tokico vs quick strut

[onthetopo]

Hi ,

I am very ignorant of what the suspension system consist of. My 100k 1998 camry LE V4 definitely need to replace its suspension as my exhaust pipe keep hitting road bumps of my office building, and I keep hearing thumping noises near front suspension when driving over potholes[not metal to metal noise, more like rubber to metal], I don't know what problem this is.

I wonder what is the best course of action given a limited budget[parts under 500, labor under 300]:
I am thinking about buying tokico blue HP[can get all 4 at 300], but it seems that it's only a small part of the suspension
1. My dealer recommends buying new upper strut mount, is that a good advice?
2. If I buy the tokico blue HP strut, I also have to buy springs seperately? This place has lots of potholes and I wonder if my stock spring is worn out already.
3. Do I also need to buy new screws?
4. Good idea to replace bushings?
5. Sorry if my question doesn't make sense, what other component do I have to buy to make the tokico HP strut as complete as the monroe quick strut assembly? I don't have a lot of money, if buying all the components is too expensive, I'm probably better off buying monroe quick strut complete assembly.

Just as an side note, my camry had replaced 2 bad timing belts, and one bad water pump, one bad front exhaust pipe and one bad manifold exhaust gasket. Spent too much money on it already and I'd like to keep it running for another 200k miles, seems like the next big item after suspension would be transmission and radiator .

Thanks for answering my 5 questions.

[JohnGD]

Monroe QuickStruts with OESpectrum struts should help soak up the road irregularities. About $125 each+shipping from rockauto. Also check Amazon for prices. Lifetime warranty. If you reeeeaaally want to save money the EconoStrut (QuickStrut with the el cheapo value MonroMatic strut is about $90/ea. No lifetime warranty. IMO it's not worth it unless you're selling soon.)

http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/moreinfo.php?pk=951488

You will need an alignment after that. Maybe check your local Firestone for lifetime alignment. Some members use it, and they will check even after you replace suspension parts (some places don't).

[JohnGD]

If you plan to keep the car for another 200K miles get the Monroe QuickStruts. These have all new components and a lifetime warranty. Check out local store prices because for warranty claim you'll need to ship them.

You can check with a shop and negotiate the installation cost. They don't need to compress the springs with the QuickStruts - just swap them out. The rear deck needs to be loosened to access the mounting nuts. It's best if the shop properly torque them down or they'll squeak later. See what a shop quotes you for the swap. Maybe they can do it $50-$100. Alignment is extra.

You can also price out the Tokicos HPs and performance springs. But I'm sure the QuickStruts will come out cheaper.

(I was trying to find Fenixus' thread on his QuickStrut replacement but couldn't find it. Maybe he can chime in or PM him).

[onthetopo]

Thank you so much for your help already.
The monro shop[duh!] here [raleigh,NC] want to charge me 300-400 for installation of quick struts. Other shops charges 500-600. Maybe I should drive to pennsylvania to get it done or something. Economy not good and everyone tries to make money.

1.This site seems to say that monroes struts is no good after 60k mile even though they have lifetime warranty:
http://www.hondacarforum.com/honda-3...ace-pairs.html

2.Is there an alternative name for 'upper strut mount', is it also called brearing plate or upperspring seat or spring isolator?

3.Do they come with new nuts or I have to re-use my old ones? Not an expert on metal fatigues.

4.Is Camry '98 5SFE know for bad Lowerer ball joints?

[JohnGD]

$300-600 to swap them out is too much. Find a mechanically inclined friend maybe? Borrow torque wrenches from Autozone's free loaner if you don't have them. If you are mechanically inclined it shouldn't take 30 minutes to swap out the fronts. The rear takes a bit more time to remove the speaker shelf.

A1: Most of these struts should be replaced after 50K miles. This includes the OEM manufacturer KYB, which they said on their website. The struts can be used longer but they degrade very slowly most of the time people don't realize they are driving boats until new struts are installed.

A2:On a typical Macpherson designs there is the strut mount, right underneath is the strut bearing, then the upper spring seat, upper spring insulator (rubber), dust boot, strut bumper, coil spring, lower spring insulator (rubber), and the strut. And probably other names too.

A3: Yes they do. 3 new one-use self-locking nuts. I wouldn't reuse the old ones as they can come loose. In a pinch use Permatex Blue threadlocker.

A4: I don't believe so. Bad strut mounts, lower control arm bushings, and maybe sway bar links.

[vincentfox]

Are you sure your exhaust pipe isn't hanging too low?

Go with QuickStruts. It's a fairly easy DIY job. I am no mechanic but was able to do it. Only 2 things I had to learn were how to use a torque wrench, and the necessity of a 1/2-inch breaker bar for a couple of the bolts. Other than it's cake.

There's been several threads about how to do QuickStruts with plenty of pics.

[fenixus]

I would go with Quick Struts, very easy DIY in fronts, about 30 mins as mentioned above if you have the right tools for the job.
price from rockauto used to be unbeatable ($100/each for i4 front in Feb/Mar '11), now since they jacked the prices up some people say it's cheaper to buy from places like partstrain.com or others.

one word on the strut mount nuts (3 per side), they are nowhere near one time use. they do have a flange, however it's not a self-compressing type of flange, it's actually very thick.

On my cars, both coming with factory OEM front strut braces, it's actually necessary to remove 2 out of 3 of those nuts to remove the brace every time you do something on top of engine. Those nuts are NOT marked as non-reusable in the FSM. Actually the ONLY non-reusable part in strut assembly is the piston nut (36ft-lbs) in middle of the mount.

The only reason why those nuts could come loose on a fairly new strut mount is because the mount/insulator itself compresses a bit in first few weeks. re-torque them after a month, new/revised OEM specs are 29ft-lbs (Monroe specs are same), however the original car's FSM (dated 2000) still lists that torque at 59ft-lbs (as well as Haynes does, based on original OEM/FSM specs)- do NOT do that, you will destroy the mount in no time and it may start clunking after you loosen those nuts in future and re-torque again.