Front suspension refresh, coffin arms etc

Newbie owner of 2003 C2, 86k Rear coffin arms have already been replaced by previous owner but still get some clunks over bumpy surfaces. On the basis of the car's age and forum reading, I suspect the front coffin arms at least. My request for advice is basically how far should one go in refreshing the suspension? Is it possible to establish exactly which component(s) needs replacing? Is it sensible to do the wishbones or other bushed components whilst you are replacing the coffin arms? Obviously it starts to get pricey if you get too carried away! I note that the replacement rear coffins are Meyle brand, and so intend to use that brand for the proposed further replacements. Any comments or counter suggestions?

Hello Hughb, There is much discussion on this subject, as you might imagine. I'd suggest you use the forum search function with something like 'Meyle and 996' to see the most relevant posts. I will also need front coffin arms soon for my 996 and am interested in the discussion but I'm not clear yet which if any of the alternatives to OEM are good value. Cheeers,

I had a chat with the guys at Centre Gravity, before opting for Meyle replacements on mine. Unless you're planning to go lower than x74 ride height they seem to be a good choice. The CG folks were very approachable & happy to answer questions via email, so if you have some concerns they may be able to help if you drop them a line.

Whereabouts are you? If near centre gravity, they will be able to assess your whole suspension and figure out exactly what parts need changing and what parts are fine. They are also happy to fit parts that you buy yourself.

I bought arms from Spyder and so far so good. Fro what I can see, people seem happy with most alternative manufacturers although there are issues around fitting after-market poly bushes in some cases. CG did tell me not to use alternative rear upper arms but then added "don't bother changing them, the Porsche parts are very expensive but they don't fail' so don't change them.

I had Meyle fitted all round by CG a couple of years ago they also changed the top mounts (OE) and advised me to change the track rod ends. Before the car went to them it was clunky and unstable at high speed.............when I left their workshop for the drive home it felt like a new car and still does

I recently fitted Spyder Performance polybushed arms to the front of my 996 and they've transformed it.

I've been looking at this as well, as I know these need doing on the car I've just purchased at some point soon. Some people have recommended Hartech which looks like a refurb option, but their website didn't say too much about the process. Does anyone know if they replace the ball joint on the coffin arm or just the bushes?

I did my car piece by piece over a couple of years as various clunks and knocks appeared. Wish i'd done it all in one go: Front coffin arms Front tuning forks Front inner and outer track rods Front top mounts Rear coffin arms Rear tuning forks Rear dogbones x 4 Rear engine mounts x2 I also did front gearbox mount when I fitted a new flywheel and clutch. You may as well whack some new dampers in there whilst it is apart koni or bilstein and eibach springs but that will be a £grand. Try autodoc (europe) and rockauto (usa) for more choice in part brands. Look for TRW (these are OE) or if not then get SACHS or Meyle.

I considered these too, my understanding was they are refurb'd items, but the ball's are left as is. On this basis, it seemed a false economy. The new meyle items, along with some other new bits have transformed my car.

Thanks sp1ke I thought that might be the case which would rule it out for me as well.

No - they DO replace the ball joint. They use a company I think in Scandinavia that remove them and refit new ones.

As Wasz says, they replace thew ball joint. They are done by a company in Czech Republic. they are powder blasted and have the latest standard bush fitted. i.e. the latest dash number. Thyy look like new when you get them. I have used the Hartech arms as I wanted to be sure the weights and design were OEM. When you buy the replacement arm from Hartech. There is a core charge until you return the removed part and they confirm it is reusable . - i.e. not cut in half with an angle grinder or bent etc. With regard to not replacing the upper links in the rear, while there might not be any play in the bush rubber hardens with age and it will affect the ride harshness which does affect handling. I replaced all 14 arms and the suppleness of the ride is fantastic. My teeth no longer chatter driving over rough surfaces and i now use standard tyre pressure whereas i had dropped them slightly previously in accordance with the TSB.

Ohhh. That changes things then, I know it's not easy to replace the ball joints. I'll give Hartech a call when I look to do mine later this year.

Suspension refresh Thanks to all who have posted. That's a lot of useful and interesting info, even if there is a wide diversity of what is essential, desirable or even unnecessary to replace! Interesting to hear that someone (Harlech) is at last replacing the ball joints on the original arms. As a newbie to all of this I found it odd that that you have to buy so much cast aluminium when all you really want to do is replace some bushes/ball joints. Leaving aside the poly bush option is it possible to get OE quality rubber bushings anywhere? Pressing out/in bushings is not exactly difficult (if you have a hydraulic press).