Hi, i hope i'm not posting something needlessly i couldn't find answers on the search section. my problem is that i have a 2003 cav. that needs the struts replaced sometime in the near future. the car has 135,000 kms on it and i'm told that the strut bracket or something should be replaced at the same time. if i need to replace all of this anyway i was thinking that it would be a good time to spend more and upgrade to something a little sportier perhaps a little lower. not much but 1.5" or less probably just to give it a sportier feel to it.
my question is if there is a package or something set up that is just as simple as removing the stock parts and replacing them. i've been reading a little bit and the replacement for the koni yellows involves cutting the strut and using parts from the stock one or something, i don't quite understand the guide, please don't flame me or tell me never to touch my car i don't plan on tearing it apart right away, i understand about cheap parts performing like cheap parts so i don't have a problem paying for decent stuff.
if anyone can recommend something that offers a 1.5" or less drop and offers better handling than a stock set up that is fairly well set up at a package i would really appreciate it, as well as a ballpark cost (Canadian dollars).
anyone with tips/comments/recommendations that would be great.
Koni Yellows are an exception in that they have a few extra steps to accomodate the front "inserts". Virtually any other strut would be a direct replacement.
The most popular choice in your situation would be KYB AGX struts, and Eibach Pro-Kit springs, which provides great handling and adjustability along with a 1.4" drop. Those struts can be found for less than $400 CDN for a set, and the springs often come up second-hand for less than $150 CDN. Full retail pricing is more in the area $550 and $250 respectively, so it pays to shop around and scour the classifieds.
Edited 2 time(s). Last edited Tuesday, May 15, 2007 12:20 PM
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that's awesome, considering i got a quote from the shop just to replace struts was $1,800 i guess that's mostly labour then. i was thinking anything around $2000 would be good. wow!!!
geez you were gonna get raped. it should take no longer than 4 hours tops for a shop to install struts. even at 100 an hour thats only 400 for labor. you can change the struts out yourself, its not hard at all.
yeah they said i needed a strut brace or bracket or something too not quite sure, and i think it was 6 hours at $100 an hour. i think i'll take 12 hours and save the $600.
I provided my "small town" local mechanic with struts and springs that I obtained through eBay and Jason@ A+, and had him do the install for me. He ended up replacing one rear strut mount (which I believe is what you were talking about) -- luckily the rear strut mounts are cheaper than the fronts.
It was done during a single afternoon while I was at work, and It cost me $370 CDN at $75/hour labor, including the cost of a new mount. The Sportlines and D-Specs I used were the bulk of the cost, running me about $850 CDN by the time they were shipped to me. The alignment the next morning was at a seperate shop at about $70. So I'm down about $1300 CDN, and everybody still gives me a hard time about having the wrong tires.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edited Tuesday, May 15, 2007 1:10 PM
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