Rear shock change

[vilant]

So I got my car inspected, and the mechanic told me I needed new rear shocks. Got 2 new Bilsteins delivered for $403. Thought I post the removal, for anybody that might be considering it. Was pretty easy. 1st I followed Cliff's Solutions to lift the Z onto 4 car jack stands w/ a couple of differences. First, I took the acrylic roof off and put the fiberglass one on. I feel the fiber is a little more structurally sound (maybe not, I'm no expert). I have 2 hydraulic jacks, so I used both (1 by each wheel) to jack up one side. It's slow and tedious, and probably not necessary, but I felt more comfotable doing it that way.
Lifted it without a hitch and removed the rear tire. Supported the knuckle with a hydraulic jack while it was on the stands

Remove lower support nut (18mm)first, then remove 2 upper support bolts (13mm). Pull shock off lower support and carefully pull down on the shock to get the actuator out. Warning: Do not let the shock hang from the actuator unsupported. Pull the retaining pin out of the retainer cup, and gently work the actuator off the shock.

Remove the retainer cup from the old shock. There's a 18mm nut inside the cup.


Take notice of how far the adjustable gear protrudes past the cup.

I used a pair of channel locks and socket wrench to remove nut.

Attach retaining cup to new shock the same way you took it off. Make sure the new shock adjustable gear(not sure of technical name lol) protrudes the same distance from the cup as the old one (believe it is 5mm, but I don't own a metric tape measure).

While supporting the shock, gently work the actuator back onto the retaining cup and reinstall retaining clip. Remember the actuator has a plastic gear, so don't force anything. Carefully slide the assembly back into upper support well, then slide bottom of the shock onto the lower support arm. I couldn't compress the shock and slide at the same time, so I used this to persuade it.

Just kidding. I used a rubber mallot and gently tapped the shock back onto the the lower arm. Retighten lower nut(61ft/lbs), then the 2 upper support bolts(22 ft/lbs). Replace tire and repeat process on the other side.

The shock I took off on the passenger side was completely shot, the driver side actually wasn't that bad. Oh well, anyway not sure if this is already in Solutions or not, hopefully it's helpful to someone like me. Actually had more images, but I could only post 6. While I had it up on the stands I changed the oil too. I think He-Man screwed the drain plug in. Busted my knuckles getting it off. Cheers.

[ZZZZZR1]

Joe

How long did it take you??

Looks awesome!!



David

[vilant]

Only a couple of hours, was faster then the wiper motor change, lol. What happened to some of the images in this post?

[WARP TEN]

Originally Posted by vilant

Only a couple of hours, was faster then the wiper motor change, lol. What happened to some of the images in this post?

I had the same problem with a picture image that didn't appear in my post about my new lift. Loaded all pics to an album on this site then copied four to the post. First one never appeared--only an X in a box. It's fine in the album. -- Bob

[gbrtng]

By what criteria (or criterion) can a PA mechanic flunk an inspection for a bad shock?



eat mor chikin

[vilant]

Originally Posted by gbrtng

By what criteria (or criterion) can a PA mechanic flunk an inspection for a bad shock?



eat mor chikin

Have no idea. He told me that the rear shocks were leaking. I asked if that would keep it from getting inspected and he said well technically yes but I can let it slide. Going to try and fix the images, but you can see in the one that only one of the shocks was actually bad.

[vilant]

Originally Posted by WARP TEN

I had the same problem with a picture image that didn't appear in my post about my new lift. Loaded all pics to an album on this site then copied four to the post. First one never appeared--only an X in a box. It's fine in the album. -- Bob

Thanks, going to give it a whirl.

[gbrtng]

Originally Posted by vilant

Have no idea. He told me that the rear shocks were leaking. I asked if that would keep it from getting inspected and he said well technically yes but I can let it slide. Going to try and fix the images, but you can see in the one that only one of the shocks was actually bad.

Bad is a subjective thing - leakage is normal, total failure is not. Shocks tend to deteriorate with miles and time, but your inspector was probably fishing for a repair job. And if all he had to go on was some oily dirt, there is no way he could declare the shock was "bad". If I lived in PA, I'd be taking a close look at the state inspection criteria the shops are required to use.

A similar situation plagued me in NJ with my 67 - the brake pedal was always spongy, and the inspectors didn't like that very much. No amount of bleeding could fix it either. I finally gave up and sent Wifey to get the thing inspected - she always managed to talk them into a fresh sticker.

[vilant]

Originally Posted by gbrtng

Bad is a subjective thing - leakage is normal, total failure is not. Shocks tend to deteriorate with miles and time, but your inspector was probably fishing for a repair job. And if all he had to go on was some oily dirt, there is no way he could declare the shock was "bad". If I lived in PA, I'd be taking a close look at the state inspection criteria the shops are required to use.

A similar situation plagued me in NJ with my 67 - the brake pedal was always spongy, and the inspectors didn't like that very much. No amount of bleeding could fix it either. I finally gave up and sent Wifey to get the thing inspected - she always managed to talk them into a fresh sticker.

You know, I always try to look for the best in people and believe they wouldn't take advantage. Unfortunatly, that's not always the case. The one shock was most certainly shot, the piston almost slide down into the shock by itself. The other side was OK. Not sure how he knew the one was bad, other than all the old oil that was on it. Maybe he said the rear shock (not shocks) was bad or he could've been fishing to do both. Either way I should look into the criteria. Nice tactic w/ the wife. Although I don't think my wife could talk someone dying of thirst to have a glass of water, lol.

[HAWAIIZR-1]

Thanks for sharing and awesome write up with photos. Now I better get off my arse and do mine too.

Craig