Any words of advice/caution before replacing struts?
Hi. I am purchasing a set of struts from Advance Auto Parts this afternoon, and wanted to get any tips from y'all before I commence. I have a Haynes Manual as a reference for my 96 DX 1.8L Corolla.
The Haynes manual cautions about safety when compressing springs, and a friend of mine also warned me about it.I've replaced a spring on my 81 Volvo years ago, and use a spring compressor to do it. If handled correctly, I should be fine right?
I was hoping to re-use the spring and parts from my current struts and save a bunch of money.
I didn't see a write-up about this in the DIY forum.
I would make sure to have a lot of time just in case things get stuck, and have another car in case you need to get something from parts store / dealer / tire shop. On my Integra I have one strut that I couldn't compress because the metal dust boot is in the way, and I have to bring it to Firestone to have them compress it for me.
The front struts removal and installation is easy. No brake lines or sway bar connectors to deal with.
The back struts your going to need to either cut the old and new metal where the brake line is and just slide it out and into the new the one. Or your going to have to disconnect it. Which is no big deal anyways.
Also the rear sway bar connector i had a real hard time. Proper way it to use a boxed wrench with the allen key holding the stud. I found this to be very difficult. so i just took wise grips and grabbed the stud from the back and used a socket on the front. Other than that it's no problem.
I just bought complete struts so i don't know anything about switching springs over.
I would replace the strut mount too. You don't wanna end up doing it twice like what I'm about to do in a few months since i have to replace one of my rear strut mounts. Just be careful with the spring compressor. Make sure it's holding the springs correctly and compress it evenly on both sides. I had one of the compressor slip out and released the spring back which nearly smashed my fingers off...good thing I have quick reflex haha. I second the brake line thing on the rear struts having to cut them. I decided not to and just zip tied my brake lines on it. Still working fine after almost 3 years now.
I have a 93 Corolla S/W and I put new KYB struts in front/rear, links, ball joints and they are pretty easy to do. I agree with modernage in changing the strut mount because I had one of the screws that gave up after the strut was all the way on and it was the last strut getting in so I had to wait till the next day and get that part to go back and put it on. Also I suggest that you get the dust covers for the struts if they are bad or missing, I have that problem also and I have to take the back struts out because they didn't came in on time from the shop and I needed the car running asap... Other than that links are easy stuff, and if you are changing struts go ahead and do the links/ball joints too since you are working on the suspension and so you don't have to worry about it afterwards. Good luck with the installation.
Aaaargh! I just did mine. It turns out I should have slightly loosened the center strut mount nut BEFORE even jacking the car up. When I tried to remove it, the shaft just spun around.
I won't make that mistake again!
Remember, don't remove the big center nut, just loosen it slightly. It could save you a lot of grief!
I DID replace my struts and I am SO happy! The difference is unbelievable! Perhaps it IS believable, b/c any change ought to have been an improvement.
bajaclam - I wish I had loosened the top nut first myself. I ended up clamping that top plate in a vise, just tight enough for me to get the nut loose.
speedy25 - I didn't know what that was - I guess it was a bumpstop. Mine looked pretty bad, but the core seemed intact. They went back on.
modernage/locorasta - I did not replace the strut mounts, kinda b/c I'm so adhd, I needed to complete that job at that moment, or I'd have gone crazy. The appeared to be in great condition. I repacked the bearing with fresh grease (repacked is wrong term, I cleaned out the old stuff to the best of my ability and packed as much grease in there as I could).
One issue I had was that the new struts from Advance Autoparts ($62.00/apiece) had 3/8" of metal protruding beyond the piece threaded to receive the top nut. This resulted in not letting the rubber cab go back on at the end. I cut it off the 2nd strut before mounting it in the car, and then cut the one off already installed.
The rubber "gaskets" appeared to have been stretched somewhat, and didn't quite fit snugly in the mounts, as you can see at the bottom of the spring in the above photo, but oh well....
You can discard the old, tired lower spring cushion.....and simply slip a piece of reinforced fuel line or heater hose over the bottom 3/4 turn (approx.) of the spring. Does the same thing, costs very little (certainly less than a new "accessory kit" for each strut) , etc. Be sure to use reinforced hose - it will last longer than plain rubber.
Next, as for the bump stops - which tend to fall apart over time (crappy material from which they are made)....and sometimes cost as much as $20 apiece.....
Simply cut a 3 - 4" piece of suitably sized radiator hose.....and drop that over the strut rod, before reassembly. Makes a fine bump stop..... and often survives better than the original "accessory" piece.
Both of these things will work just fine - no draw backs or risk of problems.....and save you a couple of $$.
No, radiator hose will not be an adequate bump stop. Look at how hard the new ones are, look at how soft radiator hose is. Vinyl tube works better/lasts longer as a spring isolator than rubber hose. Grease it up and slide it on, you may find warming with a hair dryer makes it fit on even easier.
For the love of god, do not loose the spacer collars in the rear.
None of those make an adequate bump stop despite all your claims!
The originals are urethane and unaged are VERY tough. They tend to go to powder as they age. Generic ones are available at a reasonable price from KYB. I've recently seen they are also making the rubber top and bottom isolators for some cars too.
Do you know though, that you'll never really hit a bump stop on a rolla unless you're severely laden or like jumping the car. But really, handle a new urethane bump stop and handle the radiator hose, HUGE difference. It's like lead vs copper. Just because you've done it without problems doesn't mean it's a good idea. Plenty of people do meth for years too...
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Any words of advice/caution before replacing struts?
1993 Toyota Corolla S/W
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