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Suspension

2K views 7 replies 4 participants last post by  95intrepid99kid 
#1 ·
So I need to replace most of the suspension on my 1995 ES, both front and rear; does anyone have any tips, recommendations, etc? Also what various components are there on the front and rear that wear out and need replaced?

For the front I already know I need Struts, Lower Control Arm Ball Joints & Bushings, Front Sway Bar Links, Inner Tie rod bushings, and Outer Tie rod ends

For the rear all I am aware of is struts (but I'm sure that's not all for a full suspension rebuild)


Thanks in advance!
 
#2 · (Edited)
#3 ·
Whoa this is long. Sorry.

I just did the fronts on my 97 Concorde last month...Struts, mounts, upper spring seats, and isolator pads, all from RockAuto.com at fantastic prices. I reused the springs, bellows, and jounce bumpers. When I took the struts out, I was flabbergasted that the car was even upright and steered! One upper spring seat was completely rusted thru allowing the spring to wear into the mount. Also the bearing disintegrated into a hundred pieces when it all came apart. Now, the difference in ride quality and turn effort is amazing. Hardest parts were: 1. Getting the upper nut loose from the strut rod, even with impact tools. Rusted solid both sides. 2. Tightening the new nut, b/c the rod end was not hex shaped like original (round with two flat sides). And nowhere could I find a tool to hold it while tightening the nut. Had to improvise majorly here. Therefore I would highly recommend using complete strut assemblies; for me getting the parts individually was a considerable savings, but it took so long and was so difficult that it wasn't worth it. Before I finished the job, I looked on RockAuto again and found they had Monroe complete assemblies with a rebate available that would have made them just about equal to what I paid for individual parts. So check that out.

There are some bushings that notoriously fail on these cars and must be checked/replaced.

1. Subframe bushings/cradle isolators. These deteriorate and come apart, then the cradle shifts around causing tire misalignment and all sorts of noise. There are four of them and each has an upper and lower half. You can get the original style on ebay for way cheaper than dealer or parts houses and they appear to be the same thing. Or check out Welcome to Poly Bushings.com if you want to upgrade to polyurethane. If you have to replace these, DON'T THROW AWAY THE CONE-SHAPED SPACER pressed into the lower half. It may appear to be part of the bushing itself but you have to pry it out and reuse it. It presses the whole lower bushing tightly against the subframe and also allows the bolt to tighten before it runs into the frame above. I made this mistake and threw them away, not realizing it until the bushings failed two years later! I had to get spacers from a junk yard and replace the bushings again. :/ Also you'll need to soak the upper part of the bolts with PB Blaster several times and several days before attempting to loosen the bolts. Trust me.

2. Steering rack mounting bushings. These are pressed into the driver side end of the rack and seemingly impossible to get out and back in. But, again, very necessary to check, as the rubber deteriorates and allows the rack to shift all over the place, making the steering sloppy and noisy. It is recommended to take the rack out in order to press the bushings out and the new ones in, but that was more than I had bargained for, so I pulled a McGyver and figured out a way to do it in the car. #bloodyknuckles Knowing what I know now, I would have had a shop do it.

3. Inner tie rod bushings. These are pressed into the inners where they connect to the rack. They are crap. Replace with MOOG split-type poly bushings in a kit with all new hardware. No special tools required and can be done in the car, but you'll have to remove the wiper assembly and intake tube if you have the 3.5L engine, don't know about the 3.3. Mine were so bad the car was all over the road when holding the wheel straight. Steering control and firmness is now completely restored for under $20.

Here's a helpful tip: before removing the strut-to-knuckle bolts, cover your CV boots with thick cardboard or something stiffer b/c when you take out that second bolt, the control arm will come up and the strut will lengthen and press into the boot, possibly tearing it. Nothing I read online or in my Haynes manual mentioned anything about that. Very important!

I didn't do the rears, but they're now conveniently shot, bouncing and rattling all over the place. Seemed solid a month ago. Funny how things go...

Forgive me if I've told you info you already know, and good luck with your project!
 
#5 ·
I'm not too familiar with the 2nd gen design, but I would think that if you're a DIYer they shouldn't be too difficult. Look in the 2nd gen forum for advice more helpful than mine. For me, I didn't have a choice but to do it myself. When it was done I was about ready to roll the thing off a cliff, so if I had the means to pay a shop, I would have only for the steering rack bushings. To pay labor for any of the other work would have also been way more than the car is worth. But to me, this car is awesome and now that it's back in great mechanical shape (other than rear struts) I could see it going for another 100,000 miles.
 
#8 ·
So, I did completely overhaul the suspension (the car sits like 3" higher now), and the major things I noted are that you should replace EVERYTHING in the front end all at once, because you will have to cut most of it off. The rear sway bar links available on the market now seem to have an issue with the rubber bushing design, because the "Pin" that screws the link onto the sway bar tends to pop out of the rubber, causing a rather large change in handling, and a loud clunking noise going over bumps. I fixed it by welding a large washer to the back of the "pin" by tacking it, then dipping it in cool water, tacking, then dipping, until I had made my way all the way around. Alternatively you could tap the hole on the back of the pin (some models) and place an oversize washer between the link and the bolt. Overall the car handles much better, and the alignment is spot on. (especially since I did it myself :D )
 
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