and the work continues.... when you get to be my age, these things take time!
OK, before I list more details on the struts, some words about spring/strut installations on the 7/9 series. As I've now been "in and out" about a half doz. times,
I found the sequence that works best for me. This is what I recommend to reinstall your front struts with IPD Blue Sport springs (or any other lowering springs using STOCK diameter, top hats & bearings etc). This does NOT include custom coilovers. I recommend the following sequence:
1. Remove your rotors (and in my case, hub centric adapters), for weight reduction reasons
2. Lower BJ is disconnected from the lower strut ( or roll center corrector in this case)
3. Install your spring onto the strut, then top hat with rubber upper spring seat, top bearing
4. Vehicle is safely support (I used a pair of Volvo scissor jacks at each front side, PLUS a floor jack under the cross member). I also throw the removed tires under the floor boards just for added safety....saw a car fall off jackstands once, and that was enough
5. Place the top nut (M16 in this case) near the upper strut mount, top side. Don't need that fancy rubber/steel concave washer gizmo for now, but put it nearby
6. With your spring properly positioned relative to the upper rubber seat and lower steel strut spring seat, carefully lift the assembly up into position and "start" the threaded section of your KONIs / whatever brand, up thru the top hat (which I never removed... left in situ)
7. NOTE -
no spring compressors required!
8. The top stud of the strut will be in the top hat, but not visible from the engine bay
9. Move the lower control arm, with ball joint, up under your strut (or roll center corrector in this case). Start the bolts up into the strut (yes, Virginia, everything will reach). Snug those bottom bolts which in my case required a M16 socket
10. Move a floor jack (not a scissor, bottle jack) under the strut bottom, beneath the ball joint, and raise the jack to contact
11. Slowly apply jack lift beneath the strut, whilst keeping an eye up top
12. Continue raising the jack (and slightly compressing your lowering spring) until enough of the M16 stud is topside and you can put the upper piece of the hat, lock nut and nut into position
13. In my case, begin twirling a M24 box wrench to tighten that top nut. You will begin pulling her snug up into position, and your spring is still perfectly positioned between spring seat and top rubber spring seat
14. Stop when the M24 nut goes solid....it's home! Later in the job, torque that top nut when you have the vehicle on her feet, suspension loaded
That's it!
The easiest way yet that I've found to install the front struts, but this will NOT work with factory springs..... you must use spring compressors with those (free length of spring is far too long). OK,
hope that helps those who follow....works great for those lowering springs. IPD says mine lower the front 1.75 inch net.
ALLRIGHT, now back to the task. Since this is my DD, and I drive in all weather, dust, sometimes gravel roads in N. Georgia and NC, I opted to use strut boots to protect the new KONIs. Given the fact that Ben Kaplan recommends to use a "bump stop" with them, I bought these from Amazon, only $16 each set plus shipping:
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NOTE that due to the lowering springs, I trimmed approx. 1.5 inches off the bottom of the new rubber/plastic dust boots. I actually was very pleased with these parts....nice quality bump stops and supple boots, all of it made in Germany. The bump stop fit perfectly up inside the stock top spring seat. These weigh nothing, and can only help, not hurt in any way I can imagine.
With those together, and struts installed, I finished the final install of the RCCs. The Brickboard 700/900 Maint. page specs recommend these fasteners be installed first with a 22 lb-ft torque, then an angle rotate of 90*. For an old guy like me, it takes a good grunt with a breaker bar to get the full 90*..... and I did not use Loctite in this instance (a lubricant at the point of torquing). I was concerned that the BNE supplied NORD LOCK washers might crack, but they survived just fine.
ONE MORE THANG...... in order to use my listed method above for strut installation, the lower control arm inboard rubber bushing mount must be released! Without doing this, you can't get enough travel from the lower control arm to get the strut past the wheel well inside and fender lip! These OEM rubber bushings are in shear as the suspension articulates... you must always leave them loose until the vehicle is sitting on the suspension at ride height, and then torque them.
Here is a nice shot of the Kaplhenke Racing roll center correctors, installed:
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Really looking forward to the test drive, to see how she handles with a properly restored front roll center
I'm expecting a nice improvement.
Also, while they are fresh in my mind, some torque #s for this work:
Brake caliper attachment (socket head caps, large) - 74 lb-ft
Lower control arm inboard rubber bushing (set with vehicle at ride height, loaded) - 64 lb-ft
Bottom ball joint fasteners, into bottom of strut - 22 lb-ft, then angle rotate 90*
Metric lug nuts (M12 ?) - attaching my Gil Racing spacers to the front spindles - 65 lb-ft
Sway bar attachment bolt - threads into LCA on my year 940 - 64 lb-ft
Got about another hour tonight, and then that first drive to test out the KONIs and the roll correctors.......