OlderThanMe Posted March 20, 2006 Share Posted March 20, 2006 I got somespring compressors and I compressed the spring and I tried to losen the top nut but the strut just spins. HOW DO I LOSEN THE TOP NUT??? I sprayed lubricant on it and it will not budge...even with holding the hat still. Thanks for your help Dan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMortensen Posted March 20, 2006 Share Posted March 20, 2006 If you're changing the strut you can grab the shaft with a pair of pliers. I usually put them on and take them off with an impact. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OlderThanMe Posted March 20, 2006 Author Share Posted March 20, 2006 I just don't have the luxury of any air tools unfortunately. I am planning on switching them out for illuminas. I just need to bid on some on evilbay... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fastzcars Posted March 20, 2006 Share Posted March 20, 2006 I get a piece of rubber from an old bicycle innertube and I put the in a bench vise. But a impact wrench works best. Maybe you could take the struts to a local mecahnic or a tire shop and they could loosen them up for you. I don't think they'll charge you much if anything at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMortensen Posted March 20, 2006 Share Posted March 20, 2006 If you take them off by grabbing the shaft with a pair of pliers you can put the new ones on by squeezing the bumpstop with a pair of pliers, but be careful not to slip and scratch the strut. Then once you get the new ones on reasonably tight you can follow fastzcars advice and drive to a shop. I forgot to say this before--DO NOT LET THEM GO CRAZY WITH THE IMPACT! I had a friend rip the top of the strut off of one of his Illuminas trying to get it "extra tight". I think the spec is ~40 ft/lbs, but you might want to double check that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BARACU Posted March 20, 2006 Share Posted March 20, 2006 I put some small pieces of hose over the studs, to protect the threads sticking out of the top hat. Put a long screwdriver or bar between two of the studs, hold the screwdriver to keep the strut insulator hat from turning , then just loosen the nut. Same goes for installing it. AL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OlderThanMe Posted March 20, 2006 Author Share Posted March 20, 2006 taking it to a shop would be a bit of a hastle because I just unbolted the entire suspension...I just unbolted the rear control arms and the top of the strut from the car...I guess I could just toss it all in the back of the FORD Exploder and take it to a shop somewhere. thanks for the replies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OlderThanMe Posted March 20, 2006 Author Share Posted March 20, 2006 BARACUI put some small pieces of hose over the studs, to protect the threads sticking out of the top hat. Put a long screwdriver or bar between two of the studs, hold the screwdriver to keep the strut insulator hat from turning , then just loosen the nut. Same goes for installing it. AL I tried that but the strut just spun inside it...oh well it was a good idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oinojo Posted March 20, 2006 Share Posted March 20, 2006 i thought the top hat needs to be removed with an allen hex wrench and a box open wrench... thats how mine is setup. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lunar240z Posted March 20, 2006 Share Posted March 20, 2006 i loosened them with a breaker bar with them on the car. it made it a lot easier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
80LS1T Posted March 20, 2006 Share Posted March 20, 2006 Just throw a pair of vise grips on the shaft and remove the old strut since your going to replace it anyways. When installing it you can put a pair of vise grips on the shaft but do it at the very very top. That part of the shaft will never see the seal in the strut so if it gets a littel scratched it wont matter. I personally use an impact wrench to remove and install that nut. Dont really have to worry about damaging anything then, but you don't have that option. Guy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pop N Wood Posted March 20, 2006 Share Posted March 20, 2006 The top hat is suppose to have a D shaped hole that locks to the D shaped strut rod. If the strut rod is turning inside the top hat, then the top hat hole is most likely worn into a round hole. If this is what is happening, then you REALLY NEED to replace the top hat so it locks the strut slider properly. My old Z had a knocking noise in the front end when I got it. Didn't find the source of the noise until I upgraded the struts. Good thing too, because with that hole being oversized, the strut rod moved enough in the top hat that it wore half way through the rod. If you can't get the strut rod to lock to the top hat, then there is no way you will be able to torque that nut to the proper torque. If the nut is at all loose and allows the rod any wiggle room, then it could start to wear. That is the only thing holding that whole corner of your suspension to the car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OlderThanMe Posted March 20, 2006 Author Share Posted March 20, 2006 I knew that something was up with that flat side! Since I am doing coilovers what part should I get? I am planning on doing camber plates in the future so I don't want to spend too much money on more oem parts. I think for the camber plates I am just going to make some with 1/4 in. steel and johnny joints rather than use monoballs that seem to be sorta wimpy...just weld it up and keep everything straight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnc Posted March 20, 2006 Share Posted March 20, 2006 I think for the camber plates I am just going to make some with 1/4 in. steel and johnny joints rather than use monoballs that seem to be sorta wimpy...just weld it up and keep everything straight. I have no idea what a Johnny Joint is, but it will need to rotate and articulate to properly follow the steering of the front wheels and accomodate the angle change between the strut tower and the strut itself during bump and rebound travel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OlderThanMe Posted March 20, 2006 Author Share Posted March 20, 2006 I guess a johnny joint is just a grown up version of the monoball... http://www.currieenterprises.com/cestore/Product.aspx?id=1081 Currie makes the best one. they are used mostly for offroad stuff so they are definitely strong enough for a little sportscar...lol and they have like 35 degrees of travel...plenty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMortensen Posted March 20, 2006 Share Posted March 20, 2006 Looks like a polyurethane encased monoball. Might be nice for reducing NVH for those that care about that, but wouldn't be as precise as a monoball and has the potential to deflect and change your camber settings as it does so. Also, not sure if it's meant to be used vertically. Looks like the only thing holding it together is the snap ring. Maybe not so good an idea to trust that snap ring to take whatever forces come up through the strut (thinking hitting something in the road, crossing railroad tracks, etc). On a camber plate the top end is solid aluminum and the monoball presses into a recessed area, and it's retained on the bottom only by a snap ring. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OlderThanMe Posted March 20, 2006 Author Share Posted March 20, 2006 so what if I were to take a johnny joint and weld a cap with a hole in the middle on one end rather than a snap-ring? That way there would be enough strength to hold upto the vertical stresses. it seems like that would work fairly well and would be quieter than a reguar monoball. Plus the rebuild kit is cheap because soo many 4x4 guys abuse them...all you would have to do is take it apart and youcould replace the friction surfaces if they go bad rather than a metal-on-metal contact. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OlderThanMe Posted March 20, 2006 Author Share Posted March 20, 2006 back on subject... I looked at my suspension again and aparently I have no bumpstops...either they just have rotted away or they were removed... so I guess I will need some of them as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bjhines Posted March 21, 2006 Share Posted March 21, 2006 It is usually best to loosen everything while the parts are still on the car... You can hook a wrench on 2 of the studs and use a breaker bar to loosen the nut... BUT... you can also bend the 3 studs out of whack and that will make it VERY HARD to reinstall the upper mounts into the vehicle. In the extreme case that the D hole in the upper mounts is augered out... you must resort to vice grips on the strut rod... again... this is why you use an impact wrench and do it while everything is on the car.... remember NOT to remove the nut... just loosen everything. as far as bump stops.... Autozone carries them with integral dust boots.. to fit a Nissan Sentra... same large diameter rod size. leave them long... variable rate spring there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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