How long should a ram last?

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Sl4yer
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Unread post by Sl4yer »

Managed to get something of a look the other day, and I'm quite surprised by what I found:

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There is a drip on the end of the ram, but the underside of the cross-member is soaked! Also, the gaiter on the ram only appears to be damp from halfway down, like it's been sprayed from a particular angle (not sure if this is LHM or not though).

The bottom of the ram appears damp around the unions, but I believe this isn't unusual:

Image

I managed to feel underneath the gaiter, and it wasn't particularly damp. Could this be coming from somewhere other than the ram?

Thanks,

James
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andmcit
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Unread post by andmcit »

I'd suggest your rear height corrector looks very wet or is the coating on
it lubrication to make it freely moving and purely preventative in nature?

Too much of a coincidence and the whole back end will cop stains from the
leaking LHM - been here, done that! Mind the price or replacement height
correctors is getting near the cost of an Activa ram these days!! :?

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CitroJim
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Unread post by CitroJim »

Looks like the same as on mine James.. Not the ram as such but the leakage return collar. You'd be amazed at how LHM travels in the turbulence under a car. It is almost precisely a duplicate of mine... More on the tie bar than anything else.

I'd say the source is the ram as if sphere blocks are leaking, the first sign is usually drips on the sphere itself..


If it ever stops raining this weekend I'll have a closer look at mine...

Not had a chance this week :(
Jim

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Sl4yer
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Unread post by Sl4yer »

andmcit wrote:I'd suggest your rear height corrector looks very wet or is the coating on it lubrication to make it freely moving and purely preventative in nature?
Purely preventative! :D
CitroJim wrote:Looks like the same as on mine James.. Not the ram as such but the leakage return collar. You'd be amazed at how LHM travels in the turbulence under a car. It is almost precisely a duplicate of mine... More on the tie bar than anything else.
Yes, I suppose that would be where the airflow would send it. You'd think that with my aircraft facination, I'd have thought of that! I wonder if there's a dodgy batch of rear rams about?

Thanks,

James
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CitroJim
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Unread post by CitroJim »

Well possibly... That's my thought on it.

Mine was new in 2007... So I reckon ours are both of the same batch....

Give the ram a really good clean up and see where it first starts to look wet...
Jim

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Sl4yer
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Unread post by Sl4yer »

CitroJim wrote:Mine was new in 2007... So I reckon ours are both of the same batch....
Probably the last batch too... :?

Will give it a clean when I can get underneath safely.

Thanks,

James
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XantiaMan
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Unread post by XantiaMan »

Guys,

I had a look under mine today, and found tiny weep from the return collar that Jim has mentioned. Its not even enough to drip, but i suspect the reason its doing it is fairly simple, as the last time i looked at it, about a week ago, it was much warmer.

Today has been around 2-3 degrees, which is not far off freezing. Rubber and plastic shrink and become more brittle/rigid in this weather and combined with lack of use, it could be enough to prevent the collar from sealing 100%.

In James case, i would bide my time a little longer if an MOT is not imminent, and see if it improves as the weather warms, i would also defiantly get right under the car and double check the return pipe has not popped off, from that angle you cannot see, and you'll need a torch as well.

A life of 3 years is simply unacceptable for a replacement ram, and its clearly a design fault, made worse on later build examples by production tolerances. We really do need to strip these rams down and find some solutions.

Below is what my ram looked like when the return popped off, i suspected the worst...

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CitroJim
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Unread post by CitroJim »

Despite warmer weather in the week, mine got worse and worse. Just leaking from the collar.

So today I swapped it for a spare I had. See my blog for the full story :twisted:

I'll be doing a pictorial guide soon. It is not an easy job at all. Fiddly :twisted:

Just to give a taster, here's the location of the ram supply pipe unions. These are located up high and almost on the boot floor... Getting them undone is fun :twisted:

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XantiaMan
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Unread post by XantiaMan »

How much LHM would you say has been lost? Be interested to know why it leaks at that particular place.
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CitroJim
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Unread post by CitroJim »

Enough over the course of the week to bring the stop light on when the suspension is set to high...
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XantiaMan
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Unread post by XantiaMan »

CitroJim wrote:Enough over the course of the week to bring the stop light on when the suspension is set to high...
Oh :shock: That is pretty significant. Not looking forward to reading your blog! Just glad mine are ok, it seems the '2007' batch must be jinxed.
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CitroJim
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Unread post by CitroJim »

I've just published my guide to replacing a rear ram here

Any comments or feedback would be most welcome...
Jim

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Sl4yer
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Unread post by Sl4yer »

That looks like a bugger to change Jim!

A thick frost overnight here, and a green mess running down the drive... Of course, a little goes a long way!

James
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addo
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Unread post by addo »

Any chance of some close up ram pictures (fully closed/extended), out of the car and with the gaiter removed?
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CitroJim
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Unread post by CitroJim »

addo wrote:Any chance of some close up ram pictures (fully closed/extended), out of the car and with the gaiter removed?
Adam,

I could supply a photo of the bits of ram you'd like to see but it's just a standard looking hydraulic ram when you pull the gaiter up. The gaiter itself is very hard to remove without damage as it is tightly held in a channel above the top balljoint...

That would have tio wait until a really duff one came along... I'm reluctant to dismantle one that is jut a bit weepy and may repair with my "bandaging" idea...
Jim

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