springs, shocks, struts

[Dan24]

having ago at doing my springs, shicks and struts for the first time tomoz. any tips? or anything i should look out for? and what does it mean t have bolts torqued and locitied correctly?

[Longman]

Hi mate,

I did mine in my VT myself. More of a time consuming job than anything. Make sure you have spring compressors or else don't start the job, you will need them on the front. Take the entire strut assembly out and you can then disassemble and work on it away from the car. Make sure you check and renew your strut tops/bearings. I also bought brand new main bolts for the struts at the front, there's 2 big ones behind the brake rotor that you need to get off, it is recommended to replace them, they aren't expensive from Holden.

Torqued refers basically to how tight the bolts/nuts are done up. Any repair manual will list the various torques, you would need a torque wrench to do it properly. Loctite is like a type of thread glue, it comes in various strengths, identified by colour. I usually use red. It's not very expensive and one small bottle will do the job. You can also get it in small sachets at superheap for about $2. It is recommended you use this on the threads of all the bolts to stop them coming loose. I didn't bother with a torque wrench, just did them up tight as I could get em.

A tip if you're doing the rear springs. I found I had to detach the rear drive shafts at the wheel, just undid the hex bolts, this gave me clearance to drop the rear arms enough to get the spring out and the new one in.

Oh, and don't forget a wheel alignment will most likely be needed immediately.

Just take your time, it's all pretty obvious. Just do one at a time, so you can use the other one to keep track of what bit goes where!

Good luck.

[vxcommie]

can i ask what springs and shocks/stuff you have got?

[Dan24]

Thanks for the advice, feel more comfortable now. its already booked in for a wheel alignment the next morning.
Iv got Monroe GT sports and King lows. I like the look and feel of FE2 so wanted something similar.

[Dan24]

so is it certain bolts that need to be loctited? or all that i take off/put back on?

[Brett_jjj]

As well as needing a spring compressor,you will also need a tension (torque) wrench too, as doing the suspension bolts up too tight is just as bad as not having them tight enough..Any bolts/nuts that dont have the nylock locking nuts or spring washers should be loctited..You should also consider getting a workshop manual for your model,the manual will have all the bolt/nut tension specs listed, and will show you the proper way to dissassemble/reassembe the struts properly..

[Longman]

Hi mate,

What Brett said. If you can borrow a torque wrench it will be a lot cheaper. If you don't have a manual and want the specs, PM me and I'll send them to you. Like I said though, it's not a hard job, just time consuming if doing it in your driveway/garage.

Holden specify certain bolts that should not be reused, brake caliper bolts, the 2 big bolts holding the strut to the ball joint bit etc. I replaced those 2 but not the caliper bolts, I just loctite them. This has been discussed on this forum before about whether or not they must be replaced.

Might also be worth your while popping in a set of new link pins if you haven't already done so.

[rb26dett]

Might sound silly, but make sure your handbrake is not on.