Warning! Shock absorbers and springs should be replaced in pairs, even if only one is defective.
To perform the work, you will need wheel chocks, a car stand, a jack, a special tool for unscrewing the shock absorber rod nut (6mm wrench and 18mm Z-wrench can be used instead of fixture).
Removing
1. We prepare the car for work (see Preparing Your Vehicle for Service and Repair.
2. Prying with a slotted screwdriver, remove the decorative cover.
Recommendation. If you are removing the strut for disassembly, loosen the damper rod nut using a special tool...
...or with a 18 mm Z-wrench while holding the stem from turning with a 6 mm hex wrench.
3. Using a 13 mm key, unscrew the three bolts securing the rack to the body.
4. We install stops under the rear wheels and hang out the front of the car.
5. Remove the front wheel (see «Wheel replacement»).
6. Disconnect the anti-roll bar from the shock absorber bracket (see «Anti-roll bar - replacement»).
7. Disconnect the wire of the wheel speed sensor and the brake hose from the bracket on the rack.
8. We clean the nuts of the bolts of the steering knuckle to the front suspension strut from dirt...
...and treat them with a penetrating lubricant.
9. Using a 21 mm wrench, unscrew the two nuts, holding the bolts from turning with a wrench of the same size.
10. Remove the bolts and disconnect the steering knuckle from the rack.
11. We remove the rack from the wheel arch and clamp it in a vice, placing wooden blocks.
Disassembly and assembly
Front suspension strut: 1 - upper support cup of the spring with a bearing; 2 - rack support; 3 - bolts for fastening the front suspension strut to the body; 4 - shock absorber rod nut; 5 - compression stroke buffer assembly with a protective cover of the shock absorber rod; 6 - rack spring; 7 - shock absorber
Warning! Be careful! A compressed spring has a lot of energy and if the tie breaks, straightening out, it can cause injury. Do not loosen the damper rod nut until the spring is securely fixed.
1. We install special spring ties and evenly tighten the spring from both sides until the load is removed from the upper cup of the spring.
2. Remove the protective cover of the shock absorber rod nut.
3. Using a 18 mm Z-shaped wrench, unscrew the nut 4 of the shock absorber rod, holding the rod from turning with a 6 mm hex wrench.
4. Remove the upper support of the rack 2 and the upper support cup of the spring 1 assembly with the thrust bearing.
5. Carefully remove the spring 6 from the shock absorber rod 7 (without removing the straps).
6. Remove the compression stroke buffer 5 from the rod assembly with a protective cover.
7. Fully extending and sinking the stem, we make sure that the shock absorber is in good condition. If dips, jerks or extraneous sounds are heard when moving the rod, we replace both shock absorbers.
8. We check the integrity and serviceability of all elements of the front suspension strut, we pay special attention to the condition of the bearing of the upper support cup of the spring. Damaged or badly worn parts are replaced.
9. When assembling the edges of the coils of the spring, we rest against the special protrusions of the lower and upper cups.
10. Assemble the front suspension strut in reverse order. We install a new self-locking stem nut and tighten it with a torque of 62 Nm.
Installation
1. Install the rack on the car. We tighten the bolts of the upper mount of the rack with a torque of 44 Nm, the nuts of the bolts of the steering knuckle - 105 Nm, and the nut of the strut of the anti-roll bar - 44 Nm.
2. Similarly, we repair the second front suspension strut.