Reusing coil springs and mounts

[bmdubya1198]

I agree, but...

I think Volvo's design in general causes the parts to fail prematurely. I've read that even IPD's heavy duty ones have failed also. That being said if there is a 10 year warranty and the assemblies are all looking identical to the Sach quick struts I think I would take the chance at $162 for a pair of the whole assembly for the ease of installation.

Is the commute freeway only with a little street on nicely paved roads vs spirited driving with off camber turns on backwoods bumpy roads? Road conditions should play a role also in the decision. At $162 it's so tempting to just go for it.

I understand that the price is attractive, but I've been burned by cheap parts enough times to know better. Plus, FCP Euro's warranty is lifetime, so that beats out 10 years!

That said, they're cheap enough to experiment. It's just not a place on my car where I would experiment... I've seen too many failed spring seats cause the strut rod to bust right through the hood, and who knows if these cheap units have the washer in place to prevent that. Plus the new springs will likely cause the car to sit unevenly.

I totally understand trying to save money when you need to, but take it from me... spend a little more once instead of having to spend a little less several times. It's not worth replacing them or going through the hassle to getting them replaced under warranty when you could have just used quality parts in the first place, which will last MUCH longer.

[abscate]

Hey - we had to pay our dues for 4 decades before we figured out cheap parts suck.

Back of the line, young one - no jumping the line on the tree of knowledge!!

(Happy for ya!)

[bmdubya1198]

Hey - we had to pay our dues for 4 decades before we figured out cheap parts suck.

Back of the line, young one - no jumping the line on the tree of knowledge!!

(Happy for ya!)

It's hard to drill that concept into people... my dad still insists on overpriced cheap auto store junk because it's available and he doesn't want to pay for OE parts, and that he'll do it right next time (which never happens, because the cycle just repeats). That and he waits until the last minute to replace things. This is normally the case for brakes!

Maybe I just need a bigger drill...

[cn90]

1. Quick Struts: Brand matters...
- Sachs makes quick struts for Volvo S60, but not for XC90.
- Stay away from Chinese quick struts, search and you will know why.

2. Re re-using the springs:
- Since the original poster is from Dallas TX and the vehicle has about 122K, I guess you can re-use the springs if no rust.
- My 2005 XC90 2.5T with 118K: there is some rust but I plan to replace everything (mounts, seats, springs, Bilstein B4 struts, control arms).
My estimate for a complete front end job is about $1000 in quality parts.
I rather do the whole thing because I don't want to do the front end again and again...

[RivaRay]

I ordered some parts from AM as well but many were pretty bad so going to avoid their struts. They were quick to refund me though but I've heard others were not so lucky. I'm leaning toward Meyle for sway bar links and Lemforder for other suspension parts.

Ultimately thinking to go with Bilstein Touring struts over Sachs for a fimer ride. Springs look OK, I think, so hoping to reuse those. Will replace seats and stops. I can see that the stops are pretty bad just looking up. Won't know until I pull them out but hoping I'm lucky and struts are still good but just needs new stop and seat.

Like to take my time since I'm not well versed with these kind if repairs so ended up ordering the Oredy quick struts for temporary fix since they're not expensive. Those came in and look to be made well. Putting in this week so I'll report back with how they ride.