Just got my set of blues today to put on my 97's corners. Should I be able to push the piston rod all the way down compressed (it's firm) by hand? Somehow I thought they would be a good deal firmer than this...

any advice from those who know?

thanks

 

you should never be able to push the rod down by hand. send it back to the company and they should send you a replacement

 

1) immediately dispose of blues
2) buy konis
3) ???
4) profit



seriously, as long as it takes like 5 seconds it should be fine. i've fully compressed at least 4 pairs of 4th gen struts by hand and they've all been fine or even brand new.

 

I doubt you have defective struts. I assume you are doing this without the spring attached to the strut. If you push slowly the piston will compress, if you push hard/quickly like your car does when you are driving it will resist. If still not convinced go to auto parts store and ask for a new strut, any type, and try it. You can also check your old strut, unless it is broken I think you will react the same way as the new ones. Also I can see having one defective new strut but not more, do more than one of the blues, I expect they all react this way?

 

What you describe is normal even for new struts.

 

It's the spring that absorbs the weight of you Maxima when you hit a pothole not your strut. The strut helps to control the motion.

 

I hope you're kidding...

 

oops... misread the description, sorry dude.... to me, i deserve it. lol

 

the fronts are a good bit firmer than the back ones and the firmness does match side to side. never bought any struts before so was a bit concerned. it does take a little while to compress them by hand.

now if i could find some decent dust boots for a non-dropped max.

 

I have had the blues on my max for about 2 years. I did not use the dust boots. What you will need are the bump stops. Do not cut them down anymore than 50%. Shocks still workin good for me.

Few Things
1. Remember to replace your strut bearings while you have the struts out.
2. Buy 2 cammed bolts for the bottom of your strut. You will need this to get your alignment back to spec.
3. Buy some teflon tubing for where the spring meets the strut, this will elliminate some noise.

 

That sounds fine.

The fronts are firmer because they have more work to do. The fact that they match side-to-side is good. A hand compression is an extremely rough test, but the fact that they are not totally out of whack is a good indicator that nothing hugely serious is wrong with them.

Remember, your dampers are trying to control the motion of springs that hold up a 3000+ lb car. They should be pretty firm. As long as the piston moves perfectly smoothly and consistently all the way down and doesn't seem to seize on anything, you're good.


OEM is your friend.

 

1. Dust boots are good. That's why the car comes with them from the factory. You don't want stuff sticking to the piston or collecting where it goes into the damper body because it might get pulled in and abrade the seals.

2. Why would you need camber bolts with stock springs?

3. Not a bad idea.

 

since I'm a total noob (yep said it!) do I need 4 bolts or is there a link for this procedure?

Waitaminnut..... Since i"m not dropping it I don't need the bolts or do I?

 

yea going to get to the dealer tomorrow...