How to Line Up the Strut With the Suspension Tower for Replacing Strut Mounts

Correctly lining up the suspension tower with the struts is a key component to replacing the struts and reassembling the system properly. Not done right, this could cause potentially expensive and time-consuming damage to your vehicle down the road.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

1. Reassemble the complete strut system after replacing the parts showing excessive corrosion or cracking. This should include the lower spring rubber, strut, bump pad, weather boot, strut spring and upper strut nut. Remove the spring compressor before re-installing the strut into the vehicle. Keep in mind that any spring compressed has potentially dangerous energy stored in it.

2. Notice the four bolts sticking out of the strut. These line up inside the fender, slightly behind the wheel mount. Use your hands to find the holes and line the bolts up into them. Hold the strut in place while you manually tighten one of the bolts to hold the strut in place.

3. Tighten the other three bolts, keeping the strut straight to avoid misaligning the bolt threads. If it gets out of alignment, unscrew the bolts and start again. Once you have the strut held in straight, you can move to tightening the bolts the rest of the way with a torque wrench.

4. Ask someone to hold the strut while you tighten the starter bolts in Step 3 if you are having a problem keeping everything lined up. Once the bolts are started and the strut is secure for tightening with a torque wrench, you shouldn't need assistance any longer.