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MG MG Y Type - Front Shock Absorbers Removal

Hi

I have three questions.

1.) I want to refurbish the Front Shock absorbers of my YT. To reach the "inner" two bolts with a spanner is tricky. The workshop manual refers on page M-33 to this task as follows: "Slacken off the bolts securing the wing valance to the chassis at the points adjacentto the hydrualic dampers. Spring back the wing valance and extract the two inner bolts which secure the the dampersto the top of the chassis cross member. (these are threaded into the front cross member).
I do not fancy to sprig back the wing valance because, I am worries to hurt the paint work. Does anyone know of another trick - without having to remove the front mudguards???

2.) How can I un-screw the big threade end caps on either side of the damper housing? Water pump pliers seem to be no good, because they just grip on two points and I am worried that the soft puter metall will be distorted.

3.) NTG offers exchange Front Shocks for a reasonable price. Are they any good - has anyone fitted a pair to his car and are they the "the real thing"?

Best regards
Anton Piller
Anton Piller

Anton,

I have just completed removing and refurbishing the front shocks on my 1949 YT. In prep. for this task I utilized the following tutorials available on U-Tube:

MGB Full Suspension Rebuild and MG TD TF Kingpin seals/rebuild.

Both are really great with step by steps to revove and repair.

Mind as you go.
Ed
E. Geissler


Thank you Ed, for your feed back.

If you can, please answer the following questions:

1.) What did you do to be able to unscrew the two "inner" fastening bolts.
Did you spring back the wing valance and if so, was the paint damaged?

2. How did you un-screw the big threaded end caps on either side of the damper housing - i.e. what tool did you use?

Anton Piller, Switzerland
Anton Piller

1. Thin wall socket. Sprang it back with no damage.

2. I removed the damper and packaged it along with the other damper and sent them off to a hydraulic company for complete refurbishment. The company is Apple Hydraulics (applehydraulicsonline.com). They were cheaper than NTG and of course located here in the states. Did not remove end caps.


E. Geissler

Let me know how long Apple take and if they have done a good job please Ed. Heard various stories about them.

Thank you

Paul
Paul Barrow

Hi Anton To remove the end caps Put one side of the nut on the vice and hit the other side ( 180 degrees ) with a hammer. Do this all around it and then try your grips Old hydraulic fittings trick.. BOB
Bob Wood


My Master Mechanic friend, Anton Meyer, took off the three-jaw chuck off one off his small lathe and gripped it in a vice. Then he tighten the three jaws around one of the caps and turned the chuck - and presto the threaded end-cap came loose.

This seems to be a very "gentle" way of un-doing the Caps.

best regards
Anton
Anton Piller

Anton,

They did a great job and it took about 3 weeks. See attachment of finished dampers for front and rear.

Ed

E. Geissler

Hi When assembling the the end caps I put a little hydraulic thread sealer on them because of the pressure that is built up when working... On the bench operate the unit from top to bottom to bleed out the air from both cylinders as this can,t be done fully when fitted BOB YT4319
Bob Wood

Hi Bob

Do I understand your Hydraulic Fitting Trick correctly? Please see attached photo.

Best regards
Anton

Anton Piller

Hi Anton I would do it with the vice closed but it would work as the photo shows but that way you have a sharp point of impact on the vice jaws. Two hammers on each side is a similar way of freeing up tight nuts in general BOB
Bob Wood

Anton,
Have you tried soaking the unit in a degreaser or some type of solvent? Do you have access to an ultrasonic cleaner? I purchased one a few years back and it works wonders in removing paint, grease, rust, etc.
Ed
E. Geissler


BOB

You are right about the two sharp points. I would place aluminum "guards" on the vice, to soften the impact.

The two hammers approach is also a good alternative.

At present, I am in two minds if I should go for the exchange Shockers, NTG is offering.

Anyhow, this will be a bad weather job, starting in October/November...

Thank you for your support

Anton

P.S.: attached please ind a set of spare Shock absorbers, that I would send to NTG for an exchange scheme.....

Anton Piller


Dear Ed

No, Ido not have a big enough size ultra sonic degreaser. I'l try my luck with Coca Cola for rust remover :o)

Thank you for the input.

Anton
Anton Piller

Hi Anton I have stripped a number of these shock absorbers and found sometimes people have done some poor repair work on the shafts and splines that make then useless. Good luck BOB
Bob Wood

Anton , A couple of years ago I had both my front ones rebuilt . They had been drilled through so they acted purely as an upper link and telescopics fitted in parallel .
The guy rebuilt them to original spec , made new pistons etc , so far no problems at all .I am very pleased. He is in Leicester in England but if you are prepared to post he is as close as anybody else . I got his contact number from Pete at Octagon . Good luck . John
J K Bowman

Hi Ed, Bob & John
I am back again, after having done some serious gardening, to keep the Missus happy.

When the car was still in the rolling chassis stage (some 30 years back), the shock absorbers were repaired by a man who does not live anymore.
Recent test drives now showed that all seals still hold tight and only the threaded end caps are leaking.
I have not started to remove the front dampers yet, but still can't see, how I can reach the "inner" two fastening bolts of the shock absorbers. Especially on the right hand side, were the engine control bracket needs to be removed as well - I also need to remove the steering gearbox to overhaul it.

ED:
Thank you for the photo of the four dampers. They look tempting.
1. You write, you used a thin wall socket. Did you feed the socket fom the top with an extension?
2. Which way did you spring back the wing valance - in direction engine or in direction front wheel?
3. How did you manage to put the two fastening bolts and spring washers back in place again?

JOHN:
How much did the guy in Leicester charge for refurbishing the front dampers?
If needed, I will ask Pete at Octagon about the mans contact number.

Best Regards, Anton
P.S.: The end caps use red sealing discs. What material are these discs made of? It must withstand the Hydraulik Fluid's chemistry....


Anton Piller

Anton
You mentioned the guy in Leicester who did my front shockers . It was a few years back and I paid cash so I don't have a contact number on a piece of paper .The figure of £65 per unit comes to mind but whatever it was i though it was very fair because he had to do a lot to fix them . eg turned up new pistons because my old ones had been drilled through .
As you say Pete will have his number . Good luck .

John B
J K Bowman

Hi Anton. I used LOCTITE 567 on the threads to stop the leak on the thread It is used in the hydraulic field for sealing threads BOB YT4319
Bob Wood


Great, thank you BOB

Anton YT 4220
Anton Piller

This thread was discussed between 31/08/2025 and 23/10/2025

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