Chevrolet SS Sedan Rear Strut Removal

ID: 149231

Description: This guide applies to 2015 to 2017 SS models,...

Steps:

  1. With the vehicle parked on a flat surface, engage the parking brake
  2. Make sure the park light illuminates on the dashboard.
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  3. As an extra safety measure, block the wheel on the opposite side from where you're lifting the car
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  4. If removing the wheel, break the nuts before lifting the car with a breaker bar and 22mm or 7/8" socket.
  5. If your car was equipped with a spare tire kit, you can use that wrench too.
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  6. When lifting the car, DO NOT use a jack on the pinch welds. Instead, use the plate on the frame rails as shown.
  7. When lifting with a jack and supporting with a jackstand:
  8. Place the jack here
  9. Place the jack stand here
  10. I like to place towels or something else soft between the jack / stands and the car to protect the paint
  11. Lift the car with the jack until you have the wheel a few inches off the ground. Then insert the jack stand and lower the car onto it.
  12. The jack SHOULD NOT be supporting the weight of the car while you're working under it.
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  13. If removing the rear wheel, fully loosen the lugs and set the wheel aside
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  14. There's a small arm linking the lower control arm to a vehicle height sensor.
  15. Separate the link from the lower control arm
  16. It takes a little force to pop the linkage off, a flat head screwdriver or trim removal tool can make the process easier.
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  17. Using a 15mm wrench and socket, remove the stabilizer bar link
  18. The brake line runs near the top of this link, to avoid damaging it you should hold the top nut with a wrench and turn the bolt from the bottom. Picture #2 is incorrect, the ratchet should be on the bottom!
  19. Pressure from the suspension may keep the middle plastic "grommet" section in place, you can wiggle it out or wait until the lower control arm is fully freed to remove it.
  20. When reassembling, torque this to around 30ft-lbs.
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  21. A single 18mm nut and bolt secures the strut assembly to the lower control arm
  22. Remove the nut with a ratchet while holding the other side with wrench
  23. When re-assembling, this should be torqued to about 60ft-lbs, then tightened an additional quarter turn.
  24. If you cannot get the bolt out, use a jack to lift the lower control arm such that there is no force on the bolt. A small hammer can be used to tap the bolt out, but be careful not to damage the threads!
  25. When re-assembling, the jack will be necessary to align the control arm and strut to re-install the nut and bolt.
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  26. An 18mm nut and bolt secures the lower control arm to the rear knuckle and must be removed.
  27. Like the strut-to-LCA bolt, this may require "finessing" the lower control arm with a jack to remove.
  28. When reassembling, torque this to around 35ft-lbs. You will need to do some prying with a pry-bar or large screwdriver in concert with a jack to get this realigned so you can re-insert the bolt.
  29. This nut is identical to the one removed in the previous step, but the bolt is shorter. Don't mix them up!
  30. After this step, the lower control arm should move freely.
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  31. The strut is electrically connected to the car via a 2-pin connector near where the strut mounts to the body.
  32. There's a small tab on the connector which you must depress to get it disconnected.
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  33. Four 15mm bolts attach the strut to the body of the vehicle.
  34. These bolts seem to have gotten pretty rusty despite my car not being driven in a salty environment, it may be wise to replace them when replacing the strut.
  35. Remove the bolts, the strut should come free from the body.
  36. When re-assembling, these bolts should be torqued to around 45ft-lbs.
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  37. You should be able to slide the strut out with the lower control arm depressed.
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  38. The order that I've found which makes re-assembly the easiest is:
  39. Install the strut-to-LCA nut/bolt, but keep them loose.
  40. Install the strut-to-body bolts, but keep them loose
  41. Install the LCA-to-knuckle nut/bolt, with the help of a jack and prybar. This step is probably the most difficult.
  42. Get all nuts/bolts tightened snugly.
  43. Raise the LCA with the jack to "simulate" the car sitting on the ground, compressing the suspension. Then, torque everything to specifications.
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