Gary95

I inspected my front strut boot covers the other day and noticed severe deterioration (plastic rings hanging, cracks, etc.). So, I took some special thin adhesive backed rubber insulation and wrapped it around them. I pretty much restored the coverage of the OEM boots. My front struts still seem to be working fine.

Questions:
a) Is there a replacement boot kit I can get? I don't feel confident that my makeshift boots will hold for more than one winter.
b) Should I consider these struts to be near the end of their life, since the boot coverage had been compromised for an undetermined period of time?

Thanks...

Mishmosh

iTrader: (3)

Since you have a 95 as well, I'd say you probably want some new struts in a year or two. I say want because some people don't mind some deterioration in ride quality before struts/shocks really get bad and it feels like a lot of control is lost. In any case, since the boots are mainly for protection of your current struts which are nearing end life, I'd recommend getting new ones only if you replace your struts. The dealer has them for approximately $18 each front, $22 each back (at least it was for me, with discount). It is too much trouble to replace the boots now (without also replacing struts) since you must dismantle the springs/struts.

Sonic

If you replace them, you pretty much have to get the OEM parts. At the top of the cover are the bumpstops for the front and rear suspension. I believe they were about 40 each for the front and rear pairs, but I think you can get them cheaper looking around. Hey, I just noticed that Mishmosh said the same thing. Cool.

MADMAN

iTrader: (1)

for oem parts

Gary95

You get new boots when the struts are replaced, isn't that right? I take it from what you're saying, that the OEM replacement boots aren't split--you must disassemble the strut to get them on. I'm wondering if there is a split boot kit. As long as the seam is sealed, protection should be like OEM.

My handling seems great, especially with my recently installed FSTB. Pushing down on a front fender shows the struts come back nice and firm. I'm thinking you're right, that I've got a year or two left. I'll wait...

BobMax

That used to work with cars back in the 70's. It's not a very good test anymore. They used to say "rock the car agressively, if it bounces more that 3 times the shocks are worn out". Here's a challenge: find me *any* car built since 1990 that bounces more than three times with this test.

Shocks/struts still wear out at 50K. Because suspensions are tighter now, folks think they last till 100K. Nonsense. Pull them out, replace them, be astounded at the change.

Bob

Mishmosh

iTrader: (3)

That may be true, but my bro's 93 Max has original struts and they are noticeably underdamped when doing the bounce test. The bounces are small and die out, but they are definitely there.

Gary95,
OEM replacements struts do not include the bound bumper assemblies (aka dust boots). Unless you order them, your dealer would just reuse what you have. It is good to order these a few weeks ahead of time since most dealers must special order them--mine too 2 1/2 weeks to arrive. Because you have to order the dust boots anyways, I'd recommend just getting aftermarket struts and saving some bucks.

Gary95

I think there is a difference between bad struts and worn struts. Really good struts that are worn could keep up with standard struts that are relatively new. I don't believe in the 3 bounce rule either. But you will see a difference in how hard you have to push and how quickly the car recoils, in some cases.

I'm at 103k miles and after driving a '99 Maxima, I didn't really notice much of a difference. Maybe in another 15k miles, I might make the leap and replace them.

About wearing out, saying 50k is the limit seems extraordinarily short. Especially if a car is not driven hard and rough roads are avoided. Struts will wear faster if they have to work harder--true for any mechanical devices.

Daniel B. Martin

I agree, yet it's still the best test there is for the driveway mechanic.

You can also recruit a friend to drive your car on an Interstate while you drive alongside in another vehicle. Look at each side for 15-20 seconds. If you see one wheel bobbing up and down rapidly while the other wheel on the same side is smooth and serene, the bobbing wheel has a bad strut.