Hey guys, so I am having to replace my struts and shocks and am replacing them with Tokico blues. i have to replace them tomorrow and I was just wondering how difficult it is to replace all 4 and about how long it takes? Also, does anyone have any tutorials or anything on the easiest way to swap the struts/shocks?

I need help ASAP!! any help would be very much appreciated.

 

rears are very easy, one bolt at the bottom and a pair of nuts at the top, under the interior panel.

fronts require air tools and a spring compressor, although its not hard

the shop manual is at Foxed.ca - Mazda RX-7 Manuals

 

Sounds good, my dad has both of those tools, so I should be able to get it done tomorrow. Thanks!

 

The back takes about 5 minutes.

The front can be a little frustrating. In the attached image I have circled a bolt that was impossible to get out on mine. Spent numerous nights/weekends trying to get it. Ended up just cutting it off. Went the junkyard and found 1 rx7 there and got it off in a matter of minutes....figures. Best of luck!

 

I didn't need air tools for mine. Loosen the front strut top nuts while the car is still on the ground. Since you have air tools, you will have an easier time than I did.

It took me a day to do all four along with the ball joints, control arm bushings, and pitman arm. The back is easy, but here is a tip: When replacing the rear springs, it helps to jack up the opposite side of the axle to increase the gap on the side you are working with. I also disconnected the rear sway bar when doing this. Overall, it was not that bad. I just have basic tools and didn't have any real issues.

Edit: I see your north of the mason-dixon. If it's a southern car, you won't have any issues. Otherwise, it's good you have the air tools.

 

Thanks for all the tips guys!! and it's not a southern car, but it is a California car so hardly any rust at all anywhere, saw snow once from the guy who brought the car over from Cali and he traded it in for a truck right away.

 

Thanks for the help guys, got them swapped out with no issues, my old struts and shocks were so shot and the ride feels soooo much better.

 

Awesome! I had the same experience. My car had 155k on the completely original suspension. It would just crash the bump stops on any bump in the road. Once those shocks and springs were swapped out (RB springs and Tokico Blues) the ride improved tremendously.

 

I find that to be an exaggeration since you have to remove interior component to get to the double nutted shock pin top.


I just did my rears this weekend. All told from start to finsih, with the car already in the air for other reasons. Probably 30 to 40 minutes at a constant, but average pace.

Fronts take more time due to the spring compression and the threaded piece holding the insert.