okay well everytime i go over a rough bump or dip my car has a crunching sound in the back. so im thinking i need a new set of struts, my question would be 1st do you think i need new struts, and 2nd what kind should i get? is there a stiffer set i should get so i can have a little better handling. is there a shorter set i can just put on without any vibrations or anything? if there is a shorter of stiffer set i would also like to do the front if i can. so what do you htink> and how hard is it to put on? it seems pretty easy.

 

trust me ive done struts b4.

they are very easy if your just changing the struts and mounts, which should always be done together. put the car on a jack stand on the highest setting. put the floor jack under the rotor, and drop it to the floor. borrow the spring compressor for the auto parts store. compress the spring, so you can take it car, and leave it on the spring. go in your trunk, lift up the rubber caps. undo 3 bolts, note a gear wrech comes in quite handy here. take off the strut assembly.

you should just buy new dust covers too, you can reuse the rubber positioner piece on the bottom. its all re-aligning and reassembly from here. BE CAREFULL

now on my first side i took the spring compressor off, and it took four hours to do one side. the other side took .5 hours.

so my point being if your getting new springs too itll probly be a PITA.

of couse you will have to take a few bolts out for clearence along the way.

if this is too much to take on i suggest you take them somewhere, but itll probly be 100$/wheel + parts. i also suggest that you get a friend to help.

IM GOING TO REAPEAT MYSELF WHEN I SAY THIS IS EASY, IT DOES NOT MEAN ITS SAFE. IT IS VERY DANGEROUS, AND THE SPRING CAN SMASH YOUR HAND UP PRETTY GOOD. MAKE SURE EVERYTHING IS STABLE AND TAKE ALL PRECAUTIONS. gl

 

also idk how many miles are on your monte, but struts last 50-75 thousand miles depending on how hard you drive. you may just need stabilizer llinks that are 30 bucks.

To test your struts
open your hood/trunk.
push down around the strut and let go. if they bounce more than once im pretty sure there wore. the sound your describing might be just the mounts. but for all that work you might as well just replace the struts too.

 

alright sounds good but what about stiffer or shorter struts, will i need new springs with those? is there such struts? whats a good brand name.

 

i did mine on a 97 lumina so i didnt get the best. i just used monroe sensa trac. that car was also jumping over everything. afterwards it had a nice comfortable ride.

i recomend those, but most members on here will tell you to get kyb GR2's. they also carry AGX's witch cost 550 for a set of 4, just struts. they are the best out there with variable stiffness.

as far as springs go they make ssc, elibach, canadian motorsports, and spring tech. in order of best to worst. you can also pick up a used set of fe4's from most junk yards. these springs lower the car about 1 inch, slighty more in the front. they also require anti pogo washers{40 from zzp} and shorter dogbones{25 from zzp} from what i hear.