Yet another shock question

[LarryMow]

Ive pretty much decided that Im gonna replace my shocks in a week or two and was gonna do it myself. Ive looked at several posts and one step-by-step DIY story at www.yearone.com, but still have a question about something I havent seen anyone mention. Ok, I know that the shocks on my car have the spring around the shock, and that I have to take bolts out from under the hood and the lower a arm...and that I'll need a coil spring compressor to get the springs off. Does the lower spring perch (the cup that the bottom of the spring sits on) thats on the shock tube come off? If so how? or does the new shock come with at least that much? I just dont want to take my front end apart and then not be able to remount the springs onto the shock or get the old perchs off to reuse them. Thanks in advance.

[Trans Am]

i would suggest to do the rears yourself and take the fronts to a shop because it can be dangerous if you dont have experience. I did a search a while ago and found this, maybe it helps:

http://www.97ta.com/eibach_drag_launch_spring.shtml

[97LT1Z28]

I agree. I replaced my own shocks - well, sort of. The rear shocks were pretty easy. But, the thought of being decapitated by a runaway spring made me take the two front assemblies to a shop. I brought them the new front shocks and they swapped them out for a whopping $40 labor. Overall, I saved a lot of money (and my head) by doing it this way.

[toddwirges]

Car needs to be aligned after new shocks anyways, and often times the top mount siezes to the shock piston.

If you can find a shop willing to take carry-in parts and giving a reasonable quote, just have it done.

Rears are cake, but on the same note they shouldn't cost much to have done either. Figure what 1-2 hours of your time is worth.

[Al 96 Ram Air T/A]

Just one correction...car does not need to be aligned after doing shocks. If you don't move the lower control arm, the alignment remains unchanged. Top is ridgid mounted...one way on.

[sneitzel]

I just did my front shocks a few weeks ago. They were a pain in the a$$. Very do-able in a weekend with a spring compressor, some patience and a good friend to give you a hand but still a pain in the a$$. If I had it to do again I would remove both of the assemblies and pay a shop to switch out the shocks and/or springs then reinstall them myself.

To answer your question, the lower perch should come off your old shocks fairly easily. It only took a few taps with a rubber mallet for me to get mine off and a few more taps to get them onto the new Bilsteins.

As everyone has said the rears are a piece of cake. I think it took longer to get the car jacked up, tires off, secured properly and pull the rear carpet back to get to the top nuts than it did to actually change the shocks and springs.

[toddwirges]

I don't agree with this but we can agree to disagree.

You should have an alignment done after doing the fronts. You will be making small changes to the front end setup no matter how clean of a bolt in bolt out operation it seems to be.

Just one correction...car does not need to be aligned after doing shocks. If you don't move the lower control arm, the alignment remains unchanged. Top is ridgid mounted...one way on.

[Injuneer]

I have an online procedure for springs and shocks on a 4th Gen. It covers a QA1/Eibach install, but just ignore the oddball things that are specific to mating Eibach springs to a QA1 shock. All things considered, as long as you use the correct tool, compressing the spring is not that hard:

http://members.aol.com/InjuneerZZ/HALEibch.htm

Stock shock components. I strongly recommend new upper seats for a 13-year old car:



Compressing spring:



Finished product:

[Joe 1320]

Since it all has to come apart, I would seriously look into coil springs and ball joints at the same time. Better to do it all while it's apart than to take it apart again in a year.

[LarryMow]

Injuneer...thanks for the pics...in the first pic, the black perch thats left on the orange shock is what I was wondering about. I didnt know if I had somehow knock it off and reuse it, how its held onto the shock or what to do about that. I found your DIY guide, unless I just overlooked that specific part, I didnt see anything about it. Thanks again. Joe1320....yeah, Im planning on buying the BMR springs to go along with the install, Im glad you mentioned the ball joints....I completely forgot to factor those in.