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There are only a few things that are issues with this job... and only one thing you can break. If you need to do the job in one quick shot, order some of the items below in advance. If you have the luxury of diassembly before ordering, you can wait and see what you need.
1. The axle nuts may be very tight and hard to remove if the shafts are corroded and the nuts have never been off. Try to loosen them ahead of time to make sure you can break them free. You need a 32mm deep socket, a good breaker bar, and a pipe (or a quality impact wrench). Most stores have them in impact style.
2. The ball joint can be difficult to separate without damage to the boot. I suggest ordering replacement boots if you have not done the job before. It can be done with careful use of a wedge between the control arm and strut, but one mistake and you can ruin a boot.
3. The one part you can break is the anti-lock brake sensor mount. The bolts are often very corroded. Most people have more success removing the mount as opposed to removing the sensor from the mount. The bigger problem is that the plastic pin that locates the mount on the brake structure gets rusted in and snaps when you remove the mount. The smart money orders new mounts.
4. Remove the tie rod end nut completely before breaking the tie rod end free. Then reinstall the nut and break it free. If you break it free first then it will spin and it will be difficult to get the nut off.
5. Order new screws to replace the ones that hold the brake rotor on. Put antisieze on the new ones and you won't have trouble removing them next time. Search here for tips on getting them out BEFORE you strip them.
6. There's a link below with instructions. One thing you can cheat on is disconnecting the sway bar end link. Use a large pry bar to pry the control arm down and release the strut. If you choose to unbolt the end links, you might want to have a new set ready to go in. They tend to break if you unbolt them.
You must order new axle nuts, tie rod end nuts, and ball joint nuts. They are all one time use. As noted above, I also suggest ball joint boots, ABS sensor mounts, and end links. If the mounts are bad, I'd order the washers at the top of the strut too. You may want bearings for the struts. If you live in salt country and have over 100K miles, you might want the lower "spacer" which is a zinc plate under the spring. The bellows may or may not be worth reusing.
posted by 71.174.8...
, Wed, 24 Mar 2010 19:55:30
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