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Degree of difficulty, 3 beers, 5 hours this time
WOW, firm controlled ride and the suspension clunking is gone. I drove some rough road on a test drive. I am so happy. If after all of the work below if the klunking was still there, I would have been so disappointed!
I installed Koni's last year and did not replace the strut top mounts and thrust bearings. The mounts looked a bit rough at the time (120000 miles). The bearing then and nwo seemed fine. I think that the orignal bearings were good to go another 130000 miles.
I installe the KYB mounts that have been collecting dust on my work bench for a couple of months.
My front end had started getting clunking, mostly when cold but then more than that :(
My stock mounts with 135k had a rubber crack on the left and the right was torn up pretty good.
I had gone after the rear end, thought I had heard exhaust clunking there, found the rear coupling on the Sports exhaust muffler loose and hangers stretched. Took care of those, a bit beter but still the perception of noised front and back.
BTW, the KYB mounts from tirerack.com are 1/2 the cost of Saab mounts :0
And... the price for the Saab units does not include the bearings! Please let me know if I have that bit wrong.
So, if you look for my install search key word you can find my very detailed post on the install of Koni strut shocks. This post builds on that.
Tools, see the other oost.
Remove the hub cover, and remove the spline nut. If is 1&1/4". You need a long breaker bar as the torque is 214 ft.lb, and worse if rusted,,, however, I put a penetrating rust preventative on these in 1995.
Now loosen the trut top nut. No danger here, the vehicle is holding down the spring. Don't remove it. If the large curved washer turns, lock-wrench chain wrench will hold it, or huge lock wrench would do.
Loosen the road wheels, jack uo the vehicle and remove the wheel.
Back off the tie rod and ball joint nuts. 18mm
I use a 2 arm gear puller to release the tie rod taper. The ball joint taper might be impossible for some folks. You need to know how to get forceful. I have a piece of 3/16" steel strip that I pit up against the drive shaft hub and use a huge craftsman screw driver, around 2" long, as a wedge, and whail a hammer on the end of the driver. This seems to pop the tapers. There is no room for a conventional tool. Set the ball joint nut flush with the top of the threads and things are quite safe.
Remove the ABS sensor and rotor fixing bolt with a #30 torn bit in a driver. Do not use a torx multi blade allen key style tools, as these will deform, twist and cam out and make a mess of things. Clean the heads out to make sure the tool is well inserted.
Remove the inboard 13mm nut at the strut top, and the one that rests on the paint with a washer. This will reduce the likeyhood of loosing the washer. Loosen the last of the three. This will allow the strut to be moved freely about below.
I did not unbolt the front sway bars this time.
Rmove the two 10mm socket head bolts that secure the caliper and hang it from the hard brake pipe bracket. Do not twisk kink or load the rubber brake line. Coat hanger wire is barely adequate even when doubled up.
Get a long pipe or clay pick or 2x4 and work it through the control arm and pry against the sub frame. If this too diffult, raise the other side of the vehicle to lessen the sway bar resistance or unbolt the sway bar pivot bolt.
With the control arms forced down, which can be very difficult, get the ball joint taper out of the wheel hub, pull the strut off of the drive shaft while being VERY careful to not pull the drive shaft out of the trany! You may need a hammer to tap on the spline shaft at the same time, it you don't have six arms or are not sitting on the lever, get some assitance with the large lever.
With the strut off of the spline shaft and ball joint taper, undo the last strut top 13mm nut as you grasp the strut by the spring with the other hand. It should now all come away.
When refitting, if the tie rod taper turns so the nut will not thread up, tap the tie rod end with a hammer to seat the taper to get enough resitance. But avoid the domes area as it is a thin inset stampimg. Put a 8" length of 2x4 under the ball joint and lower vehicle to get the ball joint taper theaded up if needed. But again avoid its soft dome area.
Now back to the fun.
See the orignal post for strut shock R&R, it can be difficult.
The KYB strut top includes a new bearings, but not any washers.
My lower washer was not deformed, but this has been seen by some others.
The left koni strut top nut was loose and there was play in the shock to strut fitting. So thats what made the noise! I removed the shock, yes, the oil added to the strut cavity was there, and I degreassd the thread of the body and nut. I refitted the shock and put in the round koni supplied nut with LOTS of locktite blue. I used the chain wrench to torque it up. I think that koni should redesign this as you cannot purchase a tool to do this properly.
When rebuilding the LH strut, the forces to release the spring compressor jack screws will tend to unseat the lower spring end fron the spot where it need to seat in the steel below. So take heed!!! Don't tighen up the top nut, it is easier to do when installed and with the weight of the vehicle on it. Watch for this on the RH side as well.
The RHG shock retaining nut was not loose, but was easily removed. So it got the same remove, degrease and locktite treatment.
Install the strut, leave the top 13mm nuts loose until later. Tighen the 2 18mm nuts. Put on the rotor, do the ABS senser and the 2 #30 torx screws, use anti sieze! and don't tighen too much! Put the ABS cable back in it clip on the strut tube.
Fit the caliper over the rotor and torque the 10mm socket head screws.
Fit the road wheel and snug the wheel bolts. Lower the wheel to the ground and torque the wheel bolts and tighen the FOUR (4) nuts at the top of the strut. As the koni's shafts will turn, I put locktite blue on the large retaining nuts as well.
Torque the spline shaft to 214 ft-lb. Ignore the silly torque spec on the KYB instruction sheet... it is bogus!
You might want to rotate the wheels while you have the fronts off.
I also tighened down the rear koni top rubber bushings a lot as well.
All of this on a warm sunny 65 degree day in January!
I did not remove the brake back shields and did the strut work on the garage floor. No vise. You need a vice to remove the Saab strut retaining nut.
posted by 209.172.2...
, Mon, 28 Jan 2002 09:05:58
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