Front shock question

[52papa]

Hi to all, just bought a 99 . Can you replace the front shocks without unbolting any part of the upper or lower control arms ?

 

[RS Dude]

Yes. The upper and lower control arms stay intact. The strut assembly (Shock and spring) come out as one unit:tongue:

 

[52papa]

Brfore unbolding the spring, shock do you have to use a spring compresser to remove it ?

 

[smokey66]

Yo man, google search is the sh*t.

Also, invest in a Haynes manual or Chiltonsmanual. You can pick them up at your local autozone. They will help you out a lot.

And no, you dont have to compress to the spring/strut to unbolt it from the control arm. Just when you pull the spring off the strut.

 

[52papa]

Thanks for the answer to my question. After reading many post on how to install front shocks I don't recall anyone mentioning that you did not have to use a spring compresser to remove front shocks, or do anything to the L/C arms. Sometime the smallest detail make all the difference in the world when doing a job for the first time. Thanks again.

 

[Gerdo]

You will need to unbolt the lower balljoint from the knuckle. There are 4 bolts underneath. (properly torque and locktite them back in)

 

[52papa]

Gerdo thanks for the lower ball info. Maybe my first question shoud have been "Do I need to remove, or loosen anything except the schocks bolts."

 

[Dezert4Runner]

You will need to unbolt the lower balljoint from the knuckle. There are 4 bolts underneath. (properly torque and locktite them back in)

Unbolting the LBJ is completely unnecessary. Let the suspension droop to take pressure off of the coilover and undo the lower shock bolt. Then move to the upper 3 outer bolts (do NOT touch the larger one in the middle; this one is holding the spring tension).

 

[smokey66]

I agree with dezert4runner. Taking the lower ball joints off is completely unnecessary. Don't over think it. If it looks that simple, it probably is really that simple. With the right tools, this could possibly be the easiest thing to do to your truck.

And just to emphasize on what I said earlier, get a shop manual from your local parts store. They will help you through any job and can give you in-depth directions. It'll have everything from how much to torque your head bolts to how much gear oil your rear diff holds.

 

[Richard808]

OP make sure you use a spring compressor to compress the spring before removing it from the strut. The large bolt at the top of the strut holds all the tension of the spring. If you remove it without compressing the spring parts will fly and it might hurt. You can remove it without a spring compressor but i wouldnt recommend it your first time. And you should fully understand how it works and whats going to happen before attempting to not use a spring compressor.

 

[52papa]

Thanks guys for all the good info on front shocks. I plan on having a shop or auto parts removing and put the new shocks in the spring.