New member with New Invoice and New Problems!

[Uncle Fester]

Hi. I just joined FordFestiva.com yesterday. I have a 1991 Festiva 5-speed with 69k miles. I got it from the original owner 4 years ago. I just took it to a local mechanic and got a front end inspection. Here is what they found:

PARTS NEEDED: Control arm bushings, Sway bar frame bushing, Sway bar thrust bushing, Front struts, Rear struts, and an alignment. UNABLE TO LOCATE PARTS FOR VEHICLE.

The mechanic said that Ford no longer makes any of the parts, and that the two main OEM suppliers in California do not have ANY of the parts needed. I have called my regular mechanic and forwarded this list. He will check to see what he can find.

I know that the people on this site have a huge advantage over a mechanic shop that does not have much interest in hunting down parts for a car on which they don't stand to make much for the repairs. Also, the mechanics do not have a vested interest in creating a really fun car to drive. So, I am asking for direction and advice. I am new to the site, so I hope that I am not breaking too many rules by posting this. I had thought about selling my Festiva, but it has been so much fun, and I know that it would be a LOT MORE FUN with an upgraded suspension. I just don't want to spend more than I need to, then end up with a less-than-ideal situation. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks, Festiva Owners!

[ckiesman]

Struts are easy to come by. The control arm bushings can be boguth on ebay i believe, and i know the control arms can be as well (i have a set on my car now) The sway bar to frame bushing as he called it can be made (another member might be able to elaborate on this better than i can) Not sure what a sway bar thrust bushing is though....

[gergorian]

One website for most of the parts you need, rockauto.com

Also, Welcome to the site! there are MANY members here with alot of knowledge about our little cars so I would suggest looking through some of the archived threads and dont be shy about asking questions!

[1990new]

Welcome... You have come to the right place.

PARTS NEEDED: Control arm bushings (You should replace the entire control arm (includes bushings) which also includes ball joints. Sway bar frame bushing (Two of these where the sway bar bolts to the frame under in front), Sway bar, he's calling them "thrust" bushing (Some control arms include these, the bushings where the end of the sway bar connect to the control arm). If you order from rockauto, find a discount code posted in the forum.

[ckiesman]

Sway bar thrust bushing (Some control arms include these, the bushings where the end of the sway bar connect to the control arm).

My bad. I learned something new today.....

[1990new]

He is calling them thrust bushings but they are really the sway bar bushings.

Know how the car "thrust" to one side when you accelerate when these are worn out.

[ckiesman]

makes sense

[1990new]

Hi. I just joined FordFestiva.com yesterday. I have a 1991 Festiva 5-speed with 69k miles. I got it from the original owner 4 years ago. I just took it to a local mechanic and got a front end inspection. Here is what they found:

PARTS NEEDED: Control arm bushings, Sway bar frame bushing, Sway bar thrust bushing, Front struts, Rear struts, and an alignment.

The struts are little more difficult, but the other part are pretty easy to replace. First thing you should do right away is get a spray
can of penetrating oil and start spaying it on all the nuts and bolt that will need to be removed to replace these parts.
Also please post your location, the climate that your cars has lived in will tell members a lot about the problems you will encounter.

[Uncle Fester]

Thanks ckiesman, gergorian, and 19990new! I haven't added any personal info to my Member Info, I'll do that now. I am in Santa Cruz, California, and the car was originally purchased in Chico, California. Chico is dry, warm and salt-water free.The lady that I purchased the car from had lived in Santa Cruz for about 5-7 years before I purchased it, and I have owned it for 4 years. So it lived half of its life in Chico, the other half in Santa Cruz. I live about 4 blocks from the beach in Santa Cruz, but undercarriage rust isn't much of a problem here, because we never have snow to drive through.

My Festiva had just under 37k original miles on it when I purchased it from the original owner. It now has just under 69k. The body has some dents and dings, the interior is worn: it isn't pretty but not too bad. I use it as my 'work truck" and daily driver. My girlfriend hates it. Her daughter hates it even more. I think selling it would be a mistake, but realize that upgrading-repairing it the wrong way could create a WHOLE BUNCH of mistakes! That is why I am so glad that I searched for, and found, a REAL website for Festivas! I am impressed by the threads that I have read thus far, and greatly impressed and grateful for the almost instant responses to my plea for help!

[Team Lightning]

Uncle Fester, Most MCparts stores carry Energy Suspension sway bar parts. Get the ones that are the same diameter as your sway bar. You will need to grind/sand (I used a belt sander) to make them fit your Festiva brackets. The E.S brackets will move if used and not locked into place as they are slotted from the factory. I simply modded the bushing to fit my brackets. Rockauto.com is the best place to get the control arms, etc if you have time for them to ship them to you. (and cheaper too)

[standard235]

I just got inner and outer tie rods, control arms, sway bar bushings from RA.

MAKE SURE YOU GET Moog!

[Zcallicutt7]

Check these out on Rock Auto

KYB Part # 340009 $36.79 each (FESTIVA REAR STRUT) You need two of these.
KYB Part # SM5139 $15.25 (FESTIVA REAR STRUT MOUNT) You need two of these.
KYB Part # 333503 $53.79 (KIA RIO FRONT LEFT STRUT)
KYB Part # 333502 $53.79 (KIA RIO FRONT RIGHT STRUT)
MOOG Part # K80910 $32.79 you need two of these.

Grand total of: $$277.24 + shipping. And you get a stiffer strut and a strut mount with a bearing to make steering take less effort!

[Team Lightning]

Search on here for a discount code. That will save a few dollars too.

[Safety Guy]

Uncle F, if your brakes are doing fine, improving the suspension should be your first step. If your brakes suck, then consider going to Aspire front knuckles and rotors. If so, post that in another thread.

Back to the suspension:

The control arm/ball joint assembly is very important, which is why Moog is recommended! Cheaper control arm/ball joints will work in the short term, but may not last more than a year or two. May as well do it right the first time! There are two levels of Moog CAs, so get the upper priced one if you can. If they're not available, I'd try Raybestos Professional Plus CAs. If the ball joint fails, your front wheel will tip to the side and you'll go out of control! Let's say this is very important.

If you have to have a shop do this, then so be it. If you have the car's service records, see if the CAs have ever been replaced. If not, they probably need it now!

Next check, or have checked, your brake lines and hoses. You are looking mainly for corrosion in the hard lines, but they can also rust out from the inside when old brake fluid accumulates water (regular brake fluid is very hygroscopic). Ideally, your brake fluid should be changed every two or three years, which will help keep the rest of the components working well.

If you find corroded looking brake lines, or you have leaks, get that fixed ASAP.

Festivas have non-interference engines, so if your timing belt breaks, no big deal. Get a new one installed. (If this were a Kia Rio, you'd probably ruin your engine if that happened!) If your car runs fine, no worries there except for regular oil changes and tune ups. You can easily learn this yourself, so if you've never done car work, begin here!

MANUALS! Get one...or more! Preferably, the Ford shop manual for your year Festiva, though any FI (1990 to 1993) manual will work fine. The Haynes manual is okay, and is nice to keep in your car on trips if nothing else. Both are better, along with an Aspire shop manual if you change to Aspire suspension later on. Check ebay and amazon for shop manuals. You should not pay more than twenty bucks shipped. (Sometimes you can make deals with a shop manual and electrical manual combo.)

Now back to your suspension! (Why am I going to other topics? Because I can!)

Rio front struts and strut mounts were recommended because:

They make excellent replacements for Festiva and Aspire struts due to their strut mounts having REAL ball bearing strut bearings in them, as opposed to the original flat plastic washer strut bearing. The price of new strut mounts is probably cheaper now for Rio parts as the originals, too, if you shop around.

If you learn to remove struts from junkyard cars, go buy a set of used Rio front struts from a 2001 or early 2002 Rio. Look for the two-bolt top mount in the engine compartment. Later Rios had three bolt mounts, which won't work. Learn more about Rio front struts in my build thread here:

http://www.fordfestiva.com/forums/showthread.php?31934-AquaMutt-build-thread&highlight=aquamutt+build

Other folks' build threads also have good info if you look for such. I oriented my build thread for beginners. (Since I'm not a "real" mechanic I consider myself to be more of a beginner than anything.)

POINT: These are excellent cars to LEARN on!

Now for your front springs. You could use cut Aspire springs like I did, or you could buy a set of FMS sport springs which come up for sale sometimes. There may be other spring choices to come. However, if you can get a set of front Aspire springs, cut them one coil for about stock ride height. You can borrow good spring compressors from a local auto parts store (with deposit) and use a rachet wrench to operate them (an air compressor with air wrench is much better if you can get access).

Another member just cut his old Festiva springs (one coil I think?) and said it worked well for him. (Shortening a spring increases the spring rate, BTW, making it stiffer.)

If you go Rio struts, you'll need the top hat piece just under the strut mount, which does not come on new struts. That's why getting these from a 'yard is nice. Cheaper, and it has everything you need except for the labor. Rio struts should be used with Rio strut mounts. Aspire or Festiva mounts (same thing actually) won't fit the Rio strut shaft without modification.

I'd recommend Moog stabilizer bar bushings. These are blue in color and are a bit stiffer than stock rubber ones. You'll need a pair for each side. They slide onto your stabilizer (sway) bar and sandwich the CA between them.

The Energy Suspension sway bar front mounts need modification to fit right and not slip around on you. Others can tell you more about that since I haven't done it.

Let me know if you're confused yet.

Karl

[Uncle Fester]

Thanks for this list, Zcallicutt7!