hey guys, i've had my konis and gcs sitting on my floor for about a month now. My uncle told me he would help me install them, hes got a lift and air tools and everything else imaginable in his garage.

Anyway ive been asking him for the last month and hes too busy with his bel air, so i just called him today and he said wait another week. Honestly i can't.

So i was thinking about goin to autozone, spend $30 on jack stands and just say expletive it and i'll try it myself.

I would do it at my dads house, he has a lot of tools, not sure about a torque wrench, but no air tools.

My uncle says he wouldnt do it unless i had air tools, but what do u guys think, will i be fine with a socket wrench and a torque wrench? .. if not what else would i need

edit: i saw a drill in the koni shock isntall, i have a power drill, don't know if i have that socket bit tho


Modified by pjr710 at 9:59 AM 5/29/2007

 

I don't have pneumatic tools and I have done almost everything with my suspension.

 

a decent set of METRIC hand tools is all you need. actually you just need a 10, 12, 14, 17 and 19mm individual sockets. 14-17mm in 1/2" drive. and 10-14mm in 3/8" drive. and then a 19mm of course for the lugnuts.

you can definately do it with a cheapo autozone jack and pair of 2 ton jackstand combo that typically go on sale for $25.

i would recommend lifting it by front and back. not like work on the left side first, front and back. but lift both fronts and do the swap, then lift the rear.

if you have 4 jackstands, great! use all four.

dont forget that youll need spring compressors if youre taking off your stock springs. btw, you dont need them for the rear, theyre barely preloaded.

 

Make sure you get 6 point sockets.


12 point:



6 point:

 

i wouldnt make it a necessity.

on most bolts i dont have a problem with 12pt. and unless you get an impact socket, you cant get a 6pt in 1/2" drive.

but for some specific bolts, i certainly request only 6pt. namely the tranny fill bolt, but thats a 17mm combo wrench with a 6pt closed end. THAT is a necessity. and i wouldnt use anything else.

nothing on the suspension i think really needs a 6pt. it helps to have the extra half turns too, like when youre using a breaker bar.

 

i have all those sockets .. i even have the 6 point ones. I can get 4 jackstands .. just need to get a jack (think my neighbor has one).

as for the spring compressor, i was told i can rent one from autozone then bring it back and get my money back, only other thing i would need is a torque wrench and pb blaster.

I want to go do this right now but im worried that i might snap an lca bolt and be sol. I have my first day of work tomrrow so i cant be left without a car.

Should i even worry about snapping an lca bolt or do u guys think i will be ok?

 

youll need a torque wrench for the lugnuts. honestly, i dont think ive ever torqued down a suspension bolt to spec. i just use my hands to judge it "good and tight". dont gorrilla it either. but i just dont bother with the torque wrench on each suspension bolt... i will torque the lugnuts religiously, for i have sinned too many times than i should have...

you can rent a torque wrench from autozone too. but i dunno what kind of condition that would be if its just a rental.... you really ought to get one.

and yes, you can rent the spring compressor from autozone. it doesnt quite fit right. my tip is to remove the claw on the free end by unthreaded it off the rod, pry the springs open enough to fit it through between 2 of the top coils, then you can thread the rod back in and the lock it against the bottom of the lower spring perch. hopefully that will make sense when you see it. and again, you dont need to bother with it on the rear springs. just put your weight on it.

personally, ive never had to deal with a broken lca bolt. maybe because ive been in california for the last 7 years and before that i was lucky in maryland with my crx there. but i do imagine other ppl arent so lucky.

if this is your first time, i wouldnt take for granted that youll have a working car the next day. projects always go long and possibly wrong, especially the first time. too bad you missed a long weekend to get this done.

but maybe youll be lucky. pb blaster is definately a good idea.

 

alrite i have a torque wrench, i don't work everyday .. tomrrow is my first day, so i have a lot of free time usually

what causes the lca bolt to snap?

i remember on my 95 civic, the lca bolt didnt snap when my suspension was put on, but when my sway bar went on it snapped

so would it be my fault if i snapped it .. or is it goin to snap on its on. by this i mean, is the bolt gunna snap b/c i fucked it up somehow and tightend it too much, or tried to untighten it withought putting some wd or pb on it, or is it just gunna snap when it wants to

 

what happens is that the bolt gets rusted and siezed inside the bushing sleeve. because its siezed in there, torqueing the head with the rest of the bolt not going anywhere will just break off the head, leaving you with nothing....

its really not going to be your fault. but you can do your best to make sure you try to soak it in PB blaster for a good 20 minutes before attempting if you think its going to be tough.

btw, once you feel the bolt is KIND OF moving, but still offering a lot of resistance.... youre screwed. the head is about to shear off. might as well STOP and leave it there. when you break loose a siezed bolt, it will suddenly snap loose and all will be good usually. you WANT it to snap off suddenly and with a pop. that means all the corrosion successfully broke loose and the bolt is now free to move. this stuff only comes with experience....

 

simple enough .. yea thats just really my main problem, i could care less if i have to spend 6 hours tonight to get everything back in place, but i just dont want to get screwed and have a bolt snap, b/c them in sol until tomrorw morning, and and i cant miss my first day of work

 

i would just wait another week or so...

in the downtime soak ALL the bolts that your going to be taking out with pb blast or wd40.

 

ill warn you, if you havent done suspension before, and youre alone, it may take you more than 6 hours

it took me a week working at least 1-2 hours a day to get it done

 

i wont be alone, and im not working a full time job .. its just summer work and i have a lot of free time. I think i should be able to get it done in one nite, but i could be wrong

just seems simple, pop on the screws, take out the shocks, and work backwards using the new ones

 

dude, if you have no air tools.. i can give you some tips on how to take out your stock suspension without the spring compressor. Well first you have to put the car on jackstands, and than you are going to need a jack and a piece of wood. Than you are going to put the wood on the bottom of the jack so that it can raise the rotor up and compress your stock spring. And than what you are going to do it get a allen key, put it on the middle bolt and than i think it was a 14mm and start unbolting it. And than, once you have the bolt out from the top hat spring. You are going to lower your jack down slowly and wahhhh laaa! Your stock struts are off! I hope that helped. If anything, anyone can PM me and i'll be more descriptive!

 

i did this to install my coilovers.

 

Invest in a electric impact. It will save u so much time. I took the suspension off my eg like 6 times the other day. I used a battery impact. It has enuff power to get the bolts off. But, when installing, i would recommend using the impact to thread it in, then give it the initial hand tighten because sometimes u run the risk of having a low battery charge.

 

i did this with no air tools too

the back is by far the worst
if you break the bolts be prepared to guy buy the bushings and new bolts honda dealers sometimes have them

but dont start if you have work
if you snap one your car is on jacks till you get the bushings and bolts

 

Wow this is an old thread.

and BTW Tyson I keep a 6-pt. 1/2" drive shallow 17mm Craftsman standard chromed socket on my breaker bar in the back of my car to use on my aftermarket lug nuts. Just about every socket imaginable is available from Craftsman in both 6 and 12 point.