How do I know if my struts are bad? I went to costco to get my tires balanced and stuff, 'cause the car was rattling around 80MPH and they said the struts were bad. Well, car's not rattling anymore after they balanced the tires. So how do I know if the struts need to be replaced?

 

does it feel "loose" when cornering? How about soft when over bumps? If yes to either of those then yes, you need new struts.

 

some basic guideline for strut replacement:

1. If the insides of both front or rear tires are worn with a cupping pattern on the inside struts need replacing.

2. if the car bounces even once after hitting a bump or object (the struts should just allow it to compress with no extra bumps up and down).

3. leakage of any sort

4. clunks, or other abnormal sounds

5. they are factory OEM struts with more than 60K miles on them.

any one of the above items would suggest that you need to replace the struts.

 

Hmm. If I remember correctly, they have over twice that. Haha.

Also, my steering doesn't seem to be totally linear, like the turning increases the further I turn my wheel. Would this have to do with struts? Or is it just how non-power steering works (all other cars I've driven have power sterring).

 

2 tests.

1) jump on the front and rear bumpers...bounce hard and then jump off.

if it bounces more than once, struts are bad

2) stand next to the car and push down hard on the bumper. if the sides dont come up almost exactly even, struts are bad.

(do that one on a level surface)

pat

 

How could I subject my precious 7 to such horrible and demeaning tests?! Well, maybe push hard on it, but never jump.

 

well...whatever...thats how you test struts. wear socks or something....hell i do it to mine, and ive got a $1k custom paint job and a bodykit.

pat

 

Shouldn't bounce at all. Should just return

 

Regarding mileage, I have 18 years and 120k miles on OEM struts in the front and they're fine (easily verified by the other 4 tests).

 

and you would be then amazed at how much better a new set would be.

I can tell the difference between a set of KYBs at 50 miles and at 20k miles.

 

New shocks will deteriorate that quickly? That sounds rather low quality.

 

OEM shocks are generally very cheap from my understanding. For almost any car you buy.

 

How often do coilovers need to be replaced or rebuilt?... or whatever you do to fix coilovers...

Considering they cost twice as much as a normal suspension I was just curious

 

Shouldn't bounce at all. Should just return

yeah, thats what i meant by once.

never buy oem replacement struts. you can get much better quality units for somewhat less from the performance aftermarket crowd. kyb and tokico make cheap ones that are pretty good, and can usually be found on ebay.

pat

 

Wanted to state that mileage is not always a guarantee that components need replacement. My '89TII I purchased new, still has the original suspension 176,000 miles. You can't budge the car if you push on the corners. The car just doesn't move but maybe an 1/8th inch. Maybe a gorilla might have a better chance of moving the car up and down. No leakage from any unit.
It's not unrealistic for units to last a long time without leaking or deteriorating.
First, have a look. The strut/shock should be dry. Look for oil leaks from the strut or shock. Then as above, push on each corner to check for rebound. It should spring back smoothly and not bounce. While driving if you notice an unusual lean or sway in turns, bounching when going across rough roads, sure sign that struts/shocks could need replacement.

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