutes with both wheels off the ground, start to finish to replace the links.

Bushings can be a pain depending on where they're located- you have to remove the suspension component, press out the old bushing, clean up, insert new bushing, replace component.

phunky.buddha said:

Sway bar links- easy. Maybe 30 minutes with both wheels off the ground, start to finish to replace the links.

Bushings can be a pain depending on where they're located- you have to remove the suspension component, press out the old bushing, clean up, insert new bushing, replace component.

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Much appreciated, thanks.

Ahhh....the MOT. Makes ma happy I live in the States.

Unfortunately, the acronyms are a bit confusing to me..."nsr?" "Nsf?" Near-side rear & near-side front? For the control arm, you may just want to consider buying an entire lower control arm. They should come with the ball joint, the boot of which WILL bust when you pull the control arm off to service the bushing. You can buy a new ball joint and replacement bushing, both of which have to be pressed in, something I suggest you locate a shop for, OR you could buy an entire LCA and just swap the whole of it. Just be aware that some of the aftermarket LCAs are garbage. Some past posters have said rear ones even broke in half in under 10,000 miles. I had a Volvo Master Tech look at my Mazda5 and he said the LCAs look like the exact same ones used on the current S40/V50, so if you can let the car sit for a short time, you could remove the control arm, take it to a Ford or Volvo parts dealer, have them pull the same item off a shelf for a Focus or S40, and you can look at them side by side to make sure they match. Who knows, maybe you can get it cheaper by going for the Focus arm.
Only thing to look for: If the LCA is on the same side as the engine drive belts, you WILL need to lift the motor some AND remove/loosen the lower shield under the aircon compressor in order to get the front bolt out far enough to remove the arm. The arm has to come out even if you will be only doing the bad bushing. I have a post from about 1-2 months ago where I described what needs to be done since I did my wheel bearings, and it involves the LCA in the process. Get the front re-aligned after the arm goes back in.

I forgot you have either the 2.0L petrol or the diesel. Not sure how the aircon connects, so maybe it won't be in the way.

thaxman said:

I forgot you have either the 2.0L petrol or the diesel. Not sure how the aircon connects, so maybe it won't be in the way.

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Hi. It's a 2.0L diesel. It's the passenger side front i.e not the side with the drive belts.

I have a large hydraulic press in my workshop so that isn't a problem but perhaps it might be better to substitute an entire arm rather than mess around. Thanks for the info, i'll check out your other post and come back if i have any other questions.