1991 240 front shock insert replacement

Svenska · Post by **Svenska** » 22 Mar 2010, 17:20

I've never had to replace inserts on a Volvo, just entire struts on an 850. Is there a tutorial or any information anywhere on replacing these inserts? How does the insert come out? It's been in there for 19 years, does it pull out/fall out after compressing the coil and removing the strut bearing? I even did a search and found nothing on this topic.

jdm1 · Post by **jdm1** » 22 Mar 2010, 17:58

I have done this multiple times. Go to Amazon or IPD and order a Bentley Manual for your 240, it is well worth it. I have never had an insert just fall out, but once you compress the spring and remove the seat the strut insert will come out with some help. The help normally involves getting a good grip on the insert and twisting it to break it loose, once done you can pull it out. I have seen people run a little PB-Blaster or a similar product around the insert so it works down between the insert and the housing to help removal. As long as you are doing struts, replace the strut bearings, check the inside of the strut towers for corrosion, and examine other front suspension wear items. Since your in there check everything out. I am sure I have missed things and others will chime in. It is not that bad just take your time and have the right tools.

John

TangoBravoMike · Post by **TangoBravoMike** » 26 Jun 2010, 17:29

"The Right Tools" indeed.

I'm having trouble getting the top nut off my MacPherson strut. 1989 240 brick. This is the 24 mm nut at the strut tower, not the gland nut which holds the shock absorber insert in place. This 24 mm nut is recessed so that a deep socket would be the perfect tool to reach it -- but there's the problem of having to hold the shaft from rotating with a 10 mm wrench. I bought an offset wrench that fits poorly (15/16 cheap wrench at Harbor Freight, part of a $15 set! I like to buy top quality tools, so this was hurtful.) I tried to buy the Volvo special tool 5036 (mentioned in Bentley and Haynes manuals) from my local Volvo dealership. They declined to sell it to me.

Any suggestions? Any sources for Volvo special tools?

If there's a good way to hold that shaft from below, I'd love to give that 24 mm nut a kiss from my impact wrench. i would not do that until the MacPherson strut assembly is out of the vehicle of course, with the coil spring compressed. Loosening that 24 mm nut with an impact gun would likely spin it all the way off, and if the coil spring was still in tension, it would be disastrous and dangerous.

Then there's the gland nut, which I haven't got to yet. I'm expecting trouble there, too, but maybe a pipe wrench will solve that one. A top quality pipe wrench, of course, since I can't buy the Volvo special tool for that either!

[UPDATE] I found an answer for that 24 mm top nut in another thread on this forum:
https://www.matthewsvolvosite.com/forums ... =2&t=26387
where BillofDurham said "The easiest way is to remove the strut with the top nut still in place. When you compress the spring you will be able to use a ring spanner to remove the nut whilst holding the shaft with another spanner.".
I'll try that tomorrow. Thanks in advance, BillofDurham!

TangoBravoMike · Post by **TangoBravoMike** » 30 Jun 2010, 18:09

Still struggling with the 24 mm top nut on the MacPherson strut. Front, passenger side, 1989 240 with 226,000 miles.

I have the strut assembly out, spring is compressed so that the upper strut mount is now just loose against the spring.

Tried to loosen that 24 mm nut. No go. Holding the flats on the shaft with an adjustable crescent wrench, trying to turn the nut with that wretched 15/16 offset wrench. Can't budge it. Heat, WD-40 penetrating oil, more wrenching. No joy.

Anybody have any thoughts on how to get this loose? I just want to harvest the suspension spring and the shock absorber cartridge insert to install on a new MacPherson strut. Don't need to save the upper strut mount and bearing assembly as I have a replacement in hand.

How do you guys get these apart?

TangoBravoMike · Post by **TangoBravoMike** » 09 Jul 2010, 06:30

I'll answer my own question: The top nut comes off easily with an impact wrench and a 24mm deep socket.

I removed my MacPherson strut and took it to an experienced mechanic. He said the top nut will come right off with the impact wrench. I pointed out that you're supposed to hold the shock piston rod from rotating, and he shrugged... doesn't much matter. He's a good mechanic, 30 years experience, so I accept it. Even if you're going to salvage the shock insert, it shouldn't be damaged by the impact wrench taking the top nut off. In most cases, you're dismantling your MacPherson in order to change the shock insert, so you wouldn't really care if you damaged the shock insert anyway.

Do NOT use the impact wrench until you have your coil spring compressed and held with a good, safe spring compression tool. If your spring is still under tension when you spin that top nut all the way off, it all goes BOOM and you'll probably get hurt. Impact wrenches are not any good at just cracking a nut loose. Once the nut breaks free the wrench spins it all the way off faster than you can let go of the trigger.

I then asked about the special nut -- called a gland nut -- that holds the shock insert into the MacPherson strut housing. He said an air hammer with a hammer tool installed instead of a chisel will break the nut loose. Then you can spin it out with channellocks or a pipe wrench.

Air hammers... People call them air chisels, but there are other tools it can drive. The hammer tool was new to me. Google "Grey Pneumatic (GRECH1177)" and you'll see what I mean. The business end of it is a 1 inch diameter cylindrical striker. Just set an edge of that hammer face into one of the cutouts in the gland nut and give it a quick burst with your air hammer. Nut will break loose and start unscrewing. He did this for me. Getting the gland nut loose did bugger up two of the cutouts, and I spent 5 minutes with a fine tooth metal file after the nut was removed, cleaning up the burrs that the hammer raised. Air hammer is $40 from Sears, brand new. The hammer tool was about $12, not in stock but could be ordered at my local NAPA store.

You don't need a pneumatic hammer to do this. A blunt cold chisel driven by a carpenter's hammer should get the gland nut loose, just takes more time.

TangoBravoMike · Post by **TangoBravoMike** » 21 Nov 2010, 23:15

A few final comments, a couple months after I finished my strut repair.

Here's a good tool to loosen and tighten the 24 mm top nut on the MacPherson strut: Wilmar W83015, available at Amazon. Possibly the the Lisle 20400 is an equivalent. I bought the Wilmar tool.

I tried three different tools to do spring compression. I first tried the simple threaded bar-type compressors. Some call them "death sticks". I got the Advanced Tool Design ATD-3054 from Amazon for about $38. They work but they are scary; if they slip with a spring under tension, damage can be done to parts or people. Next I tried a Harbor Freight clamshell type compressor for about $50. Nice design but I did not like the quality; the main drive screw was damaged right out of the box. Returned for refund. Finally I spent more money and got the OTC 6494 clamshell compressor from Amazon, priced at about $180. This I recommend.

A week or two after I "finished" my repair, I started getting a clunking sound from that strut. Took it to a real mechanic and told the story. He found that I had not tightened the gland nut enough. That's the nut at the top of the strut housing which holds the shock absorber insert in. It's the one I needed help getting loose in the first place. "Good and tight" seems to be what's needed. My mechanic also said that if it came loose again, he'd be willing to tighten it and give it a tack-weld to keep it from (ever!) loosening again.

So my well loved and well used 240 is on the road again. It just crossed 234,000 miles a week ago. I came back to the forums today because of an electrical problem in the charging system. This forum is a big help.