[justanotherZX3]

I bought the ford racing full suspension set from mike at hilbish about a week ago and just tried to install it yesterday. everything went smooth until a bolt on one of my stabalizer bars was rusted on and rufused to come off gently. what i thought would take only about 3 hours to complete with the help of two of my friends ended up being a 4 hour project in where i only got my front coil over springs installed. So now all i have left is my rear suspension and later a dogbone mount to install.

first) so basically i want the rear install to go more smoothly and need some advice in doing it. is it more difficult and time consuming than the front. Did anything go wrong when you did it and how did you fix it. should i buy and spare parts before i start. and do you need to take the rear sway bar off before the springs and dampers come off.

second) I have searched everywhere to find info on how to do the dogbone but cant find anything. whats the best way to install that. i hear that its a pita.

thanks for the help guys.

also. if anyone is interested in my stock suspension let me know. my car has 65K on it.

 

[faster_than_u]

http://www.focusfanatics.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=26094

thats a how to for the dogbone

 

[justanotherZX3]

Sweet, thanks for the link on the dogbone. I looks like its a pretty simple job.

 

[Geezer]

Here's some instructions for the rear as well. It's far easier than the front.

http://www.focushacks.com/index.php?modid=54

 

[justanotherZX3]

sweet. both of these installs seam relativly easy. Well that answers both of my questions. thanks for the help. [thumb]

 

[Captain Moonpie]

The dogbone is super easy. All you have to do is make sure you dont use the wrong bolts when putting it back together. Keep it straight!!! I gualded a bolt into my tranny by not keeping it straight.

Also, the only thing to watch for with the rear is getting the bolt out of the lower control arm. Quite a few of us have had problems with that bolt rusting into the sleeve. Start spraying it down with WD-40 a week before you do the install, and try to spray the bolts one a day untill you do the install. If you have a high power air compressor with an air gun, warm it up, you will need it if the bolt gets stuck.

I am not trying to scare you. I am just passing on a couple things you need to watch out for. THe 2 installs you are wanting to do really are some of the easiest, but it you make the same mistakes I did, they can be a real pain in the ass.

 

[Slow03]

When I tried to install my rear suspension the control arm bolt to get the spring out was completly seized into the bushing and the sleeve. I had to take it to a mechanic I know to get the thing burnt out. I ended up having to buy a new control arm cause it was complety screwed up.

That is probably the worst case scenario for you. I even pb blasted the bolts and everything.

Hopefully you will have better luck then me. I just wanted to tell you what could happen.

Good luck.

 

[amrcni4]

It might be better to use a spring compresser and only remove the spring itself, but I haven't been able to find a spring compresser small or short enough to fit inside the spring or beside it with the suspension intact. Anyone have better luck with this or figure out any tricks to avoid taking out the lower control arm bolt?

 

[justanotherZX3]

Thanks for the input, im about to go attempt to do the rear rights now. luckly i have a air compressor thanks to my buddy christian and a spring compressor. Ive only been able to soak the bolts in wd40 for about 24 hrs. this is the only time i have to do it so i got to do it now. Ill let you guys know later how it went and what promblems i ran into.

 

[lemon]

I did the rear shocks, springs, and sway bar of the svt kit today. Getting the lower control arm bolt out is pretty critical. It would be difficult getting a spring compressor in there. I didn't have any major difficulties but being the first time I've done suspension stuff I made it more difficult than it really is. Be careful! Tomorrow I do the fronts. I'll update when I'm done.

 

[justanotherZX3]

Well, i guess to say the least. the install did not go very well last night. the lower control arm bolt pushed the nut away (which was welded to the control arm) instead of threading out. which equalls no bueno. Im going to attempt to cut out the bolt and replace in today and hopefully get the suspension put in.

 

[lemon]

Finished fronts today. No major issues. Had a friend bring over a 7mm hex (for caliper) since I had every one but that. Used a socket gripped by vise-grips for the top strut bolt.


I wish I had a vise because that would have made compressing the springs a whole lot easier. Holding it on the ground and using a ratchet was a PITA.

Yay it's done!

 

[justanotherZX3]

So this whole project has turned into a nightmare of waiting for parts. The bolt that i cut out was rusted into the lower control arm bushing. There are not very many people who know this and i definitly found out the hard way. but the lower control arm bushing is welded together to the control arm. so you have to buy a whole new control arm if you mess the bushing up. this was not a very cheap leason for me to learn. luckly mike at hilbish was able to hook me up with a sweet deal of $65 per svt control arm compared to my local dealership (Louisberg ford) wanting $130 a arm. Plus the svt arms are reinforced. so now im back to waiting for parts again.

to anyone who might be attempeting a supsension install any time soon. I would def. recomend getting some spare parts before you attempt the install just incase. that way if something does go wrong you have the parts there and you dont have to wait. Plus if you dont use them, you can just return them and get your money back.


Spare Parts i recommend getting.
-front stabalizer control bar.
-rear lower control arm. and get them from mike. he will cut you a good deal.
those are the onlly two parts that gave me a hard time.

Hopefully your install will go much more smoother than mine. And definitly soak all the bolts and nuts in penetrating oil. that helps alot. Good luck [thumb]

 

[NikiterZTS]

well i got F#$%^#@ the same way.......what a stipid design or whatever you wanna call it...........so freaking mad