OME BP-51 OWNERS...... ROLL CALL.........

[arich]

Many of you know I went through three sets of very early BP51s, one of the first in the US to install. Besides the cold temperature clunk the lower spherical bearing on the struts I returned to ARB were “crunchy.”
The updated set I’ve had for the past 20 months have been perfect. Not a squeek or a clunk. I really love my current setup.
ARB was great to work with when my vendor thought I had no idea what I was talking about. No I will not name the vendor. First call your vendor if they can’t/won’t then Call ARB, tell them the issue and they will very likely support you.
I have nothing but great things to say about ARB support.

 

[highrisk]

I am very happy with my new set as well. The tech I worked with at ARB was great. He was very patient with me and had good advice.

I have nothing but great things to say about ARB support.

 

[cruiseroutfit]

Fwiw mine are probably the oldest set on the road in the US, they were one of the first two of sets that came to the US and have been on since fall 2015. Bottom joints are still tight and quiet. We service them ahead of install and I've serviced them when prepping for big trips annually. I've got a new set at the shop to swap out when these ones mandate, the new ones have the upgraded internals, better shock guards, etc.

 

[highrisk]

What do you do to service them? The bottom joints appear to differ in the new set I received.

 

[Climbingnut]

What do you guys do for the rear squeaking BP-51's? They squeak like crazy up where they are mounted. I had a shock guard come loose in the rear, and the shop who sold and installed the suspension balked and shipping them to me in Angola. Asked when was the next time I'd be in South Africa. Is this something that ARB would respond to and send me?

 

[arich]

Are you sure it’s the shocks squeaking and not your upper control arms.

 

[Climbingnut]

Yeah, it's the rear shocks. No noise from the fronts as far as I can tell. I squirted them with a WD40 variant and the speaking disappeared... for a while. Now it's back. Just wondering based on the comments above if I should do something different.

 

[JZelnick]

Yeah, it's the rear shocks. No noise from the fronts as far as I can tell. I squirted them with a WD40 variant and the speaking disappeared... for a while. Now it's back. Just wondering based on the comments above if I should do something different.

@Climbingnut I have the same condition as well. BP51 on 2721 rear springs and it squeaks like a Sherman Tank on normal roads. Very annoying given the suspension was just installed about 5k miles ago. I don't believe there is any noise coming from the front and the squeaking does seem to be load dependent (seems minimized when the truck is full of people or gear). In a week, I have an appointment with my shop to review the squeaking and retorque all of the suspension bolts. Hoping to have my drawers installed before then to see if that will cure it.

 

[dukmon]

@Climbingnut I have the same condition as well. BP51 on 2721 rear springs and it squeaks like a Sherman Tank on normal roads. Very annoying given the suspension was just installed about 5k miles ago. I don't believe there is any noise coming from the front and the squeaking does seem to be load dependent (seems minimized when the truck is full of people or gear). In a week, I have an appointment with my shop to review the squeaking and retorque all of the suspension bolts. Hoping to have my drawers installed before then to see if that will cure it.

Variable loads do not seem to effect my noise, I don't believe. Keep us posted.

 

[Climbingnut]

Variable loads don't affect my squeak either. It's definitely from the upper frame mount. I'm using 2723's and it's crazy how much they squeak. When you can hear it in the cab of a 200 with air and music on, you know it's a loud squeak.

Unfortunately for me, the supplier is a 4 day drive away. They don't seem to be very helpful either, unless I go to them. I'm half hoping that someone here will find a remedy, whether by chance or from ARB that I can also do. Squeaks bug the hell out of me. Especially on a new vehicle.

 

[indycole]

Can you see any play at all in the upper shock mount washer? It's possible for the nut to be tightened all the way but to still have movement (and thus noise) due to a defect in VF60020004. In my particular case, the lip needed to be ground down for a bit for a proper fit.

 

[highrisk]

Climbingnut that squeak sounds excessive. What have tried so far? Have you removed and inspected the shock and/or spring? Could they be mounted incorrectly? I hate having this type of issue. You will get it resolved.

 

[Climbingnut]

@indycole & @highrisk, I've tried tightening the rear damper more, and it's not gonna happen. That thing is on there. I've not noticed any play, and the coils appear to have been installed correctly. The shop who sells/installs them was highly recommended from other cruiser users and is the ARB rep for South Africa.

I've not removed the shock or coil, as the 200 is my only vehicle, and given the suspension isn't broken, I hate having the vehicle possibly down and out.

Right now I'm in the USA so there's no way to physically inspect things.

 

[indycole]

@indycole & @highrisk, I've tried tightening the rear damper more, and it's not gonna happen. That thing is on there. I've not noticed any play, and the coils appear to have been installed correctly. The shop who sells/installs them was highly recommended from other cruiser users and is the ARB rep for South Africa.

I've not removed the shock or coil, as the 200 is my only vehicle, and given the suspension isn't broken, I hate having the vehicle possibly down and out.

Right now I'm in the USA so there's no way to physically inspect things.

Just to be clear, the issue is that the nut can be tightened all the way down but it runs out threads and there was still play in the washer due to the extra metal in my case. If you cycle the suspension pushing the vehicle rear up and down and don't hear any metallic clink then it's definitely not this issue. It sounds like you're on the same page.

 

[Climbingnut]

I'm tracking with you Cole. I'll have to take another look when I'm reunited with my cruiser in April. Until then, it's mining for intel and successful solutions others have used.

 

[A10Driver]

I am in the same boat, rear driving me crazy. Seams like another washer or something is needed to get rid of the noise

 

[arich]

You shouldn’t have any play in those upper bushings.
They’re fairly easy to install/uninstall. Somewhere else I documented the size of the wrench that you can slide through the wheel opening between the frame and wheelwell.
I then uses a strap wrench to hold the shock. 10-15 min for each side.
Once you do it once you’ll see how easy they are.
Take one out and see if there’s excessive play with everything back together outside the truck. I also grease my hardware with marine grease to hold off corrosion.

 

[highrisk]

You shouldn’t have any play in those upper bushings.
They’re fairly easy to install/uninstall. Somewhere else I documented the size of the wrench that you can slide through the wheel opening between the frame and wheelwell.
I then use a strap wrench to hold the shock.

There is a hole in the top of the shock body as well. A 5mm(i think)Allen wrench will fit in it to hold it.

 

[4gotalot]

This has been found to be a problem with the OME rubber bushings softening with normal short use. I have been dealing with the same problem myself during the first summer after I installed my OME shocks and posted it some were but can't find it now. I then just found more info posted in March 2014 on the last page of "OME suspension". sorry I can't link, I don't type well.

I have been in contact with ARB many times the past couple of years about this problem and I received a response from AU ARB only stating that the bushings and washers are the correct size and thickness for your 200. The problem is the material used to make the bushings is softening with normal use and not keeping the pilot washer centered in the frame mount plate. You must add another 1/8" shock washer to the stack to take up the slack of this moving assembly. As the shock compresses, the pilot washer jumps out of the frame and the shock shaft grinds on the frame augering out an oval hole in the frame plate. I recommend adding the other washer to the bottom of the stack. If you put it on top, make sure you get it past the threaded portion of the shaft and let the nut bottom out, torque to spec...

This will also take care of the dreaded "CLUNK" so many of us have experienced.

 

[lukethedork]

Thought I would jump in with my opinion here. WD40 and other light dispersant / oils are great for shocks.
I have it from my own shock manufacturer (up there with Ohlins, Exe-tc, Reiger, BOS etc.) that spraying with WD40 is fine. I have also confirmed it with Exe-TC themselves.

And here is a quote direct from Ohlins literature in regards to their rally struts/shocks (circa $10,000 for a set).
"Keep the shock absorbers clean and always spray them with oil (QS 14, WD40 or CRC 5-56 or similar) after washing the vehicle."
https://www.teknikmotorsport.com/assets/brochures/Ohlins Rally + Track Owners Manual.pdf

Still, I sprayed them with WD-40. No change. I then went to tighten my BP-51's, couldn't get them any tighter, and still had a squeak, so I sprayed the bushings with WD-40 and that solved the problem. I hope it's a one off deal, but something tells me that it won't be.

WD40 by the way is not a good lubricant. It actually dilutes your grease. It might work temporarily but it won't last.
I would not be spraying anything into your spherical bearings without talking to ARB for your dealer first.

Most of these spherical bearings are designed to be run essentially dry. Certainly the style that ARB is using in their BP-51 shocks I am confident should be run 'dry'. So what you want to do is clean them, and leave behind little or nothing. WD40 is great at this as it is a dispersant with light oils.

I don't think there would be any reason to try and field service one, a squeaky bushing or even sloppy bushing isn't going to leave you stranded. I'm not in the shop today, and those aren't really an item we sell retail rather as warranty items for our customers so I don't know a price off the top of my head

My opinion again. Squeaky bushings indicate to me that something is sticking and letting go. Increased friction.
Sloppy bushings mean they are worn. These bushes wear most in certain spots such as the position they sit in at ride height. The slop means the bush is no longer tight which means there is room for contaminants to enter. This can increase friction or cause the bushing to jam.
Why is this so important? The bushing is there because there is a need for rotation and misalignment. Without this it creates a torque moment on the shock/strut.
This is extra important on vehicles such as the LC200, Hilux, Prado, FJ, 4Runner that have an extended bottom clevis as this creates a large torque arm. If the bushing friction increases (jams) then something will break. This is evident with the FJ/Prado/Hilux having the lower clevis snap.

Koni had 2 versions of their KONI RAID shock for FJ. One with standard rubber bushings and one with spherical bushings. They brought out the spherical bushing version because the rubber bushing version would bind and snap the lower clevis mount.

Being in Australia and having a great interest in suspension I have seen a number of snapped lower clevis' on both Prado and Hilux.