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[Doctor Gollum]

Even new genuine didn't last any think like as long as the factory ones.

Quit whining and fit what you can and treat the parts for what they are... Service items.

These, by definition, are parts that require periodic replacement. Keeping any Omega on the road isn't difficult, it just requires an admittance that the same jobs will need doing regularly in order to keep it going.

Either accept that, or move on to other cars...*

*Which will eventually require the same approach.

[raywilb]

Even new genuine didn't last any think like as long as the factory ones.

Quit whining and fit what you can and treat the parts for what they are... Service items.

These, by definition, are parts that require periodic replacement. Keeping any Omega on the road isn't difficult, it just requires an admittance that the same jobs will need doing regularly in order to keep it going.

Either accept that, or move on to other cars...*

*Which will eventually require the same approach.
[/quote  out of the three omegas that i have owned i have only had to renew one steering idler . i ordered one for next day delivery & it never arrived . i called the supplier ,so they sent out another which arrived ok. then a week later the original one sent arrived. the firm wasn,t bothered & told me to keep it. i have had it in my shed for approx ten years now. never up to date needed it

[Sir Tigger KC]

I bought my Omega with about 143,000 miles on it, but it failed the MOT a few months later on the steering idler so the garage fitted a new one for about £60. 

I now know that it was certainly a cheap pattern idler, but nevertheless stayed on for a decade and nearly 100,000 miles and was never mentioned again in MOTs! 

I used to give the nut a quarter of a turn now and again just to nip it up.   

[Migv6 le Frog Fan]

I bought a pattern one from ebay a few years ago as mine had failed the MOT and I needed to get it sorted in a hurry.
I fitted it, drove the 2 miles to the garage for the retest and it failed again. The new pattern idler had more play than the one I took off.
In the end I pulled one off an Omega I was breaking (around 125k on the clock iirc) and fitted it in desperation.
Back down the test centre and it passed.

[Doctor Gollum]

They need doing every 80-120k, just like the rest of the suspension, hence my service item approach...

[TheBoy]

They need doing every 80-120k, just like the rest of the suspension, hence my service item approach...

Clearly your idea of handling differs from mine.  Any driver will feel it long, long, long before it becomes an MOT failure, as the steering becomes imprecise.

I used to get about 60k from old Lemforder, and about 70k from the more expensive GM.  Thats after trying a whole heap of cheapies, that varied from 2 weeks to less than a year (about 12k back then).  The last Lemforder lasted about 18 months

Its not the cost of the part, or the time to do it which is normally quite easy/quick, but the cost in realignment after.  Hence I don't think annual replacement is acceptable.

[Doctor Gollum]

Idler shouldn't require alignment 

Although a regular alignment check could itself be considered a maintenance item

[TheBoy]

Idler shouldn't require alignment 

Machining differences means it does.  And if it was last done on a two week old Febi item, for example, it will way out, because the part is usually shagged within that timespan.

Although a regular alignment check could itself be considered a maintenance item

Only if continually using the shittiest parts you can find .  All mine have only ever really needed it when replacing components, after the initial setup.