How hard is it to do a suspension?

[Raven18940]

My stock suspension has too much body roll and the rear has become badly worn. I want to install H&R sport springs and Koni sport shock/struts, but I'm unsure what would be involved. Is this DIY job?

[99SL2_Modder]

My stock suspension has too much body roll and the rear has become badly worn. I want to install H&R sport springs and Koni sport shock/struts, but I'm unsure what would be involved. Is this DIY job?

Macpherson style is simple as pie, while conventional can be trying at times.

Which do you have? I can loan you Macpherson style spring compressors so you can yank the strut mounts and boots off of your front, but the last time I tried to do conventional, I got hung up on the rear end.

[Raven18940]

Macpherson up front and I guess it's conventional in the rear.

[LSHatch]

Guys with balls don't need spring compressors.

I've done plenty of suspension swaps. The S2k, supposedly one of the hardest to do, I completed in two hours pretty much alone. And that was removing stock springs, slipping on coilover sleeves, jacking up, yada yada, breaks.

If you have any simple idea on how to work with nuts and bolts, you will be fine. You're trunk carpeting might be a pain in the ass to remove.

[Adam496]

I did mine on a saturday with a trip to the dealer to get some parts. Not the hardest thing to do if you read up on what you have to do before hand.

[Raven18940]

I did mine on a saturday with a trip to the dealer to get some parts. Not the hardest thing to do if you read up on what you have to do before hand.
That's why I started this thread, I'm pretty handy, but I've never done suspension work. So what would be the steps in swapping out a Macpherson strut?

[2point4DSM]

I did mine on a saturday with a trip to the dealer to get some parts. Not the hardest thing to do if you read up on what you have to do before hand.

Just don't mess around when you got the spring compressed and you shouldn't have to go to the ER, lol.

Seriously, it's easy but dangerous if you aren't careful.

Keep in mind, easy, is a relative word. You might have to take your back seats out just to drop the rears. Taking seats out can be really fun, sometimes.

And easy is also a work used by people with experience. First time people might need to have a spare car just in case things go bad and it can't be used for the ride to work on Monday, lol.

[Raven18940]

Keep in mind, easy, is a relative word. You might have to take your back seats out just to drop the rears. Taking seats out can be really fun, sometimes.
Actually I think the bolts that hold the rear shock on are on the outside of the car.

[99SL2_Modder]

That's why I started this thread, I'm pretty handy, but I've never done suspension work. So what would be the steps in swapping out a Macpherson strut?


Depending on how it's mounted:

-Open your hood.
-Take off the wheel you're working on. (with car jacked, of course)
-Loosen the strut to knuckle bolts BUT DO NOT REMOVE.
-Go up top, remove the strut mount bolts (but not the upper strut nut)
-Go back down, yank the strut to knuckle bolts. Different cars react differently. Either your axle will drop down (lower it carefully onto the rubber of your tire), or it will go up. If it goes up, push it down using the knuckle as leverage, and wiggle the strut out carefully.
-Take your spring compressors, put them on either side of the springs, and start turning.
-Once the spring is compressed, take off the strut nut, remove strut mount, pull off the boot too if you want to reuse it.
-uncompress spring and sell on Saab board
-compress new spring, put onto new strut (fitted with boot or not, up to you)
-with spring compressed, put upper strut nut back on tight
-uncompress spring.
-fit strut back into hole, lining up the strut mount correctly. (strut will turn if the strut to knuckle braket isn't lined up. It's ok).
-quickly while holding the strut there, finger spin the top nuts
-put the bolts into the strut to knucle, and torque to spec.
-tighted down upper nuts
-put on wheel
-lower car
-repeat.

(I have 4 macphersons. It was simple)

*edit*
Careful when removing the strut mount. They have a habit of exploding if you yank on it, then you'll need a new one. Grab the rubber bumpstop too.

[99SL2_Modder]

Actually I think the bolts that hold the rear shock on are on the outside of the car.

Mine were in the back under the rear deck carpeting for my macphersons, but you're correct. Conventional is all outside, 99% of the time.

[MuddyREX]

I swapped my suspension out to STi strut/springs/tophats in under 3 hours. Getting my lugnuts off of my wheels took the longest amount of time.

[99SL2_Modder]

I swapped my suspension out to STi strut/springs/tophats in under 3 hours. Getting my lugnuts off of my wheels took the longest amount of time.

Mine took 3 days cause the strut mount exploded and I had to order new ones. Jerks sent me 2 rears instead of 2 fronts. (so now I have all new ones all the way around).

I coulda had it done in about 3 hours too. Stupid strut mount.

[igo4bmx]

took me a while to do it my first time

now it takes me one hour to do my own ****

[TurboTagTeam]

When I put my coilovers on the first time the bolt holding the stock shocks onto the LCA broke inside the LCA. That really the only thing you have to look out for.

You dont need a spring compressor. Just use a belt to keep the spring compressed when you pop off the pillow ball mount. But just incase dont dont stand over it.

[99SL2_Modder]

I'd rather be safe than be sorry. Those springs are under a lot of tension.

[DropTopChevy]

I had to tear so much stuff out of my car and take out a cross brace behind the rear seats. Convertables Teh suck. I know for a fact that the spring compressor is $11.99 at Harbor Freight at the Franklin Mills.

Miller

[markley02]

May not have been the smartest thing to do, but I compressed my springs with rachet straps.

[2point4DSM]

First time I did mine, my buddy who was suppose to have experience with suspension tells me to undo the center top nut before taking the struts out. Mmmm, yeah... thanks for an extra 3 hours of trying to figure a way to compress that spring with a pepboys spring compressor and no room, lol. :)

Now that I've got lowered springs I don't need a spring compressor anymore. That and all the right tools I can do my car in about an hour.

Not to mention, I lube everything when I put new stuff on. Otherwise, stock 1g DSM rear struts have a tendency to rust weld themselves to the lower mounting point. Normally, this involves cutting the stock strut mounting point into pieces, lol.

[SexyDSM95]

When I did mine on the GSX I didn't have a spring compressor. Thank God at the time I lived near the woods so I just pointed the strut/spring assembly out that way and just started cranking on it. For some reason the top nut on the strut didn't shoot off so I got lucky there. I would recommend using a spring compressor (only $30-40 at Autozone and you get your money back) as a safety precaution. Better to be safe then to be sorry. Trust me, if I (a girl) can do it in 3 hours with hand tools the first time so can you.

P.S. And yes Wil, I did torque everything when I was done.

[sfd]

I love/hate doing my suspension. Got it down to an hour now. 8 bolts per strut and smile.

[Bizee]

When I did mine on the GSX I didn't have a spring compressor. Thank God at the time I lived near the woods so I just pointed the strut/spring assembly out that way and just started cranking on it. For some reason the top nut on the strut didn't shoot off so I got lucky there. I would recommend using a spring compressor (only $30-40 at Autozone and you get your money back) as a safety precaution. Better to be safe then to be sorry. Trust me, if I (a girl) can do it in 3 hours with hand tools the first time so can you.

P.S. And yes Wil, I did torque everything when I was done.

you would think after all that you would be able to change your own thermostat..

[blkbomber01]

spring and shocks/struts are a good start... you also might want to get bigger sway bars (front and rear), there a big part of body roll too. if your still not happy after that think about getting urathane(spelling?) control arm bushings... they might make a kit that will do the whole car. your car should be tight as a drum then

[htheduck]

Actually it would depend on the exact model type of Konis. Some Konis are strut INSERTS where you have to re-use the OE strut housing. This would require some cutting/perhaps welding tools for installation.