jeffsaue
Sheriff Jerry
I just finished replacing all strut assemblies, all wheel bearings, both lower ball joints, both drive axles and axle shaft seals on my wife's 99 SHO, purchased used in 2006 and now has 179K. My third SHO, and I do all my own work. I checked the forum on this subject before starting, and thought that some might find these comments useful. Appreciate the SHO Forum!
At 179K I shattered the left front strut spring. While changing the assemblies a 5 inch chunk of spring fell off the right rear when I was carrying it across the shop. That said, on high mileage cars I would recommend replacing the rear also. The car rides and drives so nice with all four changed!
I have had poor luck with front wheel bearings that were cheaper brands, 2 that lasted less than 20K. I installed Timken this time, and I have deep experience in their quality - they will last. I found the right rear wheel bearing was dry and starting to feel rough so I was glad I ordered them along with the fronts (the left front was toast again).
Very hard to pop the lower A arm from the ball joint without a puller, I purchased a Pitman Arm Puller from NAPA (Evercraft #776-9067) for $15 and it worked very well. You can borrow for free from an Oreilly's Auto if you have in your area.
The Monroe strut assemblies did not have the welded on tabs to hang the ABS sensor wires. My solution was to remove the tabs from the original struts (carefully grind because they are still under pressure) and then metal hose clamp the tabs to the new struts. Used a wire through the clamp to prevent it from loosening.
Replacing the axle seals in the tranny you will loose 1 quart of fluid (Mercon V). I used 2 inch PVC pipe to make a simple seal driver. I also used plenty of rust cutting spray to free up some of the fasteners, and some anti-sieze during assembly of some of these. I used course grade emery cloth to clean the oxidation and rust buildup from the strut mount castings and wheel centers before re-assembly.
The small external hex bolts holding the ABS sensors had an extreme amount of red permanent thread lock on them. Make sure you use a very good wrench or socket to avoid stripping these. I did not need heat, but they turned hard all the way out. I wire brushed them clean and used a small amount of temporary blue grade thread lock to install.
Jeff - Old Tuner from ND
92, 93, 99 SHO's
At 179K I shattered the left front strut spring. While changing the assemblies a 5 inch chunk of spring fell off the right rear when I was carrying it across the shop. That said, on high mileage cars I would recommend replacing the rear also. The car rides and drives so nice with all four changed!
I have had poor luck with front wheel bearings that were cheaper brands, 2 that lasted less than 20K. I installed Timken this time, and I have deep experience in their quality - they will last. I found the right rear wheel bearing was dry and starting to feel rough so I was glad I ordered them along with the fronts (the left front was toast again).
Very hard to pop the lower A arm from the ball joint without a puller, I purchased a Pitman Arm Puller from NAPA (Evercraft #776-9067) for $15 and it worked very well. You can borrow for free from an Oreilly's Auto if you have in your area.
The Monroe strut assemblies did not have the welded on tabs to hang the ABS sensor wires. My solution was to remove the tabs from the original struts (carefully grind because they are still under pressure) and then metal hose clamp the tabs to the new struts. Used a wire through the clamp to prevent it from loosening.
Replacing the axle seals in the tranny you will loose 1 quart of fluid (Mercon V). I used 2 inch PVC pipe to make a simple seal driver. I also used plenty of rust cutting spray to free up some of the fasteners, and some anti-sieze during assembly of some of these. I used course grade emery cloth to clean the oxidation and rust buildup from the strut mount castings and wheel centers before re-assembly.
The small external hex bolts holding the ABS sensors had an extreme amount of red permanent thread lock on them. Make sure you use a very good wrench or socket to avoid stripping these. I did not need heat, but they turned hard all the way out. I wire brushed them clean and used a small amount of temporary blue grade thread lock to install.
Jeff - Old Tuner from ND
92, 93, 99 SHO's
