Help with Struts - 82 SC

[Brando]

It appears the struts are shot (all 4 corners actually) and I need to replace the OEM Boges. I'm thinking Bilsteins. A couple questions:

1. Can I swap Bilstein inserts into Boge housings on front?
2. Should I go with Bilstein HD or Sport?

This is for a STOCK car. Tortion bars are stock front and rear, stock sway bars. This car is not going to be tracked or driven SUPER aggressively. I want to avoid pulling the whole front strut housing as that prompts alignment work and the car drives straight as-is.

[Chuck Moreland]

Bilsteins are available for your boge struts. Just make sure you order the ones for boge up to 1985.5

HDs are best for your stock torsions.

[Mark Salvetti]

HDs front and rear? I'm contemplating the same upgrade for my stock 1979 Targa. Sometimes I see a mix of HD and Sport recommended (but can't remember which is in front).

Mark

[Chuck Moreland]

For an SC, HD front and rear with stock torsion bars.

[Brando]

Thanks all. I'll order the HDs when it comes time. Ideally I would like to get a set of "good used" units but not sure what pickings are like.

[Brando]

Reviving this thread. Ordered the Bilstein HDs and got the front inserts done and driver's side rear. The passenger's side rear is proving to be a royal PITA with the CIS intake in the way. Any suggestions or tricks to getting the top nut off? Dropping the engine is not an option unfortunately. The Bently manual is not helpful either.

[Cooper911SC]

Did you remove the plastic tube and/or heater blower motor?

Might need to loosen up Cruise vacuum module too?

Left side should have decent access though.

[universeman]

^^^ He had problems on the pass (right) side, not driver (left) side.

That right side is a b*tch. I reached around from the left of the CIS with my left hand, using a long wrench or the allen wrench (can't remember which), and had the other wrench in the other hand. Was laying down on the motor practically, and had a helper. Careful not to dislodge vacuum / CSV etc hoses back then.

Remove A/C compressor and set aside, if applicable.

[Cooper911SC]

^^^^ 😕 DOH! Should have finished my cup of coffee this morning before replying. LOL

Right side is tight for sure.

[Brando]

Cooper & Jason, appreciate the feedback. This project has taken up 2 weekends, probably will be 3 when all is said and done. I'm grateful for the time I can spend with my Dad while working on this but it's literally been one problem after another.

First, the old pistons would not come out of the calipers, so we had to blast them out with compressed air. Could only get one piston at a time, so no bead blasting or repainting the calipers. The front passenger side pistons were stuck in pretty good and took over an hour to get free, ran out of time the first Saturday

Second, the front passenger side flex line was seized on to the hard line. We had to cut the fitting off the hard line and get a flaring tool and install a new fitting. After putting the old attachment into a vice it took nearly 140 ft lbs to break it free. The threads were corroded together.

Third, we couldn't get the rear passenger's strut replaced due to difficulty getting to it. The driver's rear brake line also had a leak, so we had to hunt that down and reattach everything after cleaning. So we ran out of time on the second Saturday.

I'm hoping for NO MORE issues after we get that last strut replaced. We found a couple of rubber cloth-covered hoses that were snapped too, so more "while we're in there" work. My parents keep calling this thing cursed. Really I think it's because none of this stuff has been addressed before. Brakes had never been rebuilt, pistons never out, lines were original dried & cracking rubber. The struts were OE as well. I released them from the body and the strut pistons sunk into the housings under their own weight. The oil inside the boge struts was rancid and had floaties.

This is why I am leery of cars for sale that say "all original!"

I think this concludes my rant. Thanks for reading and when I get back to the states from my work trip we'll git er dun. On the plus side, this has turned into two weeks of project time with my dad.

[RSBob]

Welcome to the world of DIY classic car ownership. It is often as you describe. Take your estimated time and multiply times three. At least when you get things sorted they will function better and the next time you are in there it will go much faster. Some consolation, eh?

Keep up the good work.

[patz]

Brando is a pretty good wrench. He should do it close to shop time.

[KTL]

Shock oil is similar to gear oil- major stankonia factor. Your old Boge struts are not uncommon in that many of them were originally damper guts with the strut tube being the damper housing itself. I had the same type on my former '87.

Old cars need fixing of more and more things as the years go by. Consider yourself lucky you're in the western states and not in the midwest rust belt. Working on old cars in our region that have a lot of miles and weathering is tough going. Corrosion makes for difficult wrenching on even the most basic parts of the car.

Not trying to be a Debbie Downer here. But I suspect once you get the car back on the ground, you're going to find the car sits much higher with the new gas-charged Bilstein shocks installed. Point being is that I would recommend getting an alignment even though you were not planning for it since you indicate the car drives straight right now. The front end alignment on these cars is VERY sensitive to ride height and therefore your toe can be way out of spec, even though the car will still drive straight, if the ride height is drastically altered.

[Brando]

Good points KTL. I had not intended on an alignment but might need one. I'll check the state of the ball-joints and tie-rod ends before I set 'er back on the ground. They looked OK but who knows - the car didn't drive for close to 6 or 7 years I think. If the car tracks wonky on the drive home, an alignment will be done. The ride height was already "stock-ish". Pretty high. If these Bilstein HDs are super-firm I may have to weld in some stiffening. I just want it to drive nice again, not rattle the doors off. If it rides nice and straight then I'll be happy. I can't afford to sink a whole lot more into this thing.

Originally Posted by KTL

Not trying to be a Debbie Downer here. But I suspect once you get the car back on the ground, you're going to find the car sits much higher with the new gas-charged Bilstein shocks installed. Point being is that I would recommend getting an alignment even though you were not planning for it since you indicate the car drives straight right now. The front end alignment on these cars is VERY sensitive to ride height and therefore your toe can be way out of spec, even though the car will still drive straight, if the ride height is drastically altered.

[universeman]

Bilstein HDs made my car ride great. All new rubber bushings (sway, A-arm, spring plate) and tie rod/ball joint / corner-balance-and-align has made it like a new car.

I feel the flex of the rubber on spirited road driving, so I get why people go PB etc., but for me it's enough. Hopefully you're close to having a great-riding car!

[stealthn]

I put Koni sport adjustables in mine, they were awesome

[Leebag]

Originally Posted by Brando

Reviving this thread. Ordered the Bilstein HDs and got the front inserts done and driver's side rear. The passenger's side rear is proving to be a royal PITA with the CIS intake in the way. Any suggestions or tricks to getting the top nut off? Dropping the engine is not an option unfortunately. The Bently manual is not helpful either.

I have an 83 sc and I used a Craftsman Elbow Pivoting Joint Ratcheting Combination Wrench.