Replacing Shocks And Springs

[XtRmn8]

Nice work Steve. Your workshop setup looks very similar to mine haha

I was too impatient and fitted my springs before buying new shocks ....will have to pull them back out once I get the new shocks and do it all over again.

[BenDoCo]

I got J@ to fit my Koni red and ssl's

#cozoldfat&lazy

What a huge difference in handling.........cheap bit of kit to turn a boat into a car,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,that's for sure

[whalebone4]

do you have a trick for the one under the ecu that was a pain

Use the cross wheel brace one end is 17m fits straight on takes 5 secounds.

[El Andrew]

Almost done installing new KYB shocks and King springs at all 4 corners (plus rear sway links and bushes, and front shock mount bushes) and this thread has been mega helpful.  I'll post up a couple of additional tips once I am done.

 

.  3 corners done, but having trouble on the passenger front.

 

My spring compressors weren't strong enough to install the new shocks, only good to remove old shocks so I took my top mount along with the shocks and springs to a shop and had them put together.  The driver's side went in fine, but when I put the top mount into the chassis on the driver's side, the lower mount is out by about 30 degrees.  

 

Is it as simple as putting a bar through the lower shock mount holes and twisting into alignment?  Or do I need to get the assembly disassembled and put together in correct alignment?  I wonder if I could use compressors to take the tension of the spring, maybe I could loosen the top nut and rotate the top?

 

The spring itse;f is located in the upper and lower guides correctly, so I'm guessing either the shock inner can twist in the outer to align, or does the top insultator rotate inside the top mount?

 

Any advice most appreciated!

 

Cheers

 guys

[Ralph Wiggum]

Yes you can rotate it with some force. It's tight but won't hurt the spring or shock.

 

The top hat needs to be oriented in a particular direction to prevent noise from the springs. If you haven't got a copy of the manual let me know and I'll post up the info.

[El Andrew]

Brilliant - thanks very much!  I double check the orientation of the hat on the side I've already installed too.

 

Legend as always!

[El Andrew]

Thanks again - finished off last night.  Final check over and test drive this morning and all good.

 

A couple of things I found when doing the job for anyone else looking to do this:

 

-If you are changing your shock bushes on the front at the same time (I figured I might as well, and were only $25), a G-clamp, piece of timber with a hole in it and a socket were able to press the old bushes out easily.  The Nolathane replacements are split (you insert a half from either side, then insert the metal sleeve) and so don't need to press these in.

-For the rear springs, I put a stand under the knuckle and disconnected the outer end of the rear lower control arm from the knuckle.  I could then lower the arm leaving the hub still, so didn't need to worry about brake lines.  Spring then can be removed easily and you can just jack up the control arm once the new spring is installed until the bolt to the knuckle can be re-fitted.

Edited 06/01/17 05:18 AM by El Andrew