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OK. I am beyond frustrated. I have ordered 2, and am about to order the 3rd set of struts to replace my originals that have 180k miles. Due to the age of this car, I am trying to use a ready-strut type of replacement. To use Lexus OEM parts would cost me $700 JUST FOR THE REAR, if I didn't buy the springs.
So I have ordered 2x, the struts that look like this:
Because that's what is on the car. And both times (on Amazon), I ordered rear struts that look like that, I end up getting rear struts that look like this delivered:
The struts are very clearly wrong, they are an inch too long, and have too many turns in the coils.
WTF am I doing wrong here? Short of getting lexus parts, I am wondering if my car is just a factory freak?
They may work just fine. Won't know for sure until they are installed.
A spring's compression rate and performance is independent of uncompressed length or number of coils - differences in the diameter of the coils, material used, etc. can result in the same performance. Thus, longer +thinner coils can equal shorter+thicker. Throw in the material variable and it can look, outside the car, very different. If the engineers did their job 100% right, that should be fine. If they are KYB brand, I'd possibly use them. If not KYB, I wouldn't trust them.
That said, you won't know the final answer until you install them and drop the car. If you are still hesitant, this would be a good time to back away from the ready strut and take a different route - Get some KYB Excel shocks and some Moog CC273 coils. This will be a) cheap(er), b) replicate the factory ride/height/etc, and c) be reliable and long-lasting. It will let you re-use the factory upper mounts and avoid the risk of mount failure down the road (very common). I and some other have several years/miles on this set-up and it is an excellent substituent for the very expensive factory option.
All-in-one struts sound like a great idea, but often have inferior components, have a high failure rate with the mounts, and really only save you about 20/30 minutes per side on disassembling the strut to replace the coil. All the other work is the same. Even if you do use the ready-strut, I highly recommend taking the old struts apart and retaining the OE upper mounts as insurance against future aftermarket mount failure.
If you are at 180k and taking the rear suspension apart, this is a good time to look around at other suspension components that are going to wear before long. Test the end links, check the bearings up front, check suspension bushings, sway-bar end links (do not mess with the front sway bar bushings unless you are 100% falling apart, and you like pain), etc.
They may work just fine. Won't know for sure until they are installed.
A spring's compression rate and performance is independent of uncompressed length or number of coils - differences in the diameter of the coils, material used, etc. can result in the same performance. Thus, longer +thinner coils can equal shorter+thicker. Throw in the material variable and it can look, outside the car, very different. If the engineers did their job 100% right, that should be fine. If they are KYB brand, I'd possibly use them. If not KYB, I wouldn't trust them.
That said, you won't know the final answer until you install them and drop the car. If you are still hesitant, this would be a good time to back away from the ready strut and take a different route - Get some KYB Excel shocks and some Moog CC273 coils. This will be a) cheap(er), b) replicate the factory ride/height/etc, and c) be reliable and long-lasting. It will let you re-use the factory upper mounts and avoid the risk of mount failure down the road (very common). I and some other have several years/miles on this set-up and it is an excellent substituent for the very expensive factory option.
All-in-one struts sound like a great idea, but often have inferior components, have a high failure rate with the mounts, and really only save you about 20/30 minutes per side on disassembling the strut to replace the coil. All the other work is the same. Even if you do use the ready-strut, I highly recommend taking the old struts apart and retaining the OE upper mounts as insurance against future aftermarket mount failure.
If you are at 180k and taking the rear suspension apart, this is a good time to look around at other suspension components that are going to wear before long. Test the end links, check the bearings up front, check suspension bushings, sway-bar end links (do not mess with the front sway bar bushings unless you are 100% falling apart, and you like pain), etc.
already doing all the other components in the process, see my stickied thread at the top of the this forum.
I did install the first set, then i dropped the car:
Side by side comparo of rears. As you can see, the struts themselves are too long. This is the result: These are not the correct struts. I even played hell getting them bolted in the rear.
I am not going to take a strut apart to change a shock when aftermarket replacements with warranties are available on the open market, ride compromise or no. The car is 16 years old. That just doesnt make good financial sense.
I just ordered (individually) strut assemblies from Rock Auto. If I still dont get the correct parts, i guess i will have to consider putting the old ones back in.
KYB will fit exactly, but the ride will be much firmer. Problem with just buying just the struts is you'll likely need rubber parts as well the cost starts to add up. Having said that, I simply don't trust the complete units too many issues with ride hide, rattles, sagging, and rusting coils.
I just ordered some on rock auto via the VIN#. If they are correct i will keep the old struts too, if not ill send em back and order new KYB's i guess.
Hey ArmyofOne, With the input of ORO and others here's what I finally ended up doing on my 2003 ES300 for the front and back: Boots by KYB SB101 and SB102, for about $52, 4 KYB EXcel G-2 Struts for $292, and CC273 rear Moog springs for $72.25. Total about $412. I'm reusing the Lexus mounts and the front springs.
Did the previous about 27,000 miles ago and all is well. The ride is a little stiffer, still, than original. The only thing I'd do differently is reuse the rear springs as the ride height was not changed at all with the new Moogs. I just shopped different sites until I was happy with the prices then ordered. I did not get them all at the same site.
OK, now that you've added more detail to you post (I didn't read the stickies before trying to help), I see those are the wrong struts - wrong Cartridge length, not OA length as could be read in your 1st post.
I am not going to take a strut apart to change a shock when aftermarket replacements with warranties are available on the open market
That is a totally reasonable attitude when perfectly good aftermarket replacement parts are available. As you are finding out, they are not.
In my and many others experience here, as well as what I saw as a time as a moderator at TN (huge body of knowledge there), unless you wanted a reasonable chance of re-doing the job in 20k miles, it needed to be done with reliable parts and not the cheap Chinese clones flooding the market.
I did ours 3.5 years ago. Checking my notes, it was ~$275 for rear KYB struts and Moog coils and new boots. No other parts needed. You might need to spend a few dollars more on insulators, depending, as L2K pointed out. Looking on RA parts, I see now there are many, cheaper options for those than when I did it 3.5 years ago so no reason not to get those, too. Now in the end, I may not have had a guarantee, but the goal was a reliable part that performed well for a long time at the lowest/most reasonable price. And for someone who can turn a wrench with reasonable skill, it is just a few minutes to swap over the upper mount, insulators and new boot to a new cartridge and coil. Really, it's no big deal besides working on the (free to borrow if you don't have one) spring compressor for a few minutes.
Looking at the options on RA, as to whole assemblies/"quick struts", the only one there I would be willing to try would be the Moog one (and don't get me wrong, I am tight fisted about my money - but $50/side for them vs. Gabriel or Monroe to lessen the risk of doing it again prematurely is worth it in this case). They don't offer the KYB one for price comparison, I see.
This all reminds me of what Chris Farley had to say about a guarantee. And if you have a teen-age daughter, for Heaven's sake, think about it:
Its not that i lack the skills for sure. However, the spring compressor tools you borrow from autozone, are DANGEROUS. I have seen them slip and shoot springs across a shop. The spring went into the back of a snap on toolbox, dented it, and knocked it over.
i understand its not hard, but without a coil compressor you see in a shop where they insert the assembly, clamp it in and compress the spring in all directions evenly, It is not safe.
Zip ties.....Whatttttttttt! Never heard that one before. I would do what Army recommends with going to a shop that has one mounted to the wall just for safety reasons.
Army I did the same thing with my 98 when I had it, bought 4 complete struts from Napa and the ride was never the same it drove me crazy. Without spending a crazy amount of money going oem, I would go the route that Oro said.
You could always use 500 zip ties to keep the spring compressed. Yes people have done this.
I thought ratchet straps were bad....
New (3rd set) should be arriving today, this one from RockAuto.com. If it's no joy, I will send them back and get the KYB's. I will also get new mounts from MyLparts.com so I have new rubber boots too. Mine are shot.
02-11-18, 09:40 AM
Rear strut fitment issue, 2002 ES300
Yes people have done this.
