DIY coilover installation

[noisy]

Hello guys. I'm planning to install a coilover by myself in my garage. I just need your inputs specially to the guys who had done it.

1. For the fronts, do I need to remove both upper and lower control arms so I could take off the struts? Does the control arm bolt have certain torques that i need to know? Is it the same at the rear?
2. Is there also a torque needed for the upper and lower bolts holding the struts?

Additional inputs are very welcome.

Thanks in advance

 

[noisy]

And oh. I have a 03 gen 3

 

[Steve M]

Keep in mind that mine is a Gen IV, but your experience should be fairly similar.

On mine, all I had to do in the front was unbolt the sway bar from the body (the end links were still attached) and let it hang to gain enough clearance to get the bottom through-bolt that holds the shock in place out. The top one came out no problem. Remove those two through bolts, and the shock assembly can be snaked out of the car without having to remove the upper/lower arms.

For the rears, you'll end up having to remove the fender liner...it's a bunch of screws, but not hard at all. I'd recommend a Ziploc baggy to hold the bolt & screws so you don't lose any of them. Just like the fronts, it is two bolts holding the shock in place, one top, one bottom. Unlike the fronts, nothing was in the way of those bolts, so they came right out. I did remove the ~3" rubber plug above the rear shock so I could maneuver the shock out of the way...you'll pull the top towards you and shove it up part way through the hole to give you enough room to snake the bottom of the shock out of the way of the half-shafts.

If I'm not mistaken, the upper and lower bolts both torque to 100 ft-lbs.

It's a dirty job, but not difficult at all.

 

[AbsolutHank]

Perfect advice above...I've done it literally 10 times now.

The only other advice I'd give is to "preload" the suspension before tightening the coilover. Jack the lower control arm up to the point where it would be at ride height, then tighten the upper and lower coilover bolts. It's a little cumbersome, but it will alleviate any binding.

 

[noisy]

Thanks for the immediate response. Steve, who do we need to remove the fender liner?

 

[Steve M]

The rear fender liner is two pieces...you'll be removing the rear most piece. All you need is a screwdriver (#2 phillips head works fine) and I think a 10mm socket to remove the single bolt (you'll see it once you are in there). The screws go all along the perimeter, including some underneath, so make sure you get them all. Once the screws are out, it takes a bit of prying to get it out from behind the fenders, but nothing unexpected.

 

[Steve M]

Oh, and one more thing...I did mine one side at a time so that I would have something to reference when throwing everything back together. It came in handy a few times, especially since I stretched my install out over a couple weeks.

 

[noisy]

Thank you Steve. My question is why do I need to take out the fender liner? For easy removal of the struts? I'll post pics of the install tomorrow before thanksgiving.

 

[AbsolutHank]

Thank you Steve. My question is why do I need to take out the fender liner? For easy removal of the struts? I'll post pics of the install tomorrow before thanksgiving.

Yes you have to. Remove the rear most piece on the rear only. You have to so you can remove the 3" rubber plug. This allows you the clearance to remove the coilover.

 

[Steve M]

Thank you Steve. My question is why do I need to take out the fender liner? For easy removal of the struts? I'll post pics of the install tomorrow before thanksgiving.

Not removing the rear fender liner will severely limit your access to the top bolt, as well as the rubber plug you'll need to remove to get the shock out. Although I didn't try to do it with the fender liner still in place, I didn't see any other way to do it.

 

[AbsolutHank]

Not removing the rear fender liner will severely limit your access to the top bolt, as well as the rubber plug you'll need to remove to get the shock out. Although I didn't try to do it with the fender liner still in place, I didn't see any other way to do it.

Plus it takes literally 3 more minutes to get it out of the way!

 

[98intrigue]

Yup. This is a very simple, straightforward install. I've installed a Vipair coilover kit and KWs on mine and the above instructions are perfect.