I took my car for its MOT and it failed! Need two shock absorbers because there is an oil leak! also need a wheel bearing? They quoted me 4oo pounds to do repairs. Is this a fair price?

The 'clunking' sound seems to suggest a broken spring instead of a broken shock absorber. It may be easier to test the shock absorber while it is still on the vehicle.
First have a close look at the shock absorber. Faulty ones usually leak and look oily and dirty.
Safely jack up the vehicle, place it on axle stands and remove the wheel. Check the spring and all the rubber bushes on all the suspension links. Any worn, perished or damaged bushes can cause 'clunking' noises. Repeat this for all four wheels.
To test the shock absorber try using the 'bounce' test. With the vehicle on the ground and the park brake on. Go to each corner in sequence. As a truck is larger than a car you may need a helper. Using your body weight, get the suspension moving up and down. It should be difficult to do and when you stop the suspension will settle quickly. (Up, Down, Settle). Try this on each corner. Soft or bouncy corners will suggest a worn shock absorber.

1. Shock absorbers (shocks) dampen out the spring motion. Go to each corner of the car and "bounce" the car. If it goes down, up, and stop,s the shock absorber at that corner is OK. If it goes down and up any more than that, the shock is bad.
2. Jack up one front wheel. Pull on the top of he wheel and push in the bottom, and then the reverse. Back and forth. If it moves much it could be the ball joint.
3. Rotate the tire slow and listen for a grinding noise and try to see if the wheel is unsteady while turning. If so, the bearing needs to be replaced.
4. If the bearing seems OK but the tire moved (step 2) you probably have a ball joint problem.

Difficulty: Easy-ish
Time: About 1 hour
Tools: Two 17mm spanners - ring and open. Long spanners may help.

As the chart below shows, it's quite normal for a shock absorber to have traces of oil around the top. However leaks like level 3 to 1 mean the shock absorber (SA) needs replacing.



Probably a good idea to replace in pairs.

As always, apply hand-brake, chock the opposite front wheel and without the vehicle raised, slightly slacken off the road wheel nuts.

Jack the vehicle up and place on an axle stand: Maintenance 4 3 Replacing Rear Shock Absorbers Rav 4 Club

the mot dont prove anything much>?
you do know that a real shop , not mot goofs.
a real ASE shop would attempt a in car tire balance
and it would either fail, or they would see the obvious , pronto.
for readers, MOT is "SMOG TEST STATION" in English.
Site side, they are NOT technicians At all, they just do their simple tests and give you thumps up or down.

what can it be, (first end this assumptions deal, keep a 100% open mind, only the truth will come out)
1: bad balance or bad shocks, (dampeners)
a tire that is just tiny bet out of balance will be 10x magnefied
with bad shocks, since 1920 to now. no changes....

2: ; bad wheel bearings.
3: bad supspension parts. lose, bent, bushings bad etc.
try a suspension shop, ask for them to check the front end parts.
5: bad drive. CV joints, or axles bent or bad.
again any real ASE shop can find this easy. Not the MOT s

WHAT DOES YOURE MOT TEST STATION SAY ON YOUR MOT

The 1999 Ford Expedition is built on an F150 platform. The Expedition uses a 9.75-inch rear axle. The axles are retained with C-clips at the end of the axle shaft, inside the differential carrier. The axle bearings are of the roller type. A failed axle bearing can manifest itself as a noise at the rear wheel or gear oil leaking past the oil seal. When replacing axle bearings, the oil seals must also be replaced.
Torque the caliper mounting bolts to 30 foot-pounds. Torque the bolt to 20 foot-pounds with a torque wrench and socket. Click this link below for complete detailed procedure:--- http://technoanswers.blogspot.com/2011/06/how-to-remove-rear-wheel-bearings-on.html -------------- This should help.Thanks.Helpmech.

REMOVAL & INSTALLATION 1983-86 Models

1. On 4-door sedan, remove the package tray and vent duct.
2. On hatchback, remove the speaker grilles.
3. Disconnect the brake line from the wheel cylinder. CAUTION
   Brake fluid contains polyglycol ethers and polyglycols. Avoid contact with the eyes and wash your hands thoroughly after handling brake fluid. If you do get brake fluid in your eyes, flush your eyes with clean, running water for 15 minutes. If eye irritation persists, or if you have taken brake fluid internally, IMMEDIATELY seek medical assistance.
   
4. Remove the brake line from the brake hose.
5. Disconnect the brake hose from its bracket on the shock absorber.
6. Loosen, but do not remove, the nut holding the suspension support to the shock absorber.
7. Unbolt the shock absorber from the rear arm.
8. Unbolt and extract the shock absorber from the body. To install:
   
9. Attach the shock absorber to the body and tighten the 3 nuts to 17 ft. lbs. (25 Nm).
10. Engage the shock absorber bracket with the carrier and install the hardware. Tighten the nuts to 119 ft. lbs. (162 Nm).
11. Tighten the center suspension support nut to 36 ft. lbs. (49 Nm). There is a bearing located under the suspension support dust cover. Remove the dust cover and pack the bearing with multi-purpose grease. Once packed, reinstall the dust cover.
12. The remainder of installation is the reverse of removal. Tighten each component to specifications.
13. Have the rear wheel alignment checked.

1987-88 Models

1. On wagon models, remove the toneau cover holder.
2. Loosen the rear wheel lug nuts, raise the rear of the vehicle and support it safely. Block the front wheels.
3. Remove the rear wheels.
4. Using the proper size flare nut wrench, disconnect the backing plate hardware.
5. With a flare nut and a back-up wrench, disconnect the brake tube from the brake hose and use a small plastic container to collect the brake fluid.
6. Undo the clip and disconnect the brake hose from the shock absorber. NOTE: Before the axle bolts are removed, the axle carrier must be supported with a jack.
   
7. Support the axle carrier with a floor jack and remove the mounting bolts and nut. Disconnect the axle carrier from the shock absorber.
8. Support the shock absorber firmly by hand and remove the three mounting nuts. Remove the shock absorber from the body. To install:
   
9. Position the shock absorber onto the body and support it firmly by hand. Install the three nuts and tighten them to 23 ft. lbs. (31 Nm).
10. Attach the axle carrier to the shock absorber with the nuts and bolts. Tighten the nuts to 166 ft. lbs. (226 Nm).
11. The remainder of installation is the reverse of removal. Tighten each component to specifications.
12. Bleed the brake lines as described in Section 9.
13. Have the rear wheel alignment checked.

1989-96 Models

1. On the 4-door sedan, remove the package tray and vent duct. On 1992-96 models, it will be necessary to remove the rear seat back.
2. On the hatchback, remove the speaker grilles.
3. On the wagon models remove the tonnue cover and rear seat back.
4. Loosen the rear wheel lug nuts, raise the rear of the vehicle and support it safely. Block the front wheels.
5. Remove the rear wheels.
6. Disconnect the brake hose and the ABS speed sensor from the shock absorber.
7. If equipped with ABS, disconnect the Load Sensing Proportioning Valve (LSPV) spring from the lower arm.
8. Disconnect the stabilizer bar link from the shock absorber.
9. Support the rear axle and loosen the 2 bolts from the lower end of the shock absorber.
10. From inside the vehicle, unbolt the upper support. Fig. 1: A rubber cap covers the rear shock absorber tower nut
    Fig. 2: The upper shock absorber tower is retained by the center nut (circled) and three surrounding nuts
    
    
11. Lower the rear axle carrier and remove the two bolts.
12. Remove the shock absorber from the vehicle. To install:
    
13. Install the shock absorber assembly onto the vehicle.
14. Connect the brake hose and the ABS speed sensor to the shock absorber.
15. Connect the stabilizer bar link to the shock absorber.
16. Install the wheel and tire assembly.
17. During installation, please observe the following tighten specifications:
    1. Tighten the shock absorber-to-body bolts to 29 ft. lbs. (39 Nm).
    2. Tighten the shock absorber-to-axle carrier nuts to 166 ft. lbs. (226 Nm) on 1988-91 vehicles and 188 ft. lbs. (255 Nm) on 1992-96 vehicles.
    3. Tighten the suspension support-to-shock absorber nut to 36 ft. lbs. (49 Nm) on 1988-91 vehicles. On 1992-96 models, tighten the stabilizer bar link to shock absorber retainers to 47 ft. lbs. (64 Nm).
18. Install the rear seat back, vent duct and the package tray as required.

Inspect the shock absorbers, if you see any sign of oil leakage on them, then you need to change them. Depending on the type of noise your car might need to be oiled or have other parts changed. Good luck

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/villagerquest/


Item Part Number Description 1 — Cotter Pin 2 — Nut Retainer 3 1131 Insulator 4 3B477 Front Axle Wheel Hub Retainer 5 1195 Front Wheel Outer Bearing Retainer Washer 6 1104 Wheel Hub 7 1107 Lug Bolt 8 3K050 Snap Ring 9 3123 Front Wheel Bearing 10 2K004 Front Disc Brake Rotor Shield 11 3130 Front Wheel Knuckle

Wheel Hub, Wheel Knuckle and Wheel Bearing SPECIAL SERVICE TOOL(S) REQUIRED Description Tool Number Tie Rod End Separator T85M-3395-A
Removal

1. Raise and support the vehicle.
   
2. Remove the wheel (1007) and tire assembly.
   
3. NOTE: It is not necessary to disconnect the front brake hose (2078).
   
   Remove the disc brake caliper (2B120) and suspend it with mechanic's wire out of the way. Refer to Section 06-03 for the removal procedure.
   
4. Remove the front disc brake rotor (1125).
   
5. Remove and discard the cotter pin.
   
6. Remove the nut retainer and insulator.
   
7. Remove the front axle wheel hub retainer (3B477) and the front wheel outer bearing retainer washer (1195).
   
   
   
   
   
8. Remove and discard the cotter pin from the front suspension lower arm ball joint (3050).
   
9. Loosen the front suspension lower arm ball joint nut until it contacts the front wheel driveshaft joint.
   
   
   
   
   
10. Strike the front wheel knuckle with a hammer while pulling down on the front suspension lower arm (3078) until the front suspension lower arm ball joint separates from the front wheel knuckle.
    
    
    
    
    
11. Remove the front suspension lower arm ball joint nut.
    
    
    
    
    
12. Remove the front suspension lower arm ball joint from the front wheel knuckle.
    
13. Remove and discard the cotter pin.
    
    
    
    
    
14. Remove the tie rod end nut.
    
    
    
    
    
15. Use Tie Rod End Separator T85M-3395-A to separate the tie rod end (3A130) from the front wheel knuckle.
    
    
    
    
    
16. Remove the front brake anti-lock sensor bolt.
    
    
    
    
    
17. Remove the two front shock absorber-to-front wheel knuckle nuts.
    
    
    
    
    
18. Remove the two front shock absorber-to-front wheel knuckle bolts.
    
19. Remove the front shock absorber (18124) from the front wheel knuckle.
    
20. Use 2-Jaw Puller D80L-1002-L, or equivalent, to separate the front wheel driveshaft and joint (3B436) from the front wheel knuckle.
    
21. Remove the front wheel hub, front wheel knuckle and front wheel bearing as an assembly from the vehicle.
22. If necessary, match mark and remove the steering stop bolt and steering stop bolt jam nut from the front wheel knuckle.
    
    
    
    
    

Installation

1. Position the front wheel hub, front wheel knuckle and front wheel bearing as an assembly on the front wheel driveshaft and joint.
   

1. Install the front wheel knuckle into the front shock absorber.
   

1. Install the two front shock absorber-to-front wheel knuckle bolts.
   

1. Install the two front shock absorber-to-front wheel knuckle nuts. Tighten the front shock absorber-to-front wheel knuckle nuts to 113-123 Nm (83-91 lb-ft).
   
   

renew them