A different look at a Bilstein strut...

jrgoffin

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This is a set of Bilstein struts from a 2000 Cobra R where one had a damaged mounting flange (donor car was apparently wrecked on the track) so the strut could not be re-mounted.

Being a DIY type, I decided to play around with the struts since I just purchased two new matching housings from Maximum Motorsports. All the compression and rebound was good, so it would have been a shame to throw one strut out (the later Bilstein struts have a stronger mounting flange anyway).

Here is the damage to the strut:

P1010967.jpg


P1010966.jpg


Bilstein struts are basically inverted. From the bottom of the housing, you see the "top" of the strut:

P1010968.jpg


The 17mm nut gets removed and you are left with the shaft that needs to be unscrewed with a 5mm Allen bit (actually, hold the shaft still and rotate the housing off it):

P1010969.jpg


Once you unscrew the shaft, the "insert" pulls right out of the housing. The internal bump-stop is on here along with a bunch of grease:

P1010970.jpg


Here is the entire assembly removed from the damaged housing:

P1010972.jpg


The new housings have a much heavier mounting flange. Re-assembly was just the opposite of the above steps...

P1010991.jpg


Good as new.

P1010992.jpg
 
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UFGatorGuy20

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You're gonna love the setup when you're done. I had the exact same setup on my 04 whippled mystichrome. Handling was unbelievable. Miss that car bad!
 

jrgoffin

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Yeah, thanks. Getting the struts and shocks was no problem, but it was a bitch finding the springs! Could have gone with the H&R Race springs, but then again, why be normal! Was even considering adding the big Eibach sway bars as well, but want to compare the springs, struts, and shocks first. I'm just glad I was able to save the struts!
 

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