when struts attack
 

hey all,

thx for the info everyone's provided me with so far. 7 months of svx-ing, and i'm fast approaching the $2000 repair cost mark. i'm so excited :rolleyes:

my current ongoing paranoia: i can feel every bump in the road pretty badly and i'm wondering if my struts are to blame. (on the other hand, i may be subconsciously searching for an excuse to do the koni/gc upgrade :) )

so...for those of you that have replaced your worn-out or leaky struts, what were your symptoms? how many miles were on your svx when you replaced them?

i've got a 96 Lsi w/84k.

--dan

Hey Dan,
Mine is about the same age as yours. I have no complaints the suspension is tight and quiet. If you're not used to it , the SVX rides a little harder than most. The strut dampening is fine. Sorry no excuse here. :p

Hi Dan,

When the struts are bad the oil is gone from the shock section. This will let the car bounce up and down after going over a bump. There is no oil in the strut to stop the motion.

Like Boone says the SVX feels hard on bumps. I find that at 30 or less the bumps can be pretty rough. However on the same road at 60 the bumps are as smooth as silk. :D The suspension is stffer than on a common car but not as harsh as it can be as say on a Porche GT2.:D The tire stiffness is also a factor here. A softer lower performance tire will give you a better ride. Your car may also have the stiffer front strut mounts.

It sounds like your struts are fine. You may want to check the front stableizer bar rubber bushings and make sure the bar is not rusted under the bushings. That rust can only happen if the car sat for a long time.

When I read the title of this thread I immediately thought of the hood struts. Then I thought of "Pulling a Rufus" :D

Fortunately that hasn't happened to me!

I'm guessing it isn't your struts, I'm guessing it's your brakes. My car was riding like **** last week... and on monday I worked on it a little. Here's what to do, to hopefully save yourself some scratch:

1. Jack up the car, remove the wheels (or do this one at a time)
1.5. Pop the hood, loosen the brake fluid cap
2. Take the 12 mm bolt outta hte back of the caliper
3. Swing up the caliper
4. Take out the pads
5. Apply 'disc brake anti squeal compound' to the backs of the pads... a lot on the outboard side, a bead on the inboard side
6. LET THE COMPOUND SET, do NOT install it if it's still wet and not very hard. Wait until it is tacky and rubbery.
7. While waiting for the compound to set, look behind your brakes, by sticking your head in the wheelwell. See those two bolts that attach the caliper to the dust/gravel shield/brake backing? They're 17 mm if I recall correctly. Anyway, see them? See how they're tight?
8. They probably aren't tight. WRENCH THE HELL OUT OF THEM. Turn them until you strip em, then back off a little. ;) Just kidding, but seriously, they're tough, don't be afraid of them. TIGHTEN THE PISS OUT OF THEM.
9. Reinstall the pads.
10. Put everything back together

Take it for a test drive. WOW. It's like driving a new car. WOW.

- Ca$h

My front rattle was the ball joint. Replaced it this morning and no more front end rattle so far. Now to tackle the back end.