Bad strut insert?

[bob174]

The front passenger side of my 73 2.0 has a problem. I can hear a soft clunk coming from there when I'm driving the car. In the garage if you push down on the front passenger side of the car you can hear a soft clunking as you do it. I've pulled the wheel off and manually moved the suspension under there and can reproduce the sound. It seems like there's a little play in the shock (maybe 1/16th of an inch) before the shock starts damping that is causing this clunking. These are Boge shocks that the PO had installed by a Porsche dealership a few years ago. There is less than 4000 miles on them. My question is, could the shock have been installed incorrectly in a manner that would cause this symptom, or is it likely that the shock is bad? I can see no play in any of the suspension joints outwardly when I'm getting this clunk. Thanks in advance for the help.

[philinjax]

Perhaps the nut assembly on the top of the strut, in the front trunk, may be loose.

Phil

[maf 914]

If the problem is not a loose nut as Phil suggests and you have to remove the shock remember that it can be done without detaching the lower ball joint. I didn't know this trick when I did mine, but it was explained on this BBS that by loosening the top nut and compressing the strut you can swing the strut out of the wheel well while still attached at the ball joint. Then unscrew the insert from the strut tube. Maybe someone who has done this can give a better explanation. Good luck.

Mike

[Kevin Powers]

put the front end up on jack stands. place your floor jack under the control arm, raise slightly. remove the large nut on top in the front trunk. lower the control arm with the jack and the assem will drop down. spray the big nut on top of the tube with penetrating fluid. a big pipe wrench will remove the large retainning nut on top of the strut tube and the strut cartridge will come out. this can be done with the wheel still on but it's easier with the wheel off. don't forget to torque the lugs when you put it back together. a cartridge rod like kyb's will "pop" back up for easy reinstall, others may need to be pulled up. the threads on an old throttle cable should fit the threads in the top of the rod and you can use this to pull the rod back up through the hole in the top of the wheel well.

[Conrad W Peden]

I had a clunk....

It was the big nut that holds the cartridge in that was loose.

Easy to take out with the whole thing in the car.

[Zeke]

Do what Kevin said, but as soon as you get the shaft down out of the wheel well and the dust cover off, you will see your problem, same as Conrad's.

[bob174]

Thaks for all the info, guys.