Eddy555 Posted July 11, 2018 Report Share Posted July 11, 2018 While I'm replacing the front suspension arms I'm also going to replace the disintegrated bump stops on the front struts as well as the top mounts. I've not found a clear answer to this but is it possible to remove the top of the strut without having to remove the strut from the wheel hub? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topradio Posted July 11, 2018 Report Share Posted July 11, 2018 Yes, if you remove it from the bottom ball joint. Having said that I had to replace a front spring on my early 986 (M030 sports suspension). I was surprised to find that I didn't even need a spring compressor. On mine I can release the drop link and then remove the 3 nuts that hold the top of the strut and it will drop far enough to remove the top mount and also get to the bump stop. I would release the damper first by removing the top nut, if you use a windy gun you probably won't even need to clamp the damper to stop it spinning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eddy555 Posted July 11, 2018 Author Report Share Posted July 11, 2018 That sounds promising, thanks for the reply Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hughsehhh Posted October 26, 2018 Report Share Posted October 26, 2018 I'm probably being stupid here but how can you replace top mounts and bump stops without removing the spring? I need to replace said items but currently don't have spring compressors nor an impact wrench, so wondered if i could fettle it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulQ Posted October 26, 2018 Report Share Posted October 26, 2018 M030 springs are 30 or 40mm or so shorter then the standard ones, which is why you can get the top mount etc off without compressing them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topradio Posted October 26, 2018 Report Share Posted October 26, 2018 On my car with the M030 suspension you can remove the top nut on the damper and the three nuts on the top mount and after removing the drop link from the sway bar the whole strut will drop enough to remove the bump stop and the spring. I don't know if this applies to the standard suspension though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lennym1984 Posted October 26, 2018 Report Share Posted October 26, 2018 53 minutes ago, PaulQ said: M030 springs are 30 or 40mm or so shorter then the standard ones, which is why you can get the top mount etc off without compressing them. I think they're only 10mm shorter... which isn't a huge amount but could be enough to make the difference Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eddy555 Posted October 26, 2018 Author Report Share Posted October 26, 2018 When I had a look at replacing my top mounts I couldn't fit my spring compressors on the springs as there wasn't enough clearance in the wing for them. I didn't try that hard as I didn't have a suitable deep dish spanner for the top mount nut either so there may have been a way to do it. Standard suspension on mine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulQ Posted October 26, 2018 Report Share Posted October 26, 2018 28 minutes ago, Lennym1984 said: I think they're only 10mm shorter... which isn't a huge amount but could be enough to make the difference Yes, when they are under load the difference in height is approximately 10mm, but when uncompressed it is much greater. Just checked my notes and a M030 S front spring is 225mm in length and a standard height front is 265, so 40mm difference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lennym1984 Posted October 26, 2018 Report Share Posted October 26, 2018 Ah that makes sense Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hughsehhh Posted October 27, 2018 Report Share Posted October 27, 2018 Is there a way to tell what springs you have on your car? Mine sits low but I don't know what standard is. Or how could I tell if the spring isn't under compression and will blow up after removing the top mount without removing the whole damper assembly from the car? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topradio Posted October 27, 2018 Report Share Posted October 27, 2018 The springs are colour coded. Assuming that they are OEM parts there will be two dabs of paint near the middle and one near the top. My M030 has red/yellow and white at the top. Once removed you will see the part number stamped into the metal as well. I think the standard suspension has blue/yellow bands. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hughsehhh Posted October 27, 2018 Report Share Posted October 27, 2018 30 minutes ago, topradio said: The springs are colour coded. Assuming that they are OEM parts there will be two dabs of paint near the middle and one near the top. My M030 has red/yellow and white at the top. Once removed you will see the part number stamped into the metal as well. I think the standard suspension has blue/yellow bands. Nice one, thanks ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hughsehhh Posted October 28, 2018 Report Share Posted October 28, 2018 23 hours ago, topradio said: The springs are colour coded. Assuming that they are OEM parts there will be two dabs of paint near the middle and one near the top. My M030 has red/yellow and white at the top. Once removed you will see the part number stamped into the metal as well. I think the standard suspension has blue/yellow bands. So my springs are the m030, the red/yellow than white higher up. How will i know the spring won't fire in my face by removing the top mount? On 10/26/2018 at 5:47 PM, topradio said: On my car with the M030 suspension you can remove the top nut on the damper and the three nuts on the top mount and after removing the drop link from the sway bar the whole strut will drop enough to remove the bump stop and the spring. I don't know if this applies to the standard suspension though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topradio Posted October 28, 2018 Report Share Posted October 28, 2018 I was really surprised to find that I didn't need to use the compressors. I have done both sides now and neither needed the tool. If you undo the top damper bolt first and then progressively release the three top mount nuts you should find that the strut comes loose without any explosion. You will need to compress the damper by hand and that will give enough clearance to remove the spring / top mount / bump stop. I think I took some pictures, I will look them out. Edit to say that I found the pictures and they don't really tell you anything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hughsehhh Posted November 12, 2018 Report Share Posted November 12, 2018 Ok so after 2 weekends of cursing, I've managed to get 3 of the 4 drop links out, but the 4th (front nearside) will simply not move. I've cracked the ball joint cover off and hit with an impact gun, hammer etc. As others have said, the trick is to get the ball joint side bolt head to rotate before bashing away with a hammer. The only thing not tried is heat. Any tips? Given it's an aluminium hub, I've read that too much heat can be a bad thing. Will a b&q jobbie blow torch be enough in this instance? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eddy555 Posted November 12, 2018 Author Report Share Posted November 12, 2018 Maybe a little heat with an imapct gun. My cheapish Silverline impact gun worked out the corrosion powder from the bolt and worked it free. I had to rattle the bolt both ways and eventually the bolt started to turn and free up, spitting out the corrosion. Hitting the bolt risks distorting it and then making it harder to remove so I'd try to avoid that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hughsehhh Posted November 12, 2018 Report Share Posted November 12, 2018 Yeah I've put put the nut back on to the other side of the thread before hitting. I've hit it so much that the nut has fused to the bolt now and won't come off, so will need to be cut off when I eventually loosen the bolt. Also my shoulders and upper body ache something unreal, and I'm only 30. I could probably do with a better impact driver tbh, I've only got a £40 240v one from ebay, although supposedly rated to 500nM lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eddy555 Posted November 12, 2018 Author Report Share Posted November 12, 2018 Think I had to cut one off on one side due to hitting it so much. Changing my suspension was really physical work, I strained a few muscles trying to undo some bolts (although I'm a little older, I'm but no means out of shape). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hughsehhh Posted April 28, 2019 Report Share Posted April 28, 2019 Finally got around to this today. Blimey, 125,000 miles and a 21 year old car does not like coming apart. As top radio mentions, if you have the m030 springs then you don't even need your spring compressors. Though they do help when removing the top nut as otherwise the upward force of the spring gives some resistance. My strut seemed fused into the hub carrier so I didn't bother removing it, I was able to rotate the strut under the wheel arch and access the top mount that way, ie at an angle with the strut still in the hub. I was a little perturbed by this however as my manual and the other guides I've seen suggest you need to loosen the coffin arm where attached to the chassis to get sufficient rotation, but there was enough give already in mine 🤔 I do have new coffin arms to replace existing but the 18mm nut on the coffin arms stumped me. Its so tight in there that my ratchet/ breaker wouldnt fit onto the 18mm and I could only get a ratchet onto the 16mm bolt head on the opposite side, which wouldn't budge. Harder than some people have suggested, there is no room to work Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hughsehhh Posted May 1, 2019 Report Share Posted May 1, 2019 To bump my last comment, has anyone got any tips on removing the bolt connecting the front coffin arms to the chassis? Space to work appears non existent and I'm sure I've read in the past people finding the bolt seized. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beicmynydd Posted May 2, 2019 Report Share Posted May 2, 2019 Due to proximity of the bolts to the petrol tank heat is not an option. If you cant use conventional tools you may have to use a recipricating saw to cut the bolt through the rubber. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattO89 Posted May 3, 2019 Report Share Posted May 3, 2019 On 5/1/2019 at 7:26 AM, Hughsehhh said: To bump my last comment, has anyone got any tips on removing the bolt connecting the front coffin arms to the chassis? Space to work appears non existent and I'm sure I've read in the past people finding the bolt seized. I replaced the rear kerbside coffin arm on mine yesterday. I put plenty of WD40 around both ends the night before. The bolt on mine was seized, but I managed to get it undone with an 18mm spanner and a decent length metal tube over the top of that for more leverage. I was lucky enough to be using a lift, so had it at least 3 foot off the ground at that point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.