Ok guys here's the story, i buy aftermarket speakers and my cross members will not allow my trunk to shut so i decided to try and use a strut or hydraulic lift w/e. So i build me a bracket it, mount it into the back of the trunk, and drill a hole in the trunk bar, then mount up the strut.. Woohoo i'm done, well thats just what i thought, the trunk will not close right now.. The side of the trunk with the strut is still raised up some when latched leaving a gap, so it looks bad and im afraid it may bend my trunk idk so i just take it off, move the bracket down further then mount it up again, the same problem returns.. I then drill another hole into the trunk bar, and mount it up again the same problem occurs, im so stumped someone that has done this mod please help... If i knew exactly witch strut you used i think it would help. I think im using to strong of one, but im not sure if you have any advice or anyway to fix it please tell me.
Thanks, in advance guys.

Heres some pictures


Huge gap left after trunk is closed.


That was the first set-up..

Here is the second set-up..

 

That's exactly why I went with 2 weaker struts, one on each side. I thought this might be a problem, but have heard of people using one strut with no issues. I recommend 2 60lb. struts, because I know that works OK. Or you can try and find a weaker single strut.

What PSI is that strut you have in the pictures anyway?

Also, I can't tell in the pictures, but is there room for the strut to collapse further when the trunk is closed?

 

with one set-up there is probably an inch and i have no idea what psi it is charged to.. can you find me 2 on the internet the 2 that you used.. the exact ones.. please. thanks.

 

OK, I dug up the place I bought them from.

http://www.autopartsbylou.com/index.php

Part number 10445

or you can search for struts with an extended length of 12", they have a compressed length of 8.5", and are listed at 60lbs each. I have a spoiler and these work great.

Keep in mind the ends are ball socket, so you have to use a ball socket or a machine screw to clip them on to. I bought these before I could find ones with bolt through ends.
The machine screw works great, so I wouldn't worry about it.

I hope you can sort this out.

 

i guess these are some really good speakers to be going through all of this

 

prion can you send me how you tell me how you built your brackets, what materials, and where you placed them? (there not really all that great but i guess there pretty good speakers lol)

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by LukieLuc &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">i guess these are some really good speakers to be going through all of this</TD></TR></TABLE>
For me it was definitely worth it as I am able to have 4x10" subs mounted to the rear deck, and still have room in the trunk to carry stuff.

As far as my brackets, i had a spare transmission battery ground bracket left over from my h22 swap, so I used that and also I had some small steel bracket left over from my old integra (have no Idea what it used to be for). Drilled some holes in them and bolted them to the seatback area. They look ugly, but you can't see them for the subs.

Since my struts have ball sockets, i ran pan head (or the slightly rounded head) machine screws through the holes drilled in the trunk arms and also in the brackets. For this setup, it was important to get the correct size pan head that the ball socket could clip onto and not be able to pull off. With a washer in between, I tightened the screws with a locktited nut until it was all snug.

The hardest part was making sure I drilled in the correct spots. I literally had to sit in the trunk with a tape measure and a flashlight to figure it out. In the end, one side is slightly higher than the other, but trunk lid operation is normal.

I can take pictures if you want, but I have a 4th gen so there will be a bit of a difference in bracket location. The guy in the write-up that I based my install off of had a 5th gen, but all the dimensions are nearly identical.

 

i need to know how to make the struts work right, i can visualize it better if you can show me a picture of it.. Thanks.

 

Here's a bunch of pictures:

Right side:



Left side:

The left side top is connected just as the right side is, on the left side of the trunk bar.


The big box blocking it all:

 

it looks just like my strut pretty much, hmm im so stumped i wonder if i move the bracket down it will close right, does your trunk close flush just like it should without the struts?

 

It closes perfect. There is a little resistance, but the struts don't keep the trunk from closing right.

It looks like either the PSI is too great, or you are giving the strut too much leverage on your trunk lid.


Modified by prion at 8:21 AM 10/27/2008

 

Here's some more shots of the upper connection. Note how close the strut is mounted to the hinge, its only a couple inches away. I failed to get a good macro because there is no room for the camera.

 

idk what to do, i already spent more on this than i planned, i guess i can try moving the bracket down again further.

 

Without changing to a weaker strut, moving the top mount point closer to the hinge is the only solution I can see for you.