Struts

[hippiehulahooper]

my front seems tight, they hit hard. I can feel the energy transferred to my body. I don't like it. and the back seems to shake after blow. like the springs are good and the strut is wearing but not totally gone. I took it over some speed bumps to try and isolate the front and back.

I also did the bentley fender push down test and they only shook once then stopped. but I can feel a lingering bounce while driving. I can really feel it in a turn if I hit a bump. it transfers to the steering wheel.

help.
thanks

[1.6D-Nut]

Bad front strut bearings??? Just a guess.

[ahistand]

Sounds to me like the strut inserts are just BAD. You didnt mention having changed them....why are you assuming they're good? The Bentley "push on the fender" test.....forget it. It will pass that sometimes if the shocks are trashed. Everything you are describing to me sounds like your strut inserts are just gone. Of course, when you replace them you may as well also do the strut bearings. If it "wallows" in a corner, and if you hit a bump mid-corner and it throws off your line, they're surely trash....The inserts I mean.

[Vdub-bub]

My suspension seems fine, but when entering a corner at highway speed, especially left, the car suddenly oversteers all by itself. You have to be on your toes when this happens as it can cause you to swerve into oncoming traffic. Could this be caused by these same inserts?

[JRM]

Dude mine does the same exact same thing, if my left front tire drives over 1/4 inch thick yellow line on a 70mph sweeping left hand turn the entire car tryis to knife in and smack the guard rale! I suppose a strut rebuild is in order, I know when its on the lift i can grab one tire and move it up and down by a couple inches and left right by a half inch without the other tire moveing at all- how much more involved are the front as I have rebuilt the rear with ease.

[ahistand]

YES to all of you! Replace your strut inserts! Theyre cheap! You can get a nice set of Boge stock inserts or even Boge Turbogas (which are supposed to be a little stiffer) for like $40 a piece. Or, if you don't want to mess with taking out the insert, you can buy the whole damn strut....even with new springs if you like. If you buy just the inserts, you will need to rent a spring compressor from your local auto parts supply store. Usually they rent them for a deposit, then you get the whole deposit back.

I'm no physicist, but I think the reason why these cars go wonky when the shocks are bad in a sweeping corner is this: In a corner like that, your car takes a "set" according to how much the springs are compressed, remember the shocks are only there to resist the boing-boing action of the springs. So, when your car hits a bump mid-corner, with good shocks it can take that bump and not let it throw the springs into a oscillation. When your shocks are trash, the springs now begin to oscillate tossing the lateral load from side to side....and even if this happens once, it will seem like the car wants to veer off. Also, when your suspension compresses, there is some variation now in camber and even caster and this also changes the direction your car will steer. So, if this bouncing action of the springs is not controlled properly it simply changes the whole dynamics of your suspension for the worst. THese cars are light, so they really are sensitive to these changes maybe more-so than other more modern vehicles.

So, people, if your struts are even in question, replace them. You can do a front insert and strut bearing job for about $130. What a deal. Your car will feel like new.

Be sure to check all your ball joints and stuff like that when your down there. If theyre bad, nows the time to do it. And there again....theyre really cheap.

[VanagonExpress]

If the top mount is wore out, you can get a lot of play that changes the steering dynamics

the struts may be fine, but that metal top mount that has ball bearings and attaches to the body can be a pain

I had a 90 Carat that would literally jump from one lane to another and only on the long slopping left turn on the freeway

replaced the strut mounts on top and bingo....no mo' wondering---and noise

[JRM]

sounds like a plan, im sure this is the cause of my "bonk bonk" noises in slow parking lot turns and also my Knifeing in issue on high speed bumps in the pavement. When I replaced my drivers side axle I had the strut loose and I was amazed at how much I could move it- It was like 2" up and down and feet left and right when taken loose from the lower arm.
Do I really need a spring compressor? Cant I just un-do the top nut with the car on the ground then lift it up and watch the entire strut fall apart?

[Fatmobile]

The strut tops aren't like the Rabbit ones.
If you remove the top nut the struts won't fall apart. That nut just keeps the struts from falling out the bottom when you jack up the car. The struts are supposed to move up and down when the car is lifted.
There is another nut below it that releases tension on the spring.
I always think tie rod or ball joint when a car turns suddenly, on ridges or irregularities in the road.

[3Bunnys]

I made a bracket that clamps to my Log Splitter so I can use it as a strut compressor..(it compresses the entire strut assembly, I remove nut and then decompress assembly). works great.... the clampy things that compress the spring are OK.. but you will find them tiresome if you can find something better...

OH Yes ,, and that top nut on end of strut that just won't come off....
Impact wrench will zip it right off.... don't even have to clamp the strut rod... impact wrench hits so hard and so fast it has the nut off before that rod even thinks about turning!!!
Richard

[tylernt]

In my experience, the oversteer when turning and hitting a bump is rear shocks, especially if there is an accompanying shudder. The rear shocks are so cheap and so laughably easy to replace (jack up the car, remove the top nut from inside car, remove bottom bolt under car) you might just start there, then see where you are at with the fronts. If you can, get new rear shock bushings (there's an upper and a lower on each side). New ones can reduce road noise and the old ones sometimes rattle if re-used.

Clunks in the front can have a lot of causes. Strut bearings, tie rods, ball joints, control arm bushings, steering rack brackets loose, steering column bearing worn (does your steering wheel move up and down like it has tilt steering?), loose brake pads or caliper...

I love the log splitter spring compressor idea -- clever.

[hippiehulahooper]

In my experience, the oversteer when turning and hitting a bump is rear shocks, especially if there is an accompanying shudder. The rear shocks are so cheap and so laughably easy to replace (jack up the car, remove the top nut from inside car, remove bottom bolt under car) you might just start there, then see where you are at with the fronts. If you can, get new rear shock bushings (there's an upper and a lower on each side). New ones can reduce road noise and the old ones sometimes rattle if re-used.

Clunks in the front can have a lot of causes. Strut bearings, tie rods, ball joints, control arm bushings, steering rack brackets loose, steering column bearing worn (does your steering wheel move up and down like it has tilt steering?), loose brake pads or caliper...

yeah I am going to start with the rear. sounds like they are easier and it will give me a break in process for the front. the space between my rear wheels and the fender is considerably lower then the front wheels and fender. and I don't have the weight of the engine in the rear.

as to the rear bushings I assume that is what the bentley refers to as the rubber bearings upper and lower.

parts in bentley:
nut
cap ( thrust washer )
rubber bearing / bushing ( upper )
cover
rubber bearing / bushing ( lower )
nut
spacer
upper spring seat
washer
support / rubber bushing
buffer / strut bumper / bump stop
protective sleeve / dust sleeve / dust boot
protective cap
coil spring
circlip
support
lower spring seat
shock absorber

[tylernt]

Yeah, those rubber donut lookin things. KYB makes a "Shock mounting kit" part #SM5070 that should do the trick.



My old ones were squished crooked, so the shock was allowed to rattle against the body.

[hippiehulahooper]

so that's all you usually need, #SM5070, and reuse everything else?

[tylernt]

Yeah, the new shock should come with a new nylock top nut and everything else except the shock insert itself can be re-used (if it doesn't come with a new nut for some reason, you can loc-tite the old nut on. They aren't under a lot of stress but you don't want it to come loose!).

There is a rubber "buffer / strut bumper / bump stop" for when you hit a bump so bad the shock cannot handle it (or if you put too much weight in the back), but as long as your old bump stop isn't falling to pieces, it should be fine to re-use it.