Hi guys, as my boggo Abarth 500 is now six years old and has suffered more than its fair share of Scottish potholes and countryside tracks, the rear suspension is tired. As well as the usual 500 clunk, it seems to skip sideways quite a lot. So I've bought replacement shockers and some Powerflex bushes. Trouble is, the new TRW shockers appear to have a smaller top eye than the originals, so the Powerflex bushes now look like they might be too big to fit    Without access to a ramp/lift, I'm struggling to see the OEM part numbers on the original shockers, in order to double-check the fitment of the new ones. 

Also, has anyone fitted this type of Powerflex bush? Or swapped standard shockers but without going the full coilovers route? I don't want to get the car on the ramp, have some grease monkey tap out the top eyes and then find that nothing fits back together!

Bewildered of t'Borders.
   

The TRW shocks are JGT581T - according to multiple sites in multiple countries, they should fit the Abarth 500. They certainly look short enough...

The issue with the bushes is that they're about 40mm in diameter, whereas the top eye bush in the shocks is only 36mm and I'm fairly certain the bushes aren't intended to be compressed by 4mm! 

OK, here's the news. Powerflex bushes fitted to rear suspension beam and TRW shockers fitted. 4-wheel alignment carried out. Ride now smoother and quieter BUT I'm still suffering the wretched clonking sound that seems to come from the offside rear. My mechanic put the car back on the ramp three times cos he thought he had missed something out or not torqued up all the bolts. No obvious deficiencies. Latest thoughts are the noise could be caused by metal on metal contact between the spring and the spring pan. The American Abarth forum has a short thread on this. I've ordered new top spring isolators and I'm also thinking of changing the springs to AH Motorsport standard rebound rate, which lower the rear ride height by 20mm but retain the current ride "quality". Hmm. 

Any lowering of the rear would defo require the coupe bump stops being fitted. Not long ago did mine, makes a difference!

OK, here's the outcome of several months of tinkering with the rear end. New shockers - no difference to ride or annoying clonk. Powerflex bushes in the rear suspension beam - less lateral flex, increased road noise, no difference to the annoying clonk. AH Motorsport shortened springs with original rebound rate, in combination with Coupe bumpstops, PLUS new spring isolators - ride smoother, annoying clonk finally gone! I reckon it was the isolators all along - they're hard rubber, which must degrade with time and road salt. Should have tried them first... OEM Part number is 46843237, I found a substitute on buycarparts.co.uk - part no. A7G036MT  This is for a standard, 135bhp A500, so I can't vouch for fitting in higher powered versions.

BTW, the Powerflex bushes for the Fiat 500 rear shocker top mount DO NOT fit Abarths - which have a smaller eye, with a stiffer mount in a thicker ring.

Some useful information there Borderline, thank you