Replacing Strut?

[Jessica27]

Hi, wondering if someone can help.... I hear a knocking sound on my front passenger side of the car every time I go over a bump. A friend mentioned it might be my strut (Could it be something else?). I called around and places are quoting me about $1,200 to replace and telling me I need to replace both and that the majority of the cost is for labor. Not sure if they are jacking me around just because I am a girl or not...My brother in law has replaced the struts on his Ford Focus before and is willing to give it a go. Is it similar on a Camry? If so, is there a manual out there or some instructions I should pick up for him?

[Mike Gerber]

Jessica,

First, when asking a question on a forum like this, it is best to include the year of the car, the engine (I4 or V6), the current mileage and if anything has been done to the car recently.

That said, I will try to answer your questions.

Could it be something else making the noise. Yes it could. It could be anything from bad swaybar bushings to a broken swaybar endlink, to other loose components. Have someone inspect the car first. Don't guess it's the strut. This is too expensive to just guess and throw money at it.

As far as the price, that sounds like a price to replace all 4 struts. Struts are usually replaced in pairs to avoid unusual handling characteristics. Both fronts and/or both rears. Consider the Monroe Quick Struts for your car. They are a 1 piece strut, spring and strut mount combination ready to bolt in to your car. Again, it would be easier to tell if you actually need all 4 struts replaced, if we knew the mileage on your car.

As far as your brother-in-law doing this for you, it's not a hard job, just a bit of grunt work. If your friend did it on his car he can probably do it on your Camry.

As far as a manual, you can go over to the Toyota Camry forum at AutomotiveForums.com and download a Toyota factory service manual for your car for free. They are stickied at the top of that forum.

Good luck.

Mike