How to Replace Shock Bushings
by Cassandra Tribe
The shock absorbers on your car are part of the suspension and steering system that allow you to maintain control over your car and to ensure a comfortable ride. The shock bushings are small rubber pieces placed between the shock and the frame of your car. Regular maintenance on your car should include replacing the shock bushings. Learning how to replace shock bushings on a car not only help keep your car handling smoothly but will save you the cost of having to replace the shocks before you should need to.
Step 1
Park your car on a level spot. Turn off the engine and engage the parking brake. Place the chock blocks behind the rear wheels of the car.
Step 2
Use the lug wrench to loosen the lug nuts on the tire you will need to remove to replace the shock bushings. Then jack up the car so the tire leaves the ground, put a jack stand next to the jack and lower the car so the weight is on the jack stand. Remove the jack. Unscrew the lug nuts completely out and remove the tire.
Step 3
Feel behind the brake drum where the shock absorber is attached to the chassis. Find the correct size socket and take the nut holding the shock absorber off.
Step 4
Push the bottom of the shock off the pin. The shock will expand to its full length.
Step 5
Locate the top of the shock, this is the part of the shock that passes through the body of the car. Loosen and remove the nut from the top of the shock absorber. Reach in through the wheel well and pull the shock out of the car.
Step 6
Remove the shock bushings and metal plates from the top of the shock. On most cars there are two rubber bushings about 1 inch in thickness. Some shocks have three. It depends if the bushings were added to make the shock fit the car.
Step 7
Open your new shock absorber bushings. You should see four to six replacement bushings and two circular plates. The bushings are top and bottom; match the shape and size to the ones you remove to know which should go where. The plates are shaped so that one side has turned up edges, like a shallow dish. Take one plate and put it on the top bolt end of the shock absorber so the "dish side" is turned upward. Put one bottom shock bushing over the top bolt end and push it down until it rests completely in the dish of the plate.
Step 8
Put the top rubber shock bushing on the very top bolt end of the shock absorber and push it down until it is snug against the body of the car. Put a metal plate on the bolt, dish side down so it holds the top of the bushing.
Step 9
Reattach the nut your removed earlier and tighten. Do the same for the nut you removed where the bottom of the shock is attached to the chassis. Put your tire back on and lower the car.
Tips
- Examine the bushing at the bottom of the shock absorber that slides onto the pin on the chassis. If it is worn, replace the shock.
Things You'll Need
- Chock blocks
- Lug wrench
- Car jack
- Jack stand
- Socket set (including wrench)
- Shock bushing set (Including Plate Hardware)
Warnings
- Shock absorbers can expand so rapidly they can cause serious harm; do not attempt to remove a shock absorber unless you are sure you can physically control the shock.
Writer Bio
Cassandra Tribe has worked in the construction field for over 17 years and has experience in a variety of mechanical, scientific, automotive and mathematical forms. She has been writing and editing for over 10 years. Her areas of interest include culture and society, automotive, computers, business, the Internet, science and structural engineering and implementation.
