I just recently got new suspension installed on my 99 Civic. When I was driving today I heard a clanking sound come from the rear of the car. When I looked in the trunk I saw the bolt, the bushing, the washer, and the bolt collar off of the right strut and when I looked at the left strut I saw the the nut was about to come off. Why do you think that happend? Were the nuts not tight enough? Do you think anything got damaged? Could the strut have blown? I probably only drove about a mile or 2 to get home. Will it be easy to get it back together? Will I have to take the strut completly off of the car? I need to know something ASAP.

 

I had the same problem. What it is, is that ur missing 1 washer for the right strut. Before u put the top hat on, there should be a washer below it..this makes it so all the **** doesnt just pop up straight. If you pushed ur car pretty hard, the strut rod might be bent.. Disassemble your strut and check..i'll look for my old post about this.

 

Here you go:
https://honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=871653

Hope it helps man!

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by jeffk182 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I had the same problem. What it is, is that ur missing 1 washer for the right strut. Before u put the top hat on, there should be a washer below it..this makes it so all the **** doesnt just pop up straight. If you pushed ur car pretty hard, the strut rod might be bent.. Disassemble your strut and check..i'll look for my old post about this.</TD></TR></TABLE>

I am not missing anything. I think the reason it popped out like that is that the nuts were not tight enough. What do you mean pushed my car pretty hard? All I did was hit a bump then I hear a clanking noise. I dont think the strut rod is bent. I think the only thing that probably happened is that some of the threads are messed up. I always make stuff sound worse than it relly is. How am I going to be able to fix it? Am I going to have to take the strut completly out of the car? Someone said all I had to do was have someone stand on the brake or lca so I can take some preasure off the strut so I will be able to put all of the needed stuff back on. I hope nothing got damaged, If worse comes to worse I will just have to buy a new strut.

 

Uhmmm you MIGHT have to take the strut off. But check for that 1 washer..its a small part but without it, it makes the strut piston pop out. Even if the nut on the piston wasn't tight, the bushings and such should be popping out.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by jeffk182 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Uhmmm you MIGHT have to take the strut off. But check for that 1 washer..its a small part but without it, it makes the strut piston pop out. Even if the nut on the piston wasn't tight, the bushings and such should be popping out.</TD></TR></TABLE>

I know it is on there, I got my old setup back and there were no washers on it. I looked at the other side and the nut looked like it was about to come off. I guess the shop did not double check there work. I just hope nothing serious is wrong with it, I just hope its a coulpe of stripped out threads.

 

Did you have this work done recently? Take the car back to the shop where it was done and ask them what the ****. No matter which way you look at it... that job wasn't done properly.

 

thats probably the porblem most people do a shity job. just try to take a torque wrench to it and if it still happens then re post

 

if the whole thing came up into the car then you DEFINATELY forgot the stop washer. try again.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by CycloneBlue_1.6EL &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Did you have this work done recently? Take the car back to the shop where it was done and ask them what the ****. No matter which way you look at it... that job wasn't done properly.</TD></TR></TABLE>

The car cannot be driven.

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by monicle &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">if the whole thing came up into the car then you DEFINATELY forgot the stop washer. try again.</TD></TR></TABLE>

I dont think that is it. When I looked at my old struts the stop washer was not there which means its on the new suspension. The reason it did that is that the nuts were loose and I hit a bump and it came off.

I am just worried that something got damaged.

 

Could it be that the bolt(s) were not tightened with the full weight of the car ?
Did you have the work done at a major chain like Les Schwab ?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by alotawatts &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Could it be that the bolt(s) were not tightened with the full weight of the car ?
Did you have the work done at a major chain like Les Schwab ?</TD></TR></TABLE>

I think they were not tighten that much at all. When I looked at the left strut you could see it was about to come off. I got it done at a Performence shop in VA.
Do you think anything got damaged? I am just really worried that something got bent.

 

I had this happen to me as well. It simply turned out to be that the top nut was not tight enough. I tightened it under full load and I haven't had a problem since.

 

Update: I called the shop that installed my suspension they said they are going to send a mechanic down here and if they cant fix it on the spot they are going to have it towed to there shop


Modified by dawrenn at 1:12 PM 2/10/2005

 

That's the result I was hoping for. Make sure you watch everything they do. It won't hurt, and you'll learn a thing or two.

 

They had to take my car to there shop. THey could not fix it on the spot.

 

Just because the washer wasnt on ur old setup when you got it back, doesnt mean they put it on the new suspension..they could have forgot. But hope everything works out~

 

I took the strut out of my car to see if the washer was there and it was.

 

Was the long thin collar there too? Check to see if there is any oil on your strut. If so, it's blown. I'm willing to bet that they hand tightened it when the install it originally, got the bottom all together in the lca's and just forgot to torque the top down.

 

Yeah the long collar was also there.