Strut Assembly / Rotor replacement instructions?
03-19-04, 02:37 PM
#1
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Strut Assembly / Rotor replacement instructions?
UGGH...driving along in my 84 GSL-SE and the passenger front spindle breaks off...ruins the rotor and caliper too. No fun (yet) for me going into spring.
I have a new strut assembly from a parts car and will replace...but I was wondering if anyone has step by step perspective on how to do this...tried to find it in the forum, but nothing popped up.
Some questions:
Should I assemble the new strut assembly, rotor, calipers, etc off the car or put the strut assembly on the car and then work on the rotor and calipers...
Anyone have a thought on if I should buy new rotors or if the ones from the parts car will be OK...in other words, how do you tell is a rotor is bad
And finally, should I go ahead and replace the bearings / seals on the driver side? rotor?
Thanks in advance for the help!
I have a new strut assembly from a parts car and will replace...but I was wondering if anyone has step by step perspective on how to do this...tried to find it in the forum, but nothing popped up.
Some questions:
Should I assemble the new strut assembly, rotor, calipers, etc off the car or put the strut assembly on the car and then work on the rotor and calipers...
Anyone have a thought on if I should buy new rotors or if the ones from the parts car will be OK...in other words, how do you tell is a rotor is bad
And finally, should I go ahead and replace the bearings / seals on the driver side? rotor?
Thanks in advance for the help!
03-19-04, 04:50 PM
#2
84SE-EGI helpy-helperton
Damn, that's a weird part failure. As far as the replacement part, as long as your spindle is from another 81-85 car, you should be fine. The 79's and 80's had a different strut, and the spindle is permanently mounted to the strut tube.
Assembly should be attempted off the car for safety's sake, and the ability to work on some stuff where there's more room. If you had a picture of where it broke, it might be easier to spell it out for you, but generally;
1) remove the strut cartridge from your broken spindle and tube (don't know if this is in the car or not - if so, remove the 4x14mm nuts on the shock tower and remove the whole assembly). Check the strut cartridge for damage - if you see anything bent or broken, time for a replacement.
2) remove the lower spindle/strut body from the lower control arm - remove the 2x17mm bolts (one short, one long) from the lower steering knuckle and slide off whatever parts remain. You shouldn't have to remove teh steering knuckle arm to do this work.
3) Take off the end link for your stabilizer bar to make it easier to reinstall the new parts. You may also want to loosen the 2x14mm bolts/nuts that hold the tension rod in place - this will make installation of the new strut much easier.
4) CAREFULLY, disassemble the top spring attachment perch, the thrust washers and everything (you may have done this in Step 1, above). Reinstall the old, undamaged strut in the replacement strut housing and spindle. Add the spring, bump rubber, washers etc - don't forget to add some clean motor oil to bathe the strut cartridge. This allows for better cooling of the strut.
5) Slide the replacement assembly (assm.) into the strut tower and mount the top loosely. Slide the strut base over the steering knuckle and tighten the 2x17mm bolts, reinstall the 2x14mm bolts/nuts for the tension rod, and the stabilizer bar end link.
6) For the rotor, you can probably use your old bearings, but I would go with new ones just to be safe. Pack the new bearings with grease and then install them to your replacement rotor. Put the grease seal on, then the spindle, the castellated nut to the specified turning torque (13-15 ft/lbs), and then the cotter pin bent over to prevent turning. Lastly, put the dust cap back on to seal the outter bearing.
The rest you can likely figure out. Let us know how it goes - those of us who have changed out to high performance springs have done basically the same work, so there are a lot of users here with experience. Good luck,
Assembly should be attempted off the car for safety's sake, and the ability to work on some stuff where there's more room. If you had a picture of where it broke, it might be easier to spell it out for you, but generally;
1) remove the strut cartridge from your broken spindle and tube (don't know if this is in the car or not - if so, remove the 4x14mm nuts on the shock tower and remove the whole assembly). Check the strut cartridge for damage - if you see anything bent or broken, time for a replacement.
2) remove the lower spindle/strut body from the lower control arm - remove the 2x17mm bolts (one short, one long) from the lower steering knuckle and slide off whatever parts remain. You shouldn't have to remove teh steering knuckle arm to do this work.
3) Take off the end link for your stabilizer bar to make it easier to reinstall the new parts. You may also want to loosen the 2x14mm bolts/nuts that hold the tension rod in place - this will make installation of the new strut much easier.
4) CAREFULLY, disassemble the top spring attachment perch, the thrust washers and everything (you may have done this in Step 1, above). Reinstall the old, undamaged strut in the replacement strut housing and spindle. Add the spring, bump rubber, washers etc - don't forget to add some clean motor oil to bathe the strut cartridge. This allows for better cooling of the strut.
5) Slide the replacement assembly (assm.) into the strut tower and mount the top loosely. Slide the strut base over the steering knuckle and tighten the 2x17mm bolts, reinstall the 2x14mm bolts/nuts for the tension rod, and the stabilizer bar end link.
6) For the rotor, you can probably use your old bearings, but I would go with new ones just to be safe. Pack the new bearings with grease and then install them to your replacement rotor. Put the grease seal on, then the spindle, the castellated nut to the specified turning torque (13-15 ft/lbs), and then the cotter pin bent over to prevent turning. Lastly, put the dust cap back on to seal the outter bearing.
The rest you can likely figure out. Let us know how it goes - those of us who have changed out to high performance springs have done basically the same work, so there are a lot of users here with experience. Good luck,
03-19-04, 05:39 PM
#3
Speed Thrills
Join Date: Aug 2003
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Couple of warnings the trailing arm and or the sway bar may have some tension on them so I would disconnect the sway bar on both sides before loosening the strut then support the lower control arm with a jack and then loosen the trailing arm. Then lower the jack. Other than that long duck's instructions are awesome.
