urgent strut help

[SAF_Capri]

I have decided to strip my front struts and retop up with oil, but i cant get them to work right,

 

 

they push in soft and easy but dont bount back up!!???

 

please help, offer advice as i cant put the car back in the garage until they are sorted,

 

stnd 2lr mk3 capri front legs, using gearbox oil.

[Jiffer]

I was under the impression thats normal, when I had my front coil overs done at GAZ they were like that, i did question it but told it was right

[mk1mexico]

Without springs fitted they will be like that??

 

Remove a rear one and settle your mind

[SAF_Capri]

im sure they are supposed to push back up automatically,

 

if not they are doing nothing when you drive, with a good old pair i have they bounce back up on their own,

 

anyone else please shed any light? cant put car together till i know, either way

[Jiffer]

I would agree with mk1mexico and take one off the back,

the spring will do the return part

[SAF_Capri]

i had a set off the rear today i pushed and they returned.

 

so is the aim of the strut to just make the downward motion compfy? and the spring does the return part?

 

so how do you know if a strut is shot??

[Jiffer]

the only way I used to test was the push down on the car, it should go down up then settle.

sorry cant help much mate just my limited knowledge

[RossMK2]

the fronts wont without springs

[SAF_Capri]

ive just topped then right up with oil and they are returning slowly, maybe i just need to put more oil in??

 

any more thoughts? its not that im not believing but i want to get it together tonight and be done with the front end for a while,

 

cheers, shane

[gearbox100]

only gas filled shocks return , oil filled stay down as the others have said , its normal .

[Fiesta Steve]

The harder they are to pull out the better they are !!!!!!!1

 

If I turn my Gaz to max and push them in I cannot physically pull them back out !!

 

The road spring absorbs the bump by compressing and its this stiffness of the damper that allows the car to rebound under control otherwise it would bounce of off the bump.

 

If you can pull them out easily they are probably wanked out.

[Fiesta Steve]

i had a set off the rear today i pushed and they returned.

 

so is the aim of the strut to just make the downward motion compfy? and the spring does the return part?

 

so how do you know if a strut is shot??

 

Other way round, spring makes the downward part comfy (or not!) and the damper makes the return part comfy.

[SAF_Capri]

if they were too tight, surely they would be in affective? because the spring would be doing all the work, it would make the shock reduandant?

 

mine are now so they are smooth to push down and return very slowly but smoothly, alot better then they were.

 

I found that topped to the brim with oil, both inside the insert and inside the leg, the strut would not move..obvious no place for oil to go.

 

If i just filled the stut with oil, filling it up like a syringe, with botton end in a tub full of oil and then placed then in the leg-when no oil was in the leg, they would push down easily, but be very very hard to return. --too much air causing a suction??

 

If i filled the strut full of oil as previous and the leg half way then i found that the strut would push in smoothly with a fair bit of pressure, then slowly return, but smoothly

 

I felt this was the best all round, but if people can shed more light on this for me id be very grateful,

 

thanks to all those that helped, car back together now and i dont fancy taking the struts off again any time soon

[Seals2]

only gas filled shocks return , .

 

 

 

[SAF_Capri]

are they useless if they return?

[Mrs O/H/C]

only gas filled shocks return , .

 

 

 

 

[sambo]

Just tested my new 300/70 Bilstein inserts and they do indeed return.

Like has already been said, they are gas inserts so will return, th oil ones wont. The spring will return the damper.

 

[SAF_Capri]

took it for a spin and so much better than before, fine over a few bumps, maybe in the autumn i will make them so they dont return,

 

at least i know how to make the different rates without buying GAZ| ones

 

all seems good tho, but will invest in gas ones later on and perhaps coil overs