Re: Front Strut Replacement

["Eric M. Hunt" <bmw1@xxxxxxxx>]

Replacing the front struts is fairly easy, but you won't be able to
extract the strut through the wheel well.  The only thing I would not
recommend doing yourself is removing the strut from the housing since
this will require your to compress the front spring using a spring
compressor.  Most shops have a hydraulic spring compressor for such a
job.  I took mine to PepBoys to compress the springs and remove the
struts.  Then I took the whole unit back to them to assemble the new
struts, etc.  Overall cost ~$40.

You may want to take this time to replace other items in that area like
you control arms and/or control arm bushings as well as the ball
joints.  You don't need any special tools for replacing just the struts,
though.  It takes a decent amount of time to get to the point where you
can remove the strut.  I would recommend purchasing the Bentley manual
for such a job.  The Bentley manual describes the whole process
perfectly.

Eric
1987 325ic

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