Removal of front struts
 

For the removal of the front strut, what all needs to be removed on the bottom end? Just the 19mm bolt (circled in red) and the sway bar bolt? What about the three 14mm bolts on the bracket? (circled in green) Do these NEED to be removed?

http://www.the370z.com/attachments/d...99firstpic.jpg

you will need to remove the entire bracket to be able to get the strut out of the car. Or you can spend 20 minutes trying to push the A-arm down far enough to slide the bottom of the strut out, but it's not worth it.

can you fit a compressor on the spring to aid in the removal? i remember on my G i used my spring compressor while the strut was still on the car to gain clearance. (not sure if this applies).

so much easier to remove 3 bolts than it is to put a spring compressor on the strut while it is in the car

gotcha.

i removed the red circled bolt and the sway bar knuckle. turned the wheel to the left or right depending on side and it fell right out. you could take all three bolts out but i was following the book....

Ok anyone know what kind of bolt that 14mm is as Nissan is having a hard time identifying it.

what do you mean what kind? like grade wise? did you f' it up?

So far as the OP, I wouldn't push down on the A-arm to remove the strut (even though he said it's not worth it). I did this the second time I changed out the strut and it ended up throwing off the SAI (steering axle inclination). To my understanding this can't be fixed other than replacing the upper strut mount and lower ball mount.

Those of you you who don't know what SAI is it's like caster, it provides directional stability. But it also reduces steering effort by reducing the scrub radius. SAI is a built-in nonadjustable angle and is used with camber and the included angle to show bent spindles, struts and mislocated crossmembers. I didn't have the car much longer after this to see the effects on steering or tire wear. But as far as I could tell at the time I didn't fill nothing in the steering even though it was far off from the stock settings.

Yeah I stripped out one of those 14mm bolts! I need a replacement asap. The dealer cannot ID the bolt. It's not in the diagrams at all, even the black bracket...

edit: apparently it's part of the whole lower arm assembly! Nice!!!

http://www.courtesyparts.com/370z-pa...8802_8804.html

Went to Sears and got a nice 6 point socket set! And a craftsman stipped nut removal kit. ;)

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00952166000P

Nissan wants $450 to do the front strut replacement. I'm going to do this myself damn it!

hmmm didnt know this. i was following the manual when it came to spring/strut removal....

On one of the 3 bolts you want to use a normal size socket and not the extended one. Or you may strip the bolt. I think you can pick up a similar bolt at tacoma screw or a store.

well, I can attest that you can remove the strut without removing those three bolts. I hate to admit it, but on my first suspension change, I cross threaded one of the three and didn't notice it until it was too late, so I just torqued it down, thinking, I'm not going to change it again. I have since changed it three times, and its very easy to get the strut out without removing them if you unbolt a lot of other stuff.

Take one of the other bolts out and go to Tacoma Screw. I went there this morning with a similar problem (incorrect torque spec in Rav4 manual... grr) and the guy just gave me a replacement bolt at no charge.

Can you please give me some more info on what to do to remove it without removing that bracket?

Thanks!