Botched Hatch Strut/Piston replacement (Help needed)

[jross20]

So I ordered some new pistons for the rear hatch to replace the old tired ones... Well holy shit this has turned out to be a total disaster. I presumed if you opened the hatch all the way as far as it mechanically can go that this would take the load off of the Pistons... It does not. As soon as I loosened one bolt on the bottom right side the whole thing slammed down under the force of the piston. No amount of reasonable strength can move it in the slightest.

Any help or advice would be urgently and greatly appreciated... I have no idea if the torque from it pushing down like this is going to mess up the threads or something.

 

[Romeo1]

Just support the gate, and remove the other screw. If you have to, take a pliers and twist, the bracket counter clockwise to help alleviate stress.

I'm going to guess those are not OEM struts that were on there. My worn out OEM struts didn't do that.

I guess that's the real question, do you have the gate supported overhead? If not, you have the entire weight of the door pushing down on you.

 

[JoeT4R]

You don't need to remove that mounting plate to replace the hatch struts. Just the struts themselves, which are held in by c clips and pins. All you need is a flathead screwdriver to remove the c clips and a little punch to remove the pins.

If I were you, I'd remove the strut, then try to reposition the mounting plate and take care of that. Then install the new hatch strut.

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[brillo_76]

Just support the gate, and remove the other screw. If you have to, take a pliers and twist, the bracket counter clockwise to help alleviate stress.

I'm going to guess those are not OEM struts that were on there. My worn out OEM struts didn't do that.

I guess that's the real question, do you have the gate supported overhead? If not, you have the entire weight of the door pushing down on you.

Remeo1 is correct here. Block up the rear door hatch and only change 1 at a time.

 

[jross20]

I'm using a ladder and a bunch of towels I already had the gate supported so we were good there.

Thanks for the replies.
I was able to get the c-clip off and very carefully pound out the pin with a punch. I was a bit panicked at first and didn't think about that... The Piston was then resting on the bracket without the pin so I removed the pin, I then had to very carefully pry the Piston away from the body. I'm 99% sure these are OEM because they look exactly like the ones that I ordered and they're the exact same length.

But I'll be honest, I have absolutely no idea how I would get the Piston lined back up. I mean the hatch would need to go up like another inch at least and it can't. And you know these things can barely hold up the gate but I cannot get them to compress at all.

Is this normal?

 

[Romeo1]

It'll go higher, you just need to lift gate higher.

 

[Bad Luck]

You need to support the rear hatch higher to get it to line up

 

[jross20]

It'll go higher, you just need to lift gate higher.

So I cautiously and nervously put a bit more force on it upward, she made a slight Creaking sound and then did begin to go a bit higher. Yeah I never would have felt comfortable putting that much force on it if I didn't know that it could go further. Lol

Okay well now it's not really a crisis except that I still can't open it far enough because it's hitting the ceiling so I'll have to get it closed up so I can back out. Hate this damn small garage.

What guys thanks for the help I appreciate it, I panicked a bit when it first kind of exploded at first. I really presumed all the load was off of it so for a split second I thought the Piston like exploded or something. Scared the hell out of me...haha

 

[RodrickHeffley]

I did this swap last week, I had to give it all the force I had to keep it open all the way while I removed the last one. It's a pain in the ass to do by yourself but it's doable

 

[Endlessblockades]

I don't remember going from stock (could not support the hatch at all if the windows was down more that 50%) to StrongArms other than I did it myself in a dirt lot and spent a lot of time on the ground looking for a c-clip. It's only been a couple/3 years but they are getting weak and I may need to replace them. If the hatch needs to be supported, how about a 2x4 and a floorjack? Also, I reused the crusty remnants of the original bushings and they are toast. Might just go back to stock struts since the come with that stuff.

 

[JoeT4R]

What kind of struts are you replacing the old ones with?

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[jross20]

I don't remember going from stock (could not support the hatch at all if the windows was down more that 50%) to StrongArms other than I did it myself in a dirt lot and spent a lot of time on the ground looking for a c-clip. It's only been a couple/3 years but they are getting weak and I may need to replace them. If the hatch needs to be supported, how about a 2x4 and a floorjack? Also, I reused the crusty remnants of the original bushings and they are toast. Might just go back to stock struts since the come with that stuff.

Wait, bushings? Are these things supposed to have bushings?

What kind of struts are you replacing the old ones with?

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OEM. I think they were right around $50 per piston from McGeorge Toyota

 

[JoeT4R]

Wait, bushings? Are these things supposed to have bushings?







OEM. I think they were right around $50 per piston from McGeorge Toyota

I gotcha. I went with the Strongarm 6815's and they have been great so far. They didn't come with new bushings though. Not sure if new oem struts come with them, either. I just reused my old and worn out hardware with no issues.

Some people will buy Hilman brand nylon bushings from a hardware store and cut them to fit. Probably better to do than reusing old stuff but my results have been good so I'm not losing sleep over it.

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[brillo_76]

I don't remember going from stock (could not support the hatch at all if the windows was down more that 50%) to StrongArms other than I did it myself in a dirt lot and spent a lot of time on the ground looking for a c-clip. It's only been a couple/3 years but they are getting weak and I may need to replace them. If the hatch needs to be supported, how about a 2x4 and a floorjack? Also, I reused the crusty remnants of the original bushings and they are toast. Might just go back to stock struts since the come with that stuff.

That's what I was afraid of. The aftermarket struts aren't good enough.. 3 years isn't a very long time..

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[Rushthezeppelin]

That's what I was afraid of. The aftermarket struts aren't good enough.. 3 years isn't a very long time..

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Which aftermarket struts did you go with and how cold is it? I went with the increased lifting force struts that are recommended on here and they rock even in subzero temps. Also definitely recommend the hilman nylon bushings, you will wallow out the mounts and mounting pin eventually otherwise.

 

[Endlessblockades]

Seems that way. When I first put them in they were shockingly robust and needed a good tug to close. They certainly still work but they are no longer Strong and I def need new bushings. Maybe the bad bushings are part of the problem but when they were fresh, they overcame that easily. I should have Hillman'd them from the get-go......

 

[Romeo1]

I don't know, I say just buy the OEM struts. They have the bushings, and they last a long time. I'm not sure if there's enough savings to even bother with the aftermarket ones.

 

[jross20]

Wait, I don't think my old or new pistons have bushings. Does anyone have a photo of these mysterious bushings?

 

[JoeT4R]

Wait, I don't think my old or new pistons have bushings. Does anyone have a photo of these mysterious bushings?

Your old ones have them but they're likely deteriorated to the point that they are almost non-existent.

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[jross20]

Your old ones have them but they're likely deteriorated to the point that they are almost non-existent.

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Well but the new ones don't have any either then I can tell.

Just steel on steel with a strange warped steel washer