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Cutting the bumper on your struts

GeddyLee

GeddyLee

New member
I was wondering who has cut/shaved their bumper at the top of their struts when you lower your GP? I have heard of a few who do it, but not many, I was just wondering how effective or helpful this practice truly is.

And the second question would be, just how far do you trim back the bumper before it actually more harmful than helpful.

I look forward to hearing about your thoughts on this.

Thanks!
 


bumper? what? where specifically are you talking about?

if youre talking about the FENDERS being rolled/trimmed, i can see that..
 
Hes talking about the bumper that is on the strut, in the middle of the coil spring. Im wondering thw same thing also.
 
Thanks for clearing that up for me David. I was not quite sure if I was explaining right. I have heard cutting like 1/4 of inch upto 1/2 an inch helps with the overall smoothness of the strut traveling the length of the piston before it make contact with the bumper. Cause obviously the piston is now has a shorter distance to travel from top to bottom due to the shorter springs.

I just wanted to see if anyone might have tried it before I give a shot.
 
i wonder if that is why my car hits so hard over big bumps? it feels like my dash is about to fall off sometimes.
 


The yellow bumper is about 3 inches or so if i remember right. After i lowered mine i had to cut them because it was pressed up against the stop causing one terribly hard ride. I cut mine back to there was about 3/4 of an inch left on them. Been driving like that for a about 4 years now.
 
Excellent Kent!! Thanks for the info! I just need to get my new KYB front strut mounts when I drop them and I will be good to go!
 
mybe this is why mine rides like @*^% over bumps. i put new sensatrac struts, u/ lower spring isolators, new bearing plate asssemblies and coilsprings! will try this tonite.
 
I just picked up my new Monroe Strutmate front struts from Advanced Auto. $70 bucks total for both including Advanced's lifetime warranty. Hopefully I will get the time this weekend to get mine done as well :)
 


TurboKent said:
The yellow bumper is about 3 inches or so if i remember right. After i lowered mine i had to cut them because it was pressed up against the stop causing one terribly hard ride. I cut mine back to there was about 3/4 of an inch left on them. Been driving like that for a about 4 years now.
Click to expand...

So it does work then. I guess a lot of us have been wondering the same thing.
Thanks
 
alot of people do it with a hacksaw on older cars. i did it on my 69 camaro. i lowered it 2 inches in the front, so i didn't want it to hit all the time, i cut 3/8" or so off and reinstalled it. worked good, so it should work for GP's too. just allows the suspension to travel a little more before "bottoming" out.
 
alot of people do it with a hacksaw on older cars
Click to expand...
I did it with a razor blade while it was on the car. A little tricky but it can be done, just jack the car up until the strut is fully extended.
 
TurboKent said:
I did it with a razor blade while it was on the car. A little tricky but it can be done, just jack the car up until the strut is fully extended.
Click to expand...

yea, great idea! you don't even have to take them off if you're careful. i did them while i was installing them, while rebuilding the front end of my camaro. i used a hack saw because they were polyurethane and a littel hard to cut with a razor blade.
 
Ok.............

I am replacing my front strut town brackets this weekend, I got a set of Monroe Strutmates from Advanced Auto. Not to bad, they ran $70 for both.

Anyways my question is now.............which side of the bumper do you cut? Top, bottom, or what? Here are some photos of the bumper, so please let me know.

DSCF0046.jpg


DSCF0047.jpg


Many thanks in advance!
 


it's the flat side that goes down against the strut(top pic) the tapered part is what hits the stop(pic 2). I cut mine where it narrows at the thinnest point before it bulges out for the second and top rung.
 
TurboKent said:
it's the flat side that goes down against the strut(top pic) the tapered part is what hits the stop(pic 2). I cut mine where it narrows at the thinnest point before it bulges out for the second and top rung.
Click to expand...

Thanks for chiming in as well Kent. The diagram fugly has says about 1 1/4" make the cut, which puts it at almost the exact spot you mentioned!

Many thanks to you too sir! :th_thumbsup-wink:
 
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