What kind of shocks/struts do you recommend for weekend driving, no course racing? I want to upgrade from the original ones, but no adjustable. How hard are they to install in a 71 240? Aday or a weekend? Thanks guys................
Shocks/Installing them
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RE: you can do it
hello i just did the front and rear struts inserts and new springs on my 71 240z... there is lots of info on this site under archives on how to do this..i used euro stage ones from nismo but they are no longer instock there so you have to shop around.. i went ahead and put in strut inserts from my local auto store since i only use the car on weekends..but for a daily driver i'd go better than monroes...some springs will lower the z so check that out . i did not want to lower my 71 so that cut my options down some as far as springs go...the best advise i can give you is BE SURE you lube the heck out of all the bolts involve like a week or so prior to this job.. the most difficult part i found was getting the old insert bolt off the strut (the gland nut) they were very rusted..i needed to use a large pipe wrench and took me about one hour a piece of pulling and hitting with a malet to break them loose...i loosened all the nuts prior to removal of anything just to be sure they would come off after i removed the strut..i did not remove the rear struts , i lifted the car so the rear tire was about 3-4 inchs off the floor and swung the rear struts out under the rear wheel wells...the front you have to remove them...get a good spring compressure from the auto store, most will rent one to you and give your money back when you done...i did one strut at a time just to be safer and have a example to look at if i forgot where somthing goes...like i said you can do this work..ive never done them before and was somewhat uneasy to try this on my own but it went well and the car rides much better...check out the archeves and you'll get all the info you need to do this job....good luck michele
hello i just did the front and rear struts inserts and new springs on my 71 240z... there is lots of info on this site under archives on how to do this..i used euro stage ones from nismo but they are no longer instock there so you have to shop around.. i went ahead and put in strut inserts from my local auto store since i only use the car on weekends..but for a daily driver i'd go better than monroes...some springs will lower the z so check that out . i did not want to lower my 71 so that cut my options down some as far as springs go...the best advise i can give you is BE SURE you lube the heck out of all the bolts involve like a week or so prior to this job.. the most difficult part i found was getting the old insert bolt off the strut (the gland nut) they were very rusted..i needed to use a large pipe wrench and took me about one hour a piece of pulling and hitting with a malet to break them loose...i loosened all the nuts prior to removal of anything just to be sure they would come off after i removed the strut..i did not remove the rear struts , i lifted the car so the rear tire was about 3-4 inchs off the floor and swung the rear struts out under the rear wheel wells...the front you have to remove them...get a good spring compressure from the auto store, most will rent one to you and give your money back when you done...i did one strut at a time just to be safer and have a example to look at if i forgot where somthing goes...like i said you can do this work..ive never done them before and was somewhat uneasy to try this on my own but it went well and the car rides much better...check out the archeves and you'll get all the info you need to do this job....good luck michele
A weekend
I did it all four in one weekend, but only after the f*****g parts guys got the inserts the wrong size twice, I finally worked out how to get the f*****g gland nuts off....... preparation is the key.
P.S: Dont be afraid of damaging the gland nut, because you'll get a new one with the shock. Unless youve got the mother of all gigantic socket sets and an air powerd rattle gun, you'll have to use something like a pipe wrench (Stillson wrench) to get that big momma off.
And yeah, like mizhele said, put motor oil in. The origional factory shocks were completely different to modern ones, and worked via a damper pushing through oil that filled the entire case. If you put the modern inserts in, you will have an air gap between the insert and the outer case, which acts as an insulator and keeps heat in. Oil will conduct it out.
A word from the wise - do the gland nut back up as tight as possible. My friend didn't - and it came off, allowing the sping to fire the whole strut off the car!!!!!!
I did it all four in one weekend, but only after the f*****g parts guys got the inserts the wrong size twice, I finally worked out how to get the f*****g gland nuts off....... preparation is the key.
P.S: Dont be afraid of damaging the gland nut, because you'll get a new one with the shock. Unless youve got the mother of all gigantic socket sets and an air powerd rattle gun, you'll have to use something like a pipe wrench (Stillson wrench) to get that big momma off.
And yeah, like mizhele said, put motor oil in. The origional factory shocks were completely different to modern ones, and worked via a damper pushing through oil that filled the entire case. If you put the modern inserts in, you will have an air gap between the insert and the outer case, which acts as an insulator and keeps heat in. Oil will conduct it out.
A word from the wise - do the gland nut back up as tight as possible. My friend didn't - and it came off, allowing the sping to fire the whole strut off the car!!!!!!
A weekend
I did it all four in one weekend, but only after the f*****g parts guys got the inserts the wrong size twice, I finally worked out how to get the f*****g gland nuts off....... preparation is the key.
P.S: Dont be afraid of damaging the gland nut, because you'll get a new one with the shock. Unless youve got the mother of all gigantic socket sets and an air powerd rattle gun, you'll have to use something like a pipe wrench (Stillson wrench) to get that big momma off.
And yeah, like mizhele said, put motor oil in. The origional factory shocks were completely different to modern ones, and worked via a damper pushing through oil that filled the entire case. If you put the modern inserts in, you will have an air gap between the insert and the outer case, which acts as an insulator and keeps heat in. Oil will conduct it out.
A word from the wise - do the gland nut back up as tight as possible. My friend didn't - and it came off, allowing the sping to fire the whole strut off the car!!!!!!
I did it all four in one weekend, but only after the f*****g parts guys got the inserts the wrong size twice, I finally worked out how to get the f*****g gland nuts off....... preparation is the key.
P.S: Dont be afraid of damaging the gland nut, because you'll get a new one with the shock. Unless youve got the mother of all gigantic socket sets and an air powerd rattle gun, you'll have to use something like a pipe wrench (Stillson wrench) to get that big momma off.
And yeah, like mizhele said, put motor oil in. The origional factory shocks were completely different to modern ones, and worked via a damper pushing through oil that filled the entire case. If you put the modern inserts in, you will have an air gap between the insert and the outer case, which acts as an insulator and keeps heat in. Oil will conduct it out.
A word from the wise - do the gland nut back up as tight as possible. My friend didn't - and it came off, allowing the sping to fire the whole strut off the car!!!!!!
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