I just took my car to brake masters and they want to charge me $950 to replace my front and back struts. Is that too much? could i do it my self or cheaper somewhere else.

2002 Maxima with 55,000 miles

 

yea way too much!! should be more like $150-$300

 

damn, what happen to your struts? 55k and theyre blown? did you lower your car?
that sounds pretty steep, if you do them your self, its prob lot cheaper. theyre not too hard to change actually. you just need lots of time, and a friends help wouldnt be so bad. check the stickies for info about swapping out struts. they have alot of good useful DIY stuff in there. good luck!

 

http://www.innerbean.com/housecor/strut_install.html

Buy the struts from someone on here or another site and do it yourself. It is pretty easy if you have the right tools.

 

broo wayy to muchh...i gotta changemy stuts also(70K) buyin tokicoHPs from ebay wholesaler for 265+20 bux shipping..plus liek $150 tops to install...so u should be payin around $400-$450 TOPS all together

 

They're charging you DOUBLE what it should cost to replace your struts INCLUDING THE COST OF THE STRUTS THEMSELVES.

 

Is tokicoHPs a good brand? Im thinking I should just buy the part from Ebay and take to an auto body shop to replace since I dont think I can do it myself.

 

Tokico Illuminas the only way to go!!!!!!!!!!!

 

I manage an auto shop and Maxima struts always go bad but whoever is installing struts for $150-$300 is a fool. Any decent strut is going to cost a min of $50.00 per strut Then you have to pay labor. Should cost $500.00-$600.00 + it's a good idea to do an alignment even though removing maxima struts doesn't change it

 

Do these offer a stiffer or smoother ride? Can you get certain heights with this strut to lower the car an inch or two and still have the factory ride?
Thanks
JIM

 

HPs are good... they are 10% stiffer than stock but still provide a nice ride...

 

No, they are not fools... there are members on the .Org who do it for that amount, so watch what ya say... I guess its shops like yours that we tell people not to go to...

You can get 4 Tokico HPs brand new off eBay for $275 shipped (I got mine used off the Classifieds forum for $165 with 10k miles).... and as for labor for the install, I paid $125. With a lift and tools, it was done in less than 1.5 hours. That comes to $400 for new parts plus labor.

Also, I've helped other guys on the .Org do suspension installs with garage jacks and no power tools and we've done it in about 2 hrs. You'll need a spring compressor, which you can get for a refundable deposit at most autoparts places.

 

You can adjust em for ride stiffness, but ya can't adjust ride height, only coilovers do that. With adjustable struts, you'd still have to get lowering springs to reduce ride height. And yes, you can get a ride close to stock with Illuminas and certain springs (H&R, Maxspeeds). I posted some links with good info in your thread, so check those out.