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Coilovers.... fronts fitted


Scott
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Phew, what a day i have had. Total noob to suspension so i took my time and tried to get it right first time.... i failed lol. Spent about 5 hours on it all in and only got the fronts done. My back is KILLING me. Oh well, hopefully it will all be worth it. Here is the breakdown of fitting them.

 

 

First Hour:

 

First problem i came across was trying to get the car lifted. It was so damn low that i couldn't get the scissor jack under it but after a bit of playing with my drive ramp i got there. 2nd problem i came accross was the fact that i lost my 3/4 drive 19mm socket and only had a 3/8 one. Needless to say, i broke 2 19mm sockets and 1 of them was while taking the wheel nuts off (damn apprentices using impact guns!).

 

2nd Hour:

 

I don't know about anyone else but i couldn't get the large 10" pin out without removing the mudguard and ABS sensor thing so after a bit of faffing about i realised this and went to it. I Managed to get the nuts off fairly easily because my springs were only changed in February so no need for penetrating fluid. I struggled a little with the small pin but got there in the end with some brute force. The spring assembly came out fairly easily, i didn't even need spring compressors.

 

3rd Hour:

 

Got the coilover in and with a bit of faffing about eventually got it all hooked up. I put all the bits back where they were but didn't finally tighten anything as i wasn't sure what height i would be at. I lowered the car off the jack and it was far too low so i lifted it back up again, took all the pints, bots etc back off and adjusted the height. I lowered it again and i was fairly happy so it was time to move onto the 2nd side.

 

4th Hour:

 

I had a knack for the process now so i managed to get the whole thing changed over in this hour. I had 2 problems, the first was that my back was killing me, I'm 6'4 so spending that much time under a low car on a jack and an axle stand isn't the best, the 2nd was the damn screenwash bottle. I don't know if anyone has managed to get the big pin out without removing this but i had no chance. After much faffing around i just removed the bolts holding it in place and moved it out of the way. I sorted out the coilover and I thought i had it approx the right height but once i got it all together and back down i noticed it was far too low. It was time for a juice break though so i popped to the shop for irn-bru. When turning hard in the past the wheel would rub but even when turning slowly it was rubbing lol.

 

5th Hour:

 

The first side was still too low and i had no choice but to raise the 2nd side so in the final hour i managed to adjust the height in both sides to an acceptable level. One of the sides is a bit too high now actually but i'll deal with that when its onto the rears.

 

Impressions:

 

I'm really surprised by how comfortable the coilovers are. I was expecting them to be really harsh but they aren't anywhere near it. They feel much more comfortable than the shocks and springs i had on there. I set the rebound at 20 on both sides so i will see what thats like for now. Overall its a big thumbs up for the coilovers, i'm very happy with them and they do exactly what i was after. Going by everyones opinion the rears should be much easier to fit so i'll get them done as soon as i can. I'll probably leave the heights uneven until the springs have settled then i will measure how much each side needs to go up/down so that i only need to do it once.

 

Sorry for the long post, got a bit carried away :)

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Leave them on the softest setting until you've done a few hundred miles, that way you won’t bugger the seals in five minutes. :)

 

I think 20-32 is soft so i should be ok

 

Good work btw. :)

 

I would have been proud if i hadn't read that some guys have done all 4 in 2 hours lol. Don't know how they managed it though, maybe their watch was broken :p

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I think 20-32 is soft so i should be ok

 

 

 

I would have been proud if i hadn't read that some guys have done all 4 in 2 hours lol. Don't know how they managed it though, maybe their watch was broken :p

 

I done all mine in just over an hour and have never done supra suspension before.

I just put it down to me being so damn good :D

Nah well done fella. Will be far easier if you have to do it again.;)

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I done all mine in just over an hour and have never done supra suspension before.

I just put it down to me being so damn good :D

Nah well done fella. Will be far easier if you have to do it again.;)

 

 

Coilovers? You didn't need to adjust anything? Thats what took me the longest. The messing around at the start and then all the adjusting. I had to take the whole thing apart every time i wanted to change the height.

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Coilovers? You didn't need to adjust anything? Thats what took me the longest. The messing around at the start and then all the adjusting. I had to take the whole thing apart every time i wanted to change the height.

 

No i done it before it hit the floor and jody done an mot for me and checked the alignment was all ok. But it can easily eat up a day or two.

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James! An hour for all 4!!!!, including setting the rideheight?! Now im good, I know all of the tools to get and the order in which to do it all and i cant do it in 2hours let alone 1! Me thinks someone is exagerating lol Still u did do a good Job!

 

JT

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Yeah those long bolts are a pain! Did mine over a weekend the first time I did mine, although the anti roll bar linkages were rusted on so they were left to soak in WD40 for a while ;) Sorry if I missed it in the story, but what coilovers have you put on?

 

what you touching the antiroll bar linkages for when fitting suspension?

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what you touching the antiroll bar linkages for when fitting suspension?

 

Yeah, I'm with you on that one...

 

The suspension comes out without taking all that apart. Takes about 2 hours to do it (once you know the tricks) The hardest part on the front is the washer bottle :)

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I seem to remember it being a whole load easier to get the old suspension out/new suspension in with those disconnected.

 

All i undid was the suspension arm bolt pin and the upperwishbone (as mentioned).

 

The only difficult part was pushing the hub down enough to get the suspension out. Much easier having someone else to stand in it lol. Had the wife for the rears. Did it in jig time :)

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The hardest part on the front is the washer bottle :)

 

My washer bottle almost ended up in bits, got me so angry lol. Noone mentioned it on here that i noticed. Its a bloody nightmare!!!

 

If anyone is thinking of doing their coilovers save yourself the hassle and just remove the washer bottle. I spent about half an hour messing with the damn thing before taking it out. Once its out its a piece of piss.

 

well done bud - you can do mine when I get them now !!!

 

 

 

You bring the beer ;)

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