Great video. Love that yours is a backyard DIY style, unlike the "pro" videos with all their fancy tools. And the two "pro" videos I watched didn't bother to show how to get the caliper off. Didn't even mention taking it off, but showed putting it back on. Brilliant.
Ever thought about doing a rear strut replacement video? Your front strut replacement video was by far the best of all the front strut replacement videos I watched.
Thanks for the video it helped me to change my front struts. I really appreciate your idea of supporting the end by the breaker bar with a jack stand. I did it without pulling the axle out. Remove the sway bar nut on the lower control arm, disassemble the top ball joint on the knuckle, remove the brake caliper (no need to remove the pads). Remove bolts top and bottom of strut, it helps to turn the steering wheel full lock towards the side your working on. It helps to have the jack under the lower control arm to line up the lower bolt and as you raise it to start the top bolts, stab the sway bar. Once the top bolts are snugged. Continue raising the lower control arm to start the ball joint, I used a rachet strap over the upper control arm down to the lower control arm to pull the ball joint together. That way you won't mess up the machined surface or threads of the ball joint as another commenter mentioned. At this point the suspension is pretty much at ride height and you can torque all the bolts. Top strut 30 ft-lbs Bottom strut 406 ft-lbs (yes 406) Ball joint 85 ft-lbs Then you can put the caliper back on torqued to 20 ft-lbs. Then reconnect the wires and hoses. Put the wheel back on torque the lug nuts to 125 ft-lbs. Then do the other side. I used 2 floor jacks 2 jack stands ¾ drive torque adapter from HF that reads 150 to 750 ft-lbs and turns any rachet/breaker bar into a torque wrench. Spec's from Ford-specs.com
I do this without removing the brakes, sway bar, axle bolts, upper A arm, etc... All I need to remove is the front steering arm to spindle bolt and the assembly can be removed from the front. I don't understand why people take so much extra stuff off.
@@JasonWW2000 I was also adding a lift kit that made the struts (coilovers) 2 inches longer. Even with the upper and lower control arms separated from each other I had to use a pry bar to get the struts in.
You might mention that it is very important to good braking performance to clean the slide pins after you remove them and to lubricate them with a non-petroleum-based synthetic grease designed to withstand the severe heat developed by disc brakes, before you reinstall those pins, and to loosely replace the huge bolt at the bottom of the strut at the start of the reassembly process. Thanks for making it look easy. P.S. In the title you might mention you are working on a 4WD vehicle.
How about check engine light for suspension. There’s by pass kit out there from strutamaster for $450. Crazy price anyways is the navigator limited in speed due to the suspension light active after the conversion is done ? Can owners still drive the suv without overpaying strut master for their bypass box?
upper ball joint 85 ft/lb. upper strut tower 30 ft/lb lower strut bolt 350 ft/lb (not a typo) axel shaft nut between 15-20 ft/lb Just my 2 cents, but I wouldn't use a vice grip on the ball joint. the teeth will mar up the taper and possibly prevent proper seating or cause a groove that could wear down the a arm or ball joint. I jack up the lower a arm then give the upper a decent whack with a hammer to help seat the ball joint. Its usually enough to stop it from spinning.
hi I have a 2007 ford expedition limited. my mechanic change the front and rear coil springs and struts and he replaced the whole rear end because it needed replacement. after doing all that work my truck still drives 1970 dump truck. I used Monroe coil springs and struts. do you have any solutions to get this truck to ride better. I also just change all four tires last week
@@aDIYCarGuy my wife calls it a dunky kick. When I hit a pothole, it doesn't really absorb the whole. The ride is smooth until you hit a pothole or bumps. You would think that the struts or the course brings a bad.
You only need to drop the tie rod- and strongly advise to take a rope or bungee and secure it out of the way... stab the completed assembly back in and use the points on the lower arm designed for assisting you with pry-points... get a nuts on the front two studs on the top of assembly to secure it and get it started in at the bottom... use a long 1/2 extension or other clean smooth tool surfaced rod to get the bottom lined up with the slots perfect and use pry bar and pry points to walk it in... Also to note- my 04 expedition large nut on bottom large bolt was 29mm... used a 29mm deep impact socket and for whatever reason I didn't need any back up... which was somewhat concerning... but the head of the bolt was 30mm... so 29mm nut and 30 mm head of bolt...
Also to mention- utilize a jack to secure the truck- and use your jack and lift the truck til the jack shifts... I was on concrete... or until you take the weight from the jackstand... that's getting your strut assembly loaded to "ride height"... then tighten the shit out of it... I believe it's 405 ft lbs if I remember correctly... but it doesn't have to be done with the truck on it's tires... just needs to have the weight loaded on it...
My vehicle: 2004 expedition 2WD... I have a little more room to work than he did... Well made video tho- definitely goes above and beyond... a good reference for removing alot of other components as well... well made and to the point... subscribed
Never use vice grips on the smooth section of a ball joint. Its smooth for a reason. You don't want to gouge it or make it out of round. The majority of the stuff you took off is not even necessary. Just remove the steering shaft to spindle bolt and take out the assembly from the front.
Number 1 8 out of 10 of these so-called complete strut packages have the wrong springs. wrong spring rate. And aren’t even close if your trucks equipped with a towing package. If you’re going to go this route with your Ford I highly Recommend that you use for the original equipment manufacturer replacement parts and double check your springs.
I agree. And, my OEM springs have pink paint marks on them so that they are matched. That's something you'll never see in an aftermarket part. Not to mention checking the coil thickness, etc.
Great video. Love that yours is a backyard DIY style, unlike the "pro" videos with all their fancy tools. And the two "pro" videos I watched didn't bother to show how to get the caliper off. Didn't even mention taking it off, but showed putting it back on. Brilliant.
Bought true drive struts from car parts! Installed today. So far no squeak, no float. :)))
Ever thought about doing a rear strut replacement video? Your front strut replacement video was by far the best of all the front strut replacement videos I watched.
Upper strut nuts:
30 ft-lbs
Lower strut nut:
406 ft-lbs (not a typo... 406 ft-lbs)
Upper Ball Joint:
85 ft-lbs
Tie rod nut: 85 ft-lbs
Axle Nut:
22 ft-lbs
Brake line nuts: 22 ft-lbs
Lug Nuts: 140 ft lb
Thanks for the video it helped me to change my front struts. I really appreciate your idea of supporting the end by the breaker bar with a jack stand. I did it without pulling the axle out.
Remove the sway bar nut on the lower control arm, disassemble the top ball joint on the knuckle, remove the brake caliper (no need to remove the pads). Remove bolts top and bottom of strut, it helps to turn the steering wheel full lock towards the side your working on. It helps to have the jack under the lower control arm to line up the lower bolt and as you raise it to start the top bolts, stab the sway bar. Once the top bolts are snugged. Continue raising the lower control arm to start the ball joint, I used a rachet strap over the upper control arm down to the lower control arm to pull the ball joint together. That way you won't mess up the machined surface or threads of the ball joint as another commenter mentioned. At this point the suspension is pretty much at ride height and you can torque all the bolts.
Top strut 30 ft-lbs
Bottom strut 406 ft-lbs (yes 406)
Ball joint 85 ft-lbs
Then you can put the caliper back on torqued to 20 ft-lbs.
Then reconnect the wires and hoses.
Put the wheel back on torque the lug nuts to 125 ft-lbs. Then do the other side.
I used 2 floor jacks
2 jack stands
¾ drive torque adapter from HF that reads 150 to 750 ft-lbs and turns any rachet/breaker bar into a torque wrench.
Spec's from Ford-specs.com
I do this without removing the brakes, sway bar, axle bolts, upper A arm, etc... All I need to remove is the front steering arm to spindle bolt and the assembly can be removed from the front. I don't understand why people take so much extra stuff off.
@@JasonWW2000 I was also adding a lift kit that made the struts (coilovers) 2 inches longer. Even with the upper and lower control arms separated from each other I had to use a pry bar to get the struts in.
Thank you so much for the help. I’m actually changing my shocks on a 2009 expedition and this video will help me with getting the job done. 👍
You might mention that it is very important to good braking performance to clean the slide pins after you remove them and to lubricate them with a non-petroleum-based synthetic grease designed to withstand the severe heat developed by disc brakes, before you reinstall those pins, and to loosely replace the huge bolt at the bottom of the strut at the start of the reassembly process. Thanks for making it look easy. P.S. In the title you might mention you are working on a 4WD vehicle.
EXCELLENT VIDEO!!! And thank you!!! As thorough and informative a video as I've seen. I needed this detail because my mechanic skills are lacking.
I will be doing what you just did tomorrow. DIYer myself. It will be interesting! Thanks for the educational video.
Anthony Jeselnik does his own mechanical. Nice.
Thanks for that vice grip hack!
Don't ever do that vice grips thing, it can damage the ball joint. Taking the ball joint nut off is not even necessary.
Thanks for your great video, how long would you say in total it took you to do this if you weren't filming
Always ambitious, love that. Great to see you continue to grow :)
How about check engine light for suspension. There’s by pass kit out there from strutamaster for $450. Crazy price anyways is the navigator limited in speed due to the suspension light active after the conversion is done ? Can owners still drive the suv without overpaying strut master for their bypass box?
great job very informative
Did you notice the new coilover had the bumpstop upside down and was above the dust cover? Someone assembled it incorrectly.
So how did it ride? Are the shocks decent OEM replacements?
Typically they use the cheapest shocks possible and it rides like it.
upper ball joint 85 ft/lb.
upper strut tower 30 ft/lb
lower strut bolt 350 ft/lb (not a typo)
axel shaft nut between 15-20 ft/lb
Just my 2 cents, but I wouldn't use a vice grip on the ball joint. the teeth will mar up the taper and possibly prevent proper seating or cause a groove that could wear down the a arm or ball joint. I jack up the lower a arm then give the upper a decent whack with a hammer to help seat the ball joint. Its usually enough to stop it from spinning.
Love carparts.com!!
Thanks for choosing CarParts, J K!
hi I have a 2007 ford expedition limited. my mechanic change the front and rear coil springs and struts and he replaced the whole rear end because it needed replacement. after doing all that work my truck still drives 1970 dump truck. I used Monroe coil springs and struts. do you have any solutions to get this truck to ride better. I also just change all four tires last week
70's dumptruck as in really stiff?
@@aDIYCarGuy my wife calls it a dunky kick. When I hit a pothole, it doesn't really absorb the whole. The ride is smooth until you hit a pothole or bumps. You would think that the struts or the course brings a bad.
I would suggest getting the best shocks you can afford. Something like Bilstein 4600. The factory used Bilsteins.
duh@@aDIYCarGuy
Couldn't you just unbolt the two bolts on the lower control arms to replace the struts?
Doing so would throw off the alignment.
He took off way too many things. All you need to take off is the steering link at the spindle and the shock can come out towards the front.
Which struts did you go with and what's your feedback on them? Link or part #?
All I did to change my struts was unscrew the tie rod, not all the shit you did 😂
Thats what i was thinking i dont think you need to take the brakes apart cant you pull the caliber whole by unscrewing them from the rotor ?
You only need to drop the tie rod- and strongly advise to take a rope or bungee and secure it out of the way... stab the completed assembly back in and use the points on the lower arm designed for assisting you with pry-points... get a nuts on the front two studs on the top of assembly to secure it and get it started in at the bottom... use a long 1/2 extension or other clean smooth tool surfaced rod to get the bottom lined up with the slots perfect and use pry bar and pry points to walk it in...
Also to note- my 04 expedition large nut on bottom large bolt was 29mm... used a 29mm deep impact socket and for whatever reason I didn't need any back up... which was somewhat concerning... but the head of the bolt was 30mm... so 29mm nut and 30 mm head of bolt...
Also to mention- utilize a jack to secure the truck- and use your jack and lift the truck til the jack shifts... I was on concrete... or until you take the weight from the jackstand... that's getting your strut assembly loaded to "ride height"... then tighten the shit out of it... I believe it's 405 ft lbs if I remember correctly... but it doesn't have to be done with the truck on it's tires... just needs to have the weight loaded on it...
My vehicle: 2004 expedition 2WD... I have a little more room to work than he did...
Well made video tho- definitely goes above and beyond... a good reference for removing alot of other components as well... well made and to the point... subscribed
Wow!
Never use vice grips on the smooth section of a ball joint. Its smooth for a reason. You don't want to gouge it or make it out of round. The majority of the stuff you took off is not even necessary. Just remove the steering shaft to spindle bolt and take out the assembly from the front.
THANK YOUUUUUUUUU!!!
You might want to drive the truck and let us know what you think about the drive/ride and how the vehicle sits now that it has new struts.
how to get rust menace off the Underhood area.
Number 1 8 out of 10 of these so-called complete strut packages have the wrong springs. wrong spring rate. And aren’t even close if your trucks equipped with a towing package. If you’re going to go this route with your Ford I highly Recommend that you use for the original equipment manufacturer replacement parts and double check your springs.
I agree. And, my OEM springs have pink paint marks on them so that they are matched. That's something you'll never see in an aftermarket part. Not to mention checking the coil thickness, etc.