Today I am One Bolt Shy of new Strut Bearings

[kommissar]

This is just a long rant. You probably don't want to read all of this.

[rant]

When I turn the steering wheel while idling in my driveway, my e30 creaks like a haunted house being blown around in a strong wind. I look under the hood and notice that the upper strut tower bearings are cracked and nasty looking. They look like some sort of desert floor. That's probably the problem, I figured.

I called up the dealer and asked them to give me a price quote on the bearings. $120. Each. Screw that, I got them for $60 total from BMA parts, free shipping. And they had three different manufactures to choose from.

So I start the process of changing the bearings. I remove the wheel, brake caliper, ABS sensor, free the tie rod, whack the shit out of the control arm to get it loose, disconnect the stabilizer bar, and drop the strut out. Many of you have removed the struts on your car. I wrote that in one sentence, but as you all know it is much harder than I made it sound. The bolts were rusted, and I almost stripped a few of them .The ABS sensor was rusted into it's socket so firmly that I needed a hammer and chisel to remove it. The important thing is that I got the strut out.

Next, I compress the spring and go to remove the top strut nut. I don't have the special BMW tool for the job, but I have done this in the past with no problem. Uh-oh, it's spinning the whole shock and spring perch with it. I hold it with my hand. Still spinning. I can't get it off. It's either rusted or the previous owner tightened it too much. PB Blaster. Nothing. Shit.

I call my trusted mechanic, Rick Kiceniuk. After I explain the situation, he tells me you can either use the special tool, or do it the way he does it, by zipping the bolt off with an air gun. I tell him that I don't have any air tools, and he tells me to bring the struts over and he will put the new bearings on them for me. I only own one car. I don't have a car to drive over.

Defeated and pissed off, I re-installed all of the old parts. Looks like I'm going to have to shell out $100 to have him do the bearings for me. Damn it.

At least I replaced the lock nut on the driver's side control arm. Won't have to worry about that baby rusting for another 5,000 miles.

[/rant]

[Digitalwave]

You are replacing just the bearings or the whole mount? If yours are looking like a dessert then you need to replace the whole mount, the plastic and rubber wears out too.

Put a clothe around the shock shaft and grip it with a big pipe wrench or vice grips, then stand on the wrench and break the bolt off with a cheater bar. Works everytime and I have never scratched a shock shaft. Grip it towards the very top so even if you did scratch it (unlikely) you wouldn't damage the seals on the shock.

[kommissar]

I am replacing the whole mount because the rubber is gone. The bearings are not available as separate pieces as far as I know, anyway.

I like your idea about the cloth, but how do you get it in there with the spring in the way? My spring compressor does not make enough space for me to stick a Stilson wrench in between the spring coils. I might be able to get in there with some vice grips, but I'd have to buy vice grips with a bigger jaw on them.

Oh, and I noticed that my shock is already scratched near the bottom from the previous installer. They still seem to be working fine. Have you ever heard of shocks going bad because of a scratch on the shaft?

[Digitalwave]

I would think its possible to damage the shock because there are obviously seals that rub along the shaft (:giggle:) when the shock is compressed. But I don't know the nitty gritty of it all.

I didn't consider the fact that the spring is compressed honestly, as my springs on my E30 were so short they have 5" of free play from top to bottom when they were out of the car. However, as long as you can slip a wrench between some of the coils you shouldn't have much trouble.

And for what its worth, I have shot stock springs off the strut without compressing them. Its dangerous of course so I'm not recommending it, but if you are a dumbass like me, it usually just falls off the strut, and sometimes the washers from the mount go flying, but nothing dramatic has ever happened when I did it.

[e30frosh]

Forget paying 100 bucks to have your mech do it. Spend that on a compressor and gun at Wal Mart and learn how to keep a little more in your pocket for next time....Just my .02


I've done struts and springs on too may cars to count...I'm still not a pro, but I have filtered enough info into my beer soaked brain to get me by. Best of luck, and happy motoring.

[kommissar]

I have also removed that nut with no spring compressor in the past, and it was easy, but on a different car.

Today I did try to remove the nut when the spring was not compressed (i.e. exerting full force on the spring perch) and it still wouldn't budge. I was standing on top of the strut and using a cheater bar on it and the strut was just moving around with me on top. I think that it may be actually stuck on or something.

[erik325i]

Remove the spring compressor to allow room to attach the vice grips to the strut shaft. Now, hold that while you break the top nut loose. Once that nut is broken loose you can re-attach the spring compressor, and finish removing the nut.

And for what its worth, I have shot stock springs off the strut without compressing them. Its dangerous of course so I'm not recommending it, but if you are a dumbass like me, it usually just falls off the strut, and sometimes the washers from the mount go flying, but nothing dramatic has ever happened when I did it.

I've done that too a few times. I usually take an old towel and wrap it around the spring/strut bearing to prevent everything from shooting away.
It's dangerous though and I don't recomend it.

-Erik

[kommissar]

Remove the spring compressor to allow room to attach the vice grips to the strut shaft. Now, hold that while you break the top nut loose. Once that nut is broken loose you can re-attach the spring compressor, and finish removing the nut.

Okay, I will have another go at this tomorrow or on Monday. Thanks for the advice, gentlemen.
;)