Lower
- Thread starter 98GPGT
- Start date
Street Wolf
Banned
If you don't already know how, have a shop do it and watch them. That way you don't end up killing yourself with a spring.
TheOtherNick
The mod from over yonder
Go to any automotive college around your area they will normally do it for no labor and all their work is inspected by the instructor
speedemongtp
New member
David get your springs ordered an wait a bit an when im home from school for a few days ill help you do it or you can ask doug he might be able to help you. Its not that hard but experience is good or atleast someone with experience watching you an helping you cause like they said those springs can kill you if they get loose. Doug an i have done 3 or 4 sets now. Were pretty good at it. I'm sure we can do them. So just wait till we can help you do them.
SyntheticShield
New member
Okay, moved this from the How To Write Ups in which the section description states:
"Please post any write-ups you would like to share with the community. This section will also be used for comments and ratings for the write-up."
To the Brakes/Handling section whose section description states:
"Brakes, Rotors, Suspension, Steering, Wheel Bearings, etc"
"Please post any write-ups you would like to share with the community. This section will also be used for comments and ratings for the write-up."
To the Brakes/Handling section whose section description states:
"Brakes, Rotors, Suspension, Steering, Wheel Bearings, etc"
stlmo_gtp
New member
i usually take it up to my old high school's shop it gives the students good practice even tho i know how to do it myself i like to make sure that the kids are still learning these days. but i would recommend that you either take it somewhere or wait for someone that has done it before to help you because the just of it is take your strut out and then you have to rent one of the most unsafe tools from an auto place compress your springs and then take the top of the strut off pull the spring off and then decompress the spring it's pretty dangerous stuff
Warhellride
New member
You can do it yourself, just make sure you're careful.
To take the old struts out of the car:
Remove the two nuts on the bottom (an impact wrench is your friend, and you'll need a mallet to pound the bolts out), and the three 15mm nuts on top. The strut assembly will come right out.
To take the springs out of the struts:
Rent a spring compressor from the local auto parts store. Use it to compress the springs. If you don't, the force of the spring can cause a lot of damage once you loosen the top nut.
Loosen the top nut in the center of the strut. IIRC, you'll need a torx bit to hold the strut shaft while turning the nut on top.
Remove the mounting plates. These tend to wear out over time, so replacing them might not be a bad idea.
Now's a good time to install new struts if your struts are really old or you're going for a severe drop. I'd also install a set of anti-pogo washers (they're pretty cheap, and help with ride quality with lowering springs)
Reinstall the new springs (you probably won't need the spring compressor with the lowering springs), then install everything else in reverse order.
To reinstall the struts:
The two bolts on the bottom of the strut have grooves to keep them from turning once they're installed. Once you can't push them in any farther, just thread a bolt on them and keep turning until they're fully inserted. Torque everything to spec, then recheck the torque after a couple of days of driving.
Lastly, get an alignment after a couple of months of driving. It'll take that long for the new springs to settle.
To take the old struts out of the car:
Remove the two nuts on the bottom (an impact wrench is your friend, and you'll need a mallet to pound the bolts out), and the three 15mm nuts on top. The strut assembly will come right out.
To take the springs out of the struts:
Rent a spring compressor from the local auto parts store. Use it to compress the springs. If you don't, the force of the spring can cause a lot of damage once you loosen the top nut.
Loosen the top nut in the center of the strut. IIRC, you'll need a torx bit to hold the strut shaft while turning the nut on top.
Remove the mounting plates. These tend to wear out over time, so replacing them might not be a bad idea.
Now's a good time to install new struts if your struts are really old or you're going for a severe drop. I'd also install a set of anti-pogo washers (they're pretty cheap, and help with ride quality with lowering springs)
Reinstall the new springs (you probably won't need the spring compressor with the lowering springs), then install everything else in reverse order.
To reinstall the struts:
The two bolts on the bottom of the strut have grooves to keep them from turning once they're installed. Once you can't push them in any farther, just thread a bolt on them and keep turning until they're fully inserted. Torque everything to spec, then recheck the torque after a couple of days of driving.
Lastly, get an alignment after a couple of months of driving. It'll take that long for the new springs to settle.