replacing front struts on 2001 C-4

[doe911@sbcglobal.net]

How hard is it? And do struts cause the inside of your tires wear & cup

[Dharn55]

A little harder than on a C2. Just did mine about a month ago. The drive shafts keep the carrier from going down far enough for the top of the strut to clear the fender. Becasue of this you have to remove to ball joints on each side and the drive shafts. I got this ball joint remover from Harbor Freight

http://www.harborfreight.com/3-4-quarter-inch-forged-ball-point-joint-separator-99849.html

Worked great. I think I paid only $7.99 for it.

You also need a spring compressor. Again here is the one I got at Harbor Freight

http://www.harborfreight.com/macpherson-strut-spring-compressor-set-3980.html

Again it worked fine.

As for the drive shafts, while the manuals say to remove the nuts at the wheels carrier, don't bother. You would need a press to get them out of the carriers. The splined end of the shafts will slide right out of the center differential, pull them out carefully once you separate the ball joints, by moving the carrier toward the outside of the car, and protect the splines. This will allow the carrier to drop far enough for the top of the strut to clear the fender. When you are reassembling the carrier and reinserting the shaft into the differential slide them in carefully. You will them need to push them into the differential until the shafts are set into the seals. I used a wooden dowel and a rubber mallet to do this. It helps to take of the plastic cowl under the car to get access.

Let me know if you need further advice.