Help! Rear Shock Removal
Thread Starter
Instructor
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 108
Likes: 0
From: Gainesville Florida
Help! Rear Shock Removal
How do you get at the upper bolt of the rear shock? Is it through the car interior, or do I need to take apart the covers inside the wheel wells? Thanks.
Team Owner
Joined: Dec 1999
Posts: 34,873
Likes: 487
From: Lacey WA RVN 68-69
NCM Sinkhole Donor
There are two 10mm bolts holding a oval-shaped plate to the underside of the frame rail. You need to slightly raise the lower control arm before removing the shock so that the arm does drop too far. Remove the lower shock mounting nut, then the two upper bolts. Pull the lower end of the shcok off the pin and lower the shock down. There is one nut on the shock rod that hold the mounting plate on.
Install is just the reverse of removal. Tighten the lowr nut to 60 ft-lbs with the car at ride height. Just use the floor jack to raise the control arm so that the frame raises just off the corner jack stand. Then tighte nthe two top bolts to 20 ft-lbs.
Thread Starter
Instructor
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 108
Likes: 0
From: Gainesville Florida
Thanks, I had missed the two 10mm bolts holding the oval-shaped plate to the underside of the frame rail. But now it is all done. I needed to borrow air tools from my neighbor for the rear shocks, but other than that the job was pretty simple. I now have new Bilsteins + new Goodyear GS3s. It feels like I have a whole new car and it drives just like it did 14 years ago when I first bought it. Thanks everyone for your help.
