Help with removing suspension.

[SeiGGy]

how the heck do I get these sway bars detached from the struts?? the bolt just spins in place when I try to turn the nut, and there doesnt seem to be a bolt head on the back of the swaybar to hold still with another wrench or anything...

 

[Toolman]

Front I assume? The front has a 8-9 mm head on the bolt. Keep it from spinning (may be worn down, and will take vise grips) and turn the large nut (18mm, sometimes 19mm).

If it is the rear, then just put your adjustable wrench in place to stop the sway bar end link from spinning.

If this is still not what you are talking about, please be more specific.

 

[SeiGGy]

oh yeah, its the front, havent put my engine all the way back together yet so I cant do the rear till tomorrow...I didnt feel a bolt on the back, but I'll go check again

 

[SuperG]

I may be wrong, but if I remember correctly, the 8mm and the 18mm are on the same side of the strut, one on top of the other...

 

[Toolman]

Correct, there is nothing on the back side.

 

[SeiGGy]

wow...ok that sucked...but I've gotten all the bolts out...now how in the world do I get the strut/spring assembly out from under the car???

 

[pjtoledo]

wow...ok that sucked...but I've gotten all the bolts out...now how in the world do I get the strut/spring assembly out from under the car???

Ok, that means you have the stabilizer bar end link nut, strut pinch bolt, tie rod nut, the (lower) ball joint bolt/nut, caliper, and the center axle nut removed, right? Rotate the spindle out a bit so you can see where the lower ball joint stub sticks up thru the spindle. Stick the tapered end of a lug wrench between the top of the ball joint stub and the CV joint,,the big round thing. Just wiggle it to get things moving, oil helps. When that is free, get a 3 or 4 foot piece of pipe, or pry bar, and wedge it between the subframe and the lower control arm with the intent of pushing down on the control arm. Then sit on it,,,forcing the pipe and control arm/ball joint stud down as you pull on the spindle and push the axle shaft out of the hub. Sometimes you need to "persuade" the axle shaft out of the hub. It does take a bit of practice to get things to work smoothly. Then those 3 nuts on top are all that hold the assemble in. You did want to take the spindle out too didn't you?? If not, you'll still need the pipe, just leave all the lower stuff bolted up and slide the spindle down off the strut. Don't get your fingers in the way on this one, things have a tendency to slip a lot faster than your reflexes can react.

Perry

 

[SeiGGy]

ok I've got the pinch bolt, and the bar that attached to the strut off, I didnt know I was supposed to take out the tie rod and the ball joing and the caliper and the center axle...damned shotimes.com instructions!

 

[pjtoledo]

I wasn't really sure how many parts you were removing, or why, so I thru in all the directions. If you want to remove only the strut and spring assembly you can leave the spindle/tie rod/control arm alone. Then it's just the sway bar end link and the pinch bolt that need removed. You still need the pipe to lower the spindle assembly. It is a bit of a wrestling match, the SHO will usually win the first few encounters.
I did two this week, have done many in the past.

Perry

 

[SeiGGy]

ok wow...after 4 hours of struggling tonight, we got all the suspension out...and I think I might be the first to say that the front was a helluva lot worse than the rear...front took us 3 hours, rear took an hour...whoever last messed with the suspension screwed up the front strut bars and overtorqued the bolt on the frame, and then the bar seemed to be angled wrong and wouldnt let the spindle slide down far enough to remove the strut, so we had to disconnect the lower control arm to get the spindle off...crazy ****...the rear came out no problem at all...and then the funny part...I happen to have the rear assembly with that large lead washer in it, so at first Terry was just gonna take it to work and use the impact wrench, but we decided to be ballzy and try something out...we took the vice on the workbench and clamped down the strut/spring sideways, took a breaker bar with I think it was a 13/16ths socket to the nut, and used a pipe wrench on the cartridge to hold it still (there were holes in the dust covers) and boom, broke right loose and then we compressed the spring and pulled the nut off...crazy easy...now wednesday the Eibach/Koni's will be here and I'll be one crazy happy dood!

 

[SuperG]

Way to go!! You should be taking pictures of this stuff...especially the installation of the new parts!

 

[SHO_Diehard]

...now wednesday the Eibach/Koni's will be here and I'll be one crazy happy dood!

I just finished my koni/eibach install. If you haven't driven a car with that setup, you're in for a great surprise. It's like the car is on rails. Also, I think I heard somewhere that you should break the konis in on the soft setting, which is actually nice for the street anyway.

Installing the koni cartridges is a pain. I used a sabre saw to cut the tops off the struts, which is the worst part. Also, after drilling the hole in the bottom to let the pressure off the strut, you can turn it right side up over an oil drain pan and pump the oil out of the strut. The directions show putting a piece of tape over the hole and dumping the oil later, when I did that it made a mess.

One last thing, Monroe makes a nice strut boot that you can use to replace the crappy original.

 

[SeiGGy]

yeah we got the tops cut off the struts (we used exaust pipe cutter rental from advanced...muhahahaha) and yeah we pumped the oil outa the drilled hole, but we just dumped it in the dirt...how much is that strut boot and does it come in different colors?? also, pictures are up here: http://www.shoforum.com/showthread.php?p=439748#post439748
has quite a few pictures from the valves, and then a few pictures after the suspension was removed, and of parts lying everywhere, oh yeah and if anyone wants my springs...I got 4 good stock springs that I'm willing to sell for 20$ + shipping hehe...

 

[SHO_Diehard]

Sorry, I don't recall the price. Kit also comes with the bump stop that goes over the shaft. No mention of colors, it's black.