Hello

So I have to replace my strut tops cause the guy who put the struts in completely stripped them and when I was going to put my strut brace on I couldn't get the nuts off and had to cut the posts.

I got some used strut tops from a member on the forum and when I went to swap them last night they are quite different from the ones I removed. When I compaired the two to the FSM it appears that the new ones I got look correct.

Still have a problem though. The new ones have an oblong hole for the top of the strut thread to come up through and my struts (Tokico Blues) are circular and won't fit through.

Is this a reaccuring problem and do most of you guys just drill out the tops for them to come through?

Also what's up with the ones I had in my car? They have a bearing pressed in there and a totally different adjusting plate.....

See the pics for the differences.

Thanks

 

If it were me, and the only thing wrong with the old tops was the mounting studs, I'd knock them out and tack-weld some bolts in place, then continue using the bearing plates.
I have no clue what is up with the other plates, but they don't look anything like they should. There should be a bearing in them.

 

Just an FYI for those reading:

In the first picture the adjusting plate that came out of my setup is in the back. The strut tops that came out of my setup are the second and third pictures.

The ones I bought from a respected forum member are the parts with the fresh paint.

So Rogue_Wulff, the ones that look nothing like they should, are they mine or the ones I just received?

 

The second two strut top pictures have no bearings in them. Put some bearings in and they should work.

 

I sold him the tops, lol. Since his car is listed as an 82, I sent him the oldest set I had, which was supposedly from an 81/82 parts car. I've never had an SA for parts. The way the tops I sent him are designed, they don't have bearings, they have greased surfaces to bear the load and allow for rotation. Looks like I need to check the struts that these tops came off of. I noticed the notch too and thought it odd but assumed it was the way the S2 units were designed. I do have later tops with bearings for replacement.

 

I've never seen a SA strut top in person, so its possible thats what they are off of, but the S2 tops have the bearings in them like the S3 parts.
I'm with rouge wulff, just pop the studs out of the tops you have and replace them with bolts, or even the studs off those tops you got from Trochid, they go together very easliy.

 

The freshly painted ones don't look right, but the dirty ones do.
The only difference between SA strut tops and FB units, is the little arrow points the opposite way. Instead of pointing at the closest stud, they point at the furtherest stud. Thats why the SA calls for the opposite setting as an FB, when it comes to the arrow.
I dunno what those were designed for, but all 1st gen strut mounts *should* have a bearing in them.
Those look like someone's attempt at making their own, rather than replacing them. FWIW, new bearing plates can be bought for $25-$45 at most parts stores, though they usually have to order them.

 

how do you go about "just popping out the studs?" I have just minimal tools in my garage, ie wrenches, nothing fancy.

 

wise words from the Wulf!!
bash them out with a hammer....
if u put a nut on the stud before bashing you save the thread of the stud
allowing to reuse the studs on best mounts
put the mount on the edge/corner of a bench, or open a vice about 3/4in
ya use the bench/vice to brace the plate of the mount from bending back when u bash the stud!!!!
dont brace the back of the stud...hehe
ya can hammer them back in the same or ya can gently use a nut and spacer
on the stud that u cannabalised from those unused mounts
and gently tighten the nut pressing itself in the mount plate

 

Cool I see if that works tomorrow. I only have like a quarter inch left on the ones I cut off but maybe I can still get them out.

Thanks for the replies guys!

 

....and to avoid repeat grief after you install them and are about to thread on new nuts remember: torque to 15-ish Ft/Lbs!!!
People seem to think that because its a suspension component, it should be reamed on (I know I did ;p) - these little bastids spin out _very_ easily!
Stu Aull
80GS
Alaska

 

Well I was able to pop the old studs out with no problems. Then I used some of the studs off the ones I was sold and put them in my original ones. Everything turned out great!

The studs pop out fairly easy and them I just used a nut to snug the new ones up and line up to the hole, then put them in a vice and smashed them with a hammer. They went right in and were tight.

Got my car all put back together, put the strut brace on, had my new idle jets in the weber, and she went Fu**ing awesome. Best she's ever ran. Now I just need to give her a bath!!!!

Thanks everyone

 

Glad it worked out for you, yea those studs are really easy to change, just like a lug stud only smaller... Now you need to post pics of the car