I've run into this a few times lately where for some unknown reason full strut assemblies are not available. Other than possibly the age of the car resulting in very low demand I can't think of an explanation. I would also be inclined to be suspect of any claims on Ebay about rear assemblies also working for the front, though I avoid Ebay for just about everything auto part related because of rampant counterfeit and the worst quality parts you can find.

As for junkyard parts, I can't imagine those being helpful on a car this age for suspension components. They would likely be as bad as the ones already on the car. The real answer here is to buy the struts, springs, and mounts and have the mechanic assemble them himself. In a sense it defeats the purpose of an assembly saving labor time, but if you really want to refresh the suspension it's really the only choice. Only you can decide at what point the rest of the car isn't worth spending the money, but I always make these kinds of decisions based on what I know about the rest of the car and what the proposed repair cost will buy me as a replacement car. If spending $1,200 on an $800 car makes it reliable for 6-12 months or longer and that same $1,200 potentially only buys me a car that needs another $1,200 spent on it or more then the decision is easy.

 

Just to be clear, you're saying you need a whole new strut body? Not just the shock absorber?
If so then I can't find fronts either. I would be VERY surprised if the fronts fit on the back. JY might be your best bet, but there might be someone on here with some spares floating around. In any case, KYB still makes inserts so you could freshen them up if you can find a pair with replaceable inserts.

 

What Toyota refers to as the shell is the strut housing where the shock absorber insert and a bunch of other parts live see here. KYB has only the insert for the fronts so you'll have to disassemble your strut and hope it is usable. The front and rear struts are way different not interchangeable.

 

Ok, thanks for the information so far.

Yes, the mechanic is saying I need to replace the strut housing (I believe him- I can hear the rattling). I figured the fronts and rears were not interchangeable which is a bummer. @Pkrface - good suggestion re: the junkyard. The car just crested 100k miles and runs like a champion, albeit a limping, noisey one at the moment. So I am willing to invest in it.

@71Corolla - thanks for the schematic and information. It is as I feared.

@TheFlyingDutchman - solid recommendation on folks who may have parts. I'll reach out under the sale forums. It is really my last shot.

Thanks again for all the help,
SD

 

Unless the strut body is rusty (which is possible), I see no reason to replace it. Just peak under there with the wheels cut fully to one side and take a look for yourself. You can even take a picture and post it to get our opinions.

The knocking sounds could be from the strut tops or the strut internals...

-Charlie

 

^ It's also possible that the strut body is bent, or that the knuckle bolt holes are somehow elongated or worn.
But, I would be surprised. Rust is the most likely.

@TheDilk if the strut bodies are not damaged then I suspect that your mechanic is not aware that the inserts can be replaced. It's not a common design anymore.

 

This has been discussed before but I don't remember the details, is there oil in the strut housing? I don't mean the shock itself.

 

OE or aftermarket?
The OE shock guts are exposed inside the housing (sort of, its a twin-tube design). So there will be oil in the housing. I don't remember if mine were pressurized or not, but I would think they were originally.
All the aftermarket cartridges are fully sealed, so none of that oil would be in the housing. However, I'd suggest adding some oil to the inside of the housing to help reject heat.

 

The old Z cars had cartridge replacements, where the originals used the strut housing as part of the shock absorbing function. First month of production was November 1969 for the 240Z and they used that design until 1978 (end of production). Not sure if the 280 ZX's used the same design, but if you take the assembly out and compress the spring, then you might be able to remove the large nut on top and actually replace the innards with a strut "insert" cartridge.

 

Not sure if anybody has torn them down as far as I did. If so, lets talk!

Also, @TheDilk - sorry to hijack your thread, we can move elsewhere if you're getting tired of the notifications.

@71Corolla
So the OE damper (aka shock) is a twin tube design.
The strut body acts as the outer tube. There is a second tube which fits inside the body.
The piston (at the end of the shaft) rides on the inside of the second tube. At the top of the tube is a seal where the shaft passes through. At the bottom of the tube is a valve/shimstack.
The entire assembly is exposed to oil. The inner tube is completely full of oil to prevent frothing. The outer tube is partially full with oil with some gas space.

Shaft & Piston

Partial shimstack close up. I believe this is the compression stack but it's been a while.

Piston body & shims

Base valve parts

In short, the OE damper cartridge requires that the strut body has oil in it for it to function. Without this oil there will be no damping.
Aftermarket cartridges will probably benefit from oil in the strut body, but are not critical for the function of the damper (at least until it gets too hot).

 

Great info thanks!

 

I might have pictures of this.

I believe 1984-1986 is cartridge style. There’s a big nut on the “strut” andthat can be remove to side out the cartridge . I believe gen1-2 has this. I also seen where the early 1983 didn’t have this? And also could had sworn some gen2 didn’t have the cartridge ?

when I did them in my gen1, the factory (seems like it all original) was cartridge style

Clunking for me in the past was partly due to the nut backing off causing the cartridge to rattle in the “shell” or worn out lower control arm bushings...

 

And also could had sworn some gen2 didn’t have the cartridge ?

Yeah, some did, some didn't. The gen2 was built in two different countries and over 5 years, so there were some production changes (and differences between country of origin).

-Charlie

 

@TheFlyingDutchman - no worries at all, I welcome any and all information. When this repair does get done, I'll be sure to follow up. As I mentioned, I am in awe of everyone's knowledge!

@white90dx - great suggestion, I'll do that tonight and have a look. To give more background, what specifically happened was that I had paid a different mechanic to replace all the struts. We have some pretty rough roads (Glenwood Canyon section of I-70 I'm looking right at you), and the front passenger's side struts had given out after the abuse. After the repair, I took the car for a test drive and noticed the horrific clunking. I brought it back, the mechanics (Alpine tire in Glenwood Springs- DO NOT go there if you can help it), telling them of the noise. They said they could not figure it out (old car etc etc). So I drove it for a week and then brought it to my other mechanic, who said specifically, "They didn't tighten the bolt down tight enough and as a result, the assembly itself broke from the movement." What was telling was that Mechanic 2 was able to diagnose the issue in 10 minutes whereas Alpine tire folks had the car for a day and claimed they had no idea what was making the noise. I am thus assuming it is fairly obvious...

So that is how it happened, but I will still be looking tonight as per your suggestion.

Thanks as usual.