terryk2003 Posted April 16, 2005 Report Share Posted April 16, 2005 well, i installed my KYB's on the rear of my car the other day...that sure was funn ...anywayz, the top bolts were rusted in there...and they were a BITCH to get loose..but, after a can of Blaster and hours of working them back and forth i finally got them free...the book said you need some special tool to compress the rear spring, but, i'm not sure WTF it does cause i just put a jack under the control arm to hold the rear end up and pulled the strut out...i gotta get it alligned next week...BUT, here are some pix i took... the rear end deffinatly feels firmer then it did with the stock struts...the stock ones were pretty much junk anywayz...they were leaking...i ended up replecing the mounts and the boots and everything...make installation much easier... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GP1138 Posted April 16, 2005 Report Share Posted April 16, 2005 How much did this cost, and how long did it take? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terryk2003 Posted April 16, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 16, 2005 took me about 2 hrs...woulda been alot less if the top mounting bolts wouldnt have been such a PITA...cost me about $230 for all the parts... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DiscoStudd Posted April 17, 2005 Report Share Posted April 17, 2005 Could you get an air ratchet in there to get the mount bolts loose, or did it take you that long to "manually" remove them? Did you even bother removing the nut at the top of the strut, or did you just leave it on there? One last question: Did you transfer over the "bump stops" (or whatever they're called) from the old struts to the new ones? (I'm talking about those orange "sleeves" that go over the shaft and are hidden by the boot...) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terryk2003 Posted April 17, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 17, 2005 Could you get an air ratchet in there to get the mount bolts loose, or did it take you that long to "manually" remove them? Did you even bother removing the nut at the top of the strut, or did you just leave it on there? One last question: Did you transfer over the "bump stops" (or whatever they're called) from the old struts to the new ones? (I'm talking about those orange "sleeves" that go over the shaft and are hidden by the boot...) i coulda got an air ratchet or impact wrench in there...,BUT, i wasnt about to risk breaking one of those bolts...their a BITCH to drill back out (i've done it before :oops: )so, i did it manually, working the bolts back and forth til they got freed up good..and, i took the nut off the top of the first strut (after i had it outta the car) in an effort to re-use the old boot...that was a mistake...by the time i got that rusted POS apart the boot was junk...and that bump stop came with my new boot kit i bought...my old one was ripped in half, and since thats what holds the boot in place i had to get new boot kits... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
19Cutlass94 Posted April 17, 2005 Report Share Posted April 17, 2005 isnt there some kinda special tool that you have to have to remove the struts because thats what the olds dealer told me when I had new struts put in all around Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terryk2003 Posted April 17, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 17, 2005 isnt there some kinda special tool that you have to have to remove the struts because thats what the olds dealer told me when I had new struts put in all around theres some messed up lookin tool in the service manual i looked @...it compresses the spring...i didnt see any need for it...i guess if i had that tool i coulda taken both of them out @ the same time... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
19Cutlass94 Posted April 17, 2005 Report Share Posted April 17, 2005 thats really stinks cuz I coulda saved soo much money if I did it myself as compared to having them do it..... but Ill keep that in mind next time I need new ones damn car dealerships always looking for money Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dirty Rockstar Posted April 17, 2005 Report Share Posted April 17, 2005 I just bought a set of 4 for 180 bucks shipped.. I can't wait until I get them 8) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terryk2003 Posted April 17, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 17, 2005 I just bought a set of 4 for 180 bucks shipped.. I can't wait until I get them 8) well...if you're planning on replacing the upper mounts be prepared to spend @ least $40 each...they were $80 each list price @ napa, but i got them for $40 @ mechanic cost...the boot kits were another $12 each...so, it'll add up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DiscoStudd Posted April 17, 2005 Report Share Posted April 17, 2005 One more question: Did you use an impact on the 2 large nuts, or were you able to bust those loose with a breaker bar? Also, as far as removing those bolts, would a hammer suffice, or is it necessary to use an air chisel (with a "hammer" bit) ? Reason for asking is that when I replaced the front struts on my old 85 Grand Am, we had to use an "Impact" to get the nuts loose. We then used an air chisel with a "hammer" bit to drive the bolts out because trying to get them out using a regular ole hammer was next to impossible. The bolts had both a "spline" and a taper to them, almost necessitating the use of an air chisel to get them out. Basically what I'm trying to get at is this: Is it possible to change the rear struts and mounts with hand tools, or am I going to have to borrow someone's compressor and air tools to get the job done??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terryk2003 Posted April 17, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 17, 2005 i used ALLL hand tools...i used a breaker bar for the lower bolts and just hammerd them out with a BFH...for the top i just used a long handle 3/8 ratchet with a 15mm socket...i just had to keep working it back and forth and spraying them down with blaster from the top so they wouldnt break off... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dirty Rockstar Posted April 17, 2005 Report Share Posted April 17, 2005 I have all new mounts and boots.. Complete.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DiscoStudd Posted April 17, 2005 Report Share Posted April 17, 2005 That's encouraging! I'm not going to attempt this for at least another 2-3 months, though. I've got the Regal sitting in storage until we move into a house, which will be either June or July, so after then I'll have my car "home" and can tear into it as I please... Thanks for the pointers!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
94CutlassSLCoupe Posted April 18, 2005 Report Share Posted April 18, 2005 When i did it, it was really easy...just use the bolt supplied to compress the auxillary spring...other than that it is NO PROBLEM... BTW: Even my cheapie Monroe Gasmatics were much stiffer than my originals. I just cant see spending money on KYB's when the car handles like its on rails now. Another thing to do for those of you with no rear sway bar would be to add one from a DOHC car...the best money and time you will ever spend on your suspension. You have to take one of the struts out for it anyways so you might as well do it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terryk2003 Posted April 18, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 18, 2005 When i did it, it was really easy...just use the bolt supplied to compress the auxillary spring...other than that it is NO PROBLEM.... FWIW: the suspension on the '95-'97's are apparently different...because i have no aux. spring...i've done the older lumina's before @ work and i thought i'd be similar...well, when i started working on it i found out i was wrong... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DiscoStudd Posted April 18, 2005 Report Share Posted April 18, 2005 I have the Aux springs on my Regal. Will having them cause any problems whilst changing the struts? Or I should say, will they pop out if I don't compress them? As you can tell, I'm a newb when it comes to working on IRS's with strut assemblies (not to mention the monoleaf.) All of my old cars that I replaced "struts" on had solid-beam axles and good old fashioned shocks in the back... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terryk2003 Posted April 18, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 18, 2005 I have the Aux springs on my Regal. Will having them cause any problems whilst changing the struts? Or I should say, will they pop out if I don't compress them? As you can tell, I'm a newb when it comes to working on IRS's with strut assemblies (not to mention the monoleaf.) All of my old cars that I replaced "struts" on had solid-beam axles and good old fashioned shocks in the back... you'll need to compress the auxillary springs then...some strut kits come with a bolt to compres it...or i've used a big c-clamp before... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GnatGoSplat Posted April 18, 2005 Report Share Posted April 18, 2005 Yeah, they'll pop out if you don't compress them because the bolts that hold them in are the same that hold the strut in. A long bolt is all you need to compress them, although I forget the size of the bolt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DiscoStudd Posted April 18, 2005 Report Share Posted April 18, 2005 Cool, thanks guys! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian P Posted April 18, 2005 Report Share Posted April 18, 2005 Inquiring minds want to know if your ride height increased??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terryk2003 Posted April 18, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 18, 2005 ...look @ my thread in the members rides section...see for yourself... on a side note: it may be because i havent had it aligned yet... :? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian P Posted April 19, 2005 Report Share Posted April 19, 2005 I dunno either you have different springs all around or those KYB's are causing shit, because my front and rear sits lower than yours. Last thing I want is to raise it. Do you have an ass end shot so I can see how far off the rear alignment is? If you have the camber in the + direction I can see this affecting ride height just a little, but not much. I may just go with monroe Reflex struts, they didn't alter the height of my '89 one bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terryk2003 Posted April 19, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 19, 2005 I dunno either you have different springs all around or those KYB's are causing shit, because my front and rear sits lower than yours. Last thing I want is to raise it. Do you have an ass end shot so I can see how far off the rear alignment is? If you have the camber in the + direction I can see this affecting ride height just a little, but not much. I may just go with monroe Reflex struts, they didn't alter the height of my '89 one bit. i don't have a ass shot after the kyb install...BUT, the wheel is tilted in a bit @ the top...so its riding a lil on the edge of the tire...hopefully i can get her aligned this week or next...some old timers i've talked to said the struts won't affect the ride height of the car @ all...said its prolly my alignment being off... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian P Posted April 19, 2005 Report Share Posted April 19, 2005 oh BTW did you keep your old struts around? If they weren't knocking around I may be interested in them for the car I'm selling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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