How to Replace the Shocks and Struts in a Chevy Avalanche

The Chevy Avalanche is a sport utility truck often used as an off-road vehicle, so you need to check the condition of your shocks as regularly as you rotate or balance your tires. Under normal driving conditions, you should replace them every 60,000 miles. Good shocks improve your Avalanche's performance and handling and improve the safety for everyone inside. This process only covers shock replacement, because Chevrolet doesn't equip the Avalanche with struts.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Floor jack
• Jack stands
• Adjustable wrench
• Ratchet set
• Torque wrench

Replace the Front Shocks in an Avalanche

1. Raise the Avalanche with a floor jack, and set it on jack stands. Locate the shocks under each side of the front of the vehicle, which run from the lower control arms right behind the wheels to the shock brackets on the top of the shocks. They look like two tubes that slide in and out of each other.

2. Hold the smaller of the shock tubes, called the tenon, with a wrench and twist the upper mounting nut. Slide the upper insulator off, but don't lose the pilot ring below it. You can find the nut and upper insulator on the top of the shocks. Unbolt the mounting bolt on the lower control arm at the bottom of the shock. Slide the shock absorber out of the mounting hole. Repeat this step on the other side if you're replacing both shocks.

3. Align the shock and slide the stem, or the skinniest part of the shock, through the hole in the shock bracket where you pulled out the old one. Bolt the shock to the lower control arm. Turn the dial on your torque wrench to 59 ft-lb and tighten the bolt until you feel the wrench give slightly.

4. Slide the upper insulator onto the shock using the pilot ring. Hand-tighten the upper mounting nut on the stem so it's holding the shock in the hole in the shock bracket.

5. Use the jack to lower the Avalanche and remove the jack and stands. Set the torque wrench to 15 ft-lb, and torque the upper mounting nut until you feel the wrench give.

Replace the Rear Shocks in an Avalanche

6. Jack up the Avalanche, and support the rear axle with jack stands.

7. Remove the upper shock absorber nut and bolt, and unbolt the lower shock absorber nut and bolt. Pull out the shock absorber.

8. Align the new shock absorber, and insert the lower nut and bolt. Then insert the upper nut and bolt. Torque them both to 70 ft-lb.

9. Use the jack to lower the Avalanche from the jack stands.

Tips & Warnings

• If your Avalanche model is equipped with selectable ride, be sure to disconnect the real time dampening rods from the electrical sensors before you do any work on the suspension system. They're attached to the tenon side of the shocks over the mounting nut. Grip the locking tabs and twist them counterclockwise until they disengage, and you can get to the mounting nut. Remember to twist them back on in a counterclockwise manner until they click after you've torqued the upper mounting nut when you're finished.
• In different models of the Avalanche, the bolts and nuts holding the shocks might need to be set to a different torque. The information here is based on the 1500 series, 4-wheel drive model. Torque the lower bolt to 18 ft-lb in the 2-wheel drive model. Different years might also have different specifications.

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