Tech Tip of the Day

[pete c]

When doing any suspension/brake work, soak everything in sight for days ahead with PB blaster. If the strut clamping bolt fights you all the way out, be patient. Go get a torch. Have a beer while getting torch, so the blaster has time to work. Heat the knuckle around the pinch bolt. It should help. Whatever you do, do not use a breaker bar and brute force. I did yesterday. The bolt got about 4 or 5 turns out before snapping, which leads me to another tip. Keep sharp objects away when working on the SHO, as you are likely to get ****** and slit your throat/wrists.

If you do snap off the bolt, have a beer or 3. Then remove the entire spindle/strut. I was able to put it in a vice and cut the bolt either sice of the strut ****** and remove the strut. I was then able to very slowly spin the threaded part into the slot and cut it off. Doing this about 4 times got the entire threaded part out. I was then able to get the unthreaded part out with a punch.

Another suggestion. If the abs sensor doesn't come out easily, don't be a ***** and destroy it like I did. Cut the wires or follow it back to whereever it unplugs. You can splice the wires back together later.

 

[projectSHO89]

I found that backing that rear strut pinch bolt out 1/2 turn, spraying it with PB blaster, turning it back in 1/4 turn, then repeating cuts down on the sheared bolts.


Steve

 

[AutoSHO]

Tech Tip for today:

Pull out your rod shifter, and put some nice slippery grease on the 2 ball joints and the slip-joint where the rod exits the front of the box. Makes the shifting feel MUCH better, less effort, and more like a Honda.

 

[SilSho95]

When I replaced my plug well seals, I sprayed intake cleaner in them and took a rag and a compressed air hose, stuck the air hose in the plug well held the rag over the top of it, and blew the oil and cleaner out the rag soaked up the fluid. came out perfect the plug wells are bone dry.

 

[pete c]

I found that backing that rear strut pinch bolt out 1/2 turn, spraying it with PB blaster, turning it back in 1/4 turn, then repeating cuts down on the sheared bolts.


Steve

good idea steve. I thought about actually doing that this morning after snapping the (^%@%(&*#%$@ bolt on the other side. Why do those freakin' things come out so hard? I love working on 11 year old northern cars.

Looks like I am definitely gonna buy a set of gen 1 rear brakes as I have farged up both abs sensors(better than the gen II, cheaper than the '96s).

 

[masho95]

When trying to remove the ball joints (LCA's) from the knuckle and all the prying in the world isn't working for you, try giving a slight tap downwards on the end of the ball joint, right where it comes out of the top of the knuckle. Sometimes trying to open the pinch joint of the knuckle will loosen it a little but sometimes it's going to take the downward tap on it to get it going.