MDA MK1 Rear lower suspension link "BEWARE"

My father had a near miss the other day, luckily he was not travelling at high speed. The near side rear lower suspension link (the single connection to the chassis) tore open like a tin can, the wheel went out and up into the arch. He spent 4 hours waiting for road side assistance on a busy dual carriageway till the car was transported back home. The tube that the rubber bush sits in ripped open at the weld (factory suppllied part). The ID of the tube is 28mm and OD is 32mm, about the same strength as a piece of electrical conduit.? We are in the process of getting new tube welded on to both sides with a wall thickness of 5mm to be safe, and with some triangular strengthening pieces added. If you own a MK1 MDA first chassis model you are a risk of the same thing happening. Please excuse my dodgy MS paint drawing, but you get the idea

 

You expect teething problems when you build your own kit but you trust that important parts supplied are correct and have been designed to withstand general use on public roads. Parts of the chassis are built like a tank, maybe over engineered, then some important parts are the complete opposite. We were advised by Chris M a long while ago when we purchased a front screen regarding some points on the chassis that were lacking support. This was all rectified during the build. The car now has a few thousand miles on the clock and runs fine apart from the failure of the link arm. I am an engineer, but i am not a coded welder, the problem with the arm to me seems to be that when it was welded the tube which houses the rubber bush was so thin compared to the structure of the A arm itself that a good solid weld was not possible as it would of burnt through the thin wall. There is some evidence of this internally.