Got a new set of OME shocks for my 2000 TJ. Looking to install them tonight and I have heard that the rear upper bolts are a pain to remove. I have been spraying them with PB blaster every day this week. Planning to go at them with a 1/2" impact gun with a 10" extension that will hopefully reach the bolts. Any other tips?
I just replaced my rear shocks last Saturday, and didn't need an impact wrench. I just used a longer 3/8s rachet, a couple of 6" extensions, and a six point 13mm socket. I didn't even use any penetrating oil, they came out easy enough, but then again, I live in California, and don't have to worry about rust...
I just replaced my rear shocks last Saturday, and didn't need an impact wrench. I just used a longer 3/8s rachet, a couple of 6" extensions, and a six point 13mm socket. I didn't even use any penetrating oil, they came out easy enough, but then again, I live in California, and don't have to worry about rust...
My jeep is from West Virginia, so rust is an issue. The good thing is that they are aftermarket shocks on the Jeep, so I know they've been changed before. I was able to get the front shocks out with no issue. Just not sure if I should start with an impact gun or with a ratchet on the rear upper mounts. I would like to avoid breaking the bolts, if at all possible.
Impact will probably break them before a ratchet would. Instant torque... Mine weren't too bad but my Jeep spent the first 6 years of its life in California and only a few years here in Ohio.
Got a new set of OME shocks for my 2000 TJ. Looking to install them tonight and I have heard that the rear upper bolts are a pain to remove. I have been spraying them with PB blaster every day this week. Planning to go at them with a 1/2" impact gun with a 10" extension that will hopefully reach the bolts. Any other tips?
Got a new set of OME shocks for my 2000 TJ. Looking to install them tonight and I have heard that the rear upper bolts are a pain to remove. I have been spraying them with PB blaster every day this week. Planning to go at them with a 1/2" impact gun with a 10" extension that will hopefully reach the bolts. Any other tips?
What ever you do don't use an impact wrench. Or even a long handled ratchet. Lots of data on this forum that the bolts are weaker than any ratchet longer than a standard 3/8's.
Here's a link to what you should do. & why the bolts break so easily. Read the entire thread.
Got the old shocks off and the new OMEs installed. Broke 1 of the 4 bolts. I ended up cutting access panels in the floors, cutting off the weld nuts with a dremel and replacing with stainless steel hardware, and put aluminum sheets over the holes (installed with RTV and sheet metal screws). I did this mod on my XJ's rear shocks. Now it will be super easy to change the shocks next time. And the OME shocks are money!! I ran them on my old XJ and I'm so glad I went with them again.
Really soak them in PB Blaster or Liquid Wrench. If they are still stubborn, attempt to get a breaker bar in there. I ended up having to use a deadblow on the wrench to finally get mine to budge last time I changed my shocks
Pictures of the shocks installed with the access holes I cut. Made this project much easier. Still need to install the aluminum covers and throw the carpet back down. But the shocks ride great!
Interesting method by cutting access holes (good idea)
(…When I could't get the bolts to budge after a week of PB Blaster, I just had the local shop do it )
It's a trick I used when changing shocks on my XJ. Some people would advise against it, but considering my TJ is a rusty POS, I doubt its gonna lower the value any more. And I saved the panels that I cut out, so maybe someday I will weld the new nuts down and weld the floor pan back together. But considering the aluminum panels won't rust and that this is a toy, it's likely I will leave the aluminum access doors on since they will be hidden by carpet and RTV gasket sealed.
I picked some up today they said they are equivalent to grade 5, I guess they are working for you...correct? Have you hade them on for awhile? I'm not sure what grade the stock ones are.
Today I replaced my rear shocks on a rusty 97 TJ, benefited from others' postings here so would like to pay it forward by sharing my experience.
So, my TJ spent its first 10 years in Chicagoland (tons of salt) and the past 10 years in Wisconsin (also lots of salt) and is quite rusty underneath. Bolts, etc are so rusted you can't even see the flats or figure out the correct size wrench for them. But with all that, I was able to remove all four rear upper bolts in good enough shape to reuse them. After all I had read I was expecting them to snap off, but they didn't. Here is what I did:
--soaked the bolts above and below with CRC Freeze Off and PB Blaster. I have no BL but was able to see and spray them through the narrow gap between frame and fender liner. The fender liner flexes and you can push it up a bit to ease access. Several treatments over an hour or so.
--the lower nuts came loose with the impact driver on highest setting. I was able to clean them up and re-use.
--then for the upper bolts used a 13mm socket on 3/8 wobble extension on the impact driver set at lowest torque setting (it's a cheap Harbor Freight air driver with four torque settings, 1 through 4). At setting #1, I just hammered on the bolt for 20-30 seconds. It didn't move but I think it helped loosen it up. Then I moved the torque setting to 2, and after about 10 more seconds of hammering each bolt turned and came right out.
--This process worked for all four bolts. I am convinced that the impact driver was key to the bolts not breaking. I think steady pressure with a hand wrench would have snapped them off.
--I then cleaned the bolts carefully, wire-brushed the threads, coated them with anti-seize, and carefully threaded them back in with a lot of in-and-out to ensure the threads would not bind on tightening.
I'd never used CRC Freeze Off before but it's pretty impressive. Appears to dissolve a lot of the rust.
All in all very happy and surprised that it all worked. I was expecting to be chiseling, cutting holes in the floor, etc.
The bolt you re-installed is a grade 5 equivalent (ISO 8.8 actual) bolt that is tri roundular in shape and has a tendancy to corrode into a triangular hole. Thats whey they break. Except in your case you are now starting the process off with a pre-corroded bolt. Better to replace out with 4 ISO 10.9 bolts. Will be good insurance.
Aww, maaaan? Geeeez. I don't want to go under there again...but of course you are right. The bolts looked pretty good, but yeah, they've been stretched. Now would be the time to replace them. I was thinking about that when I put them back in, but I just wanted to get it done and not take a trip back to the hardware store. I do think there is a good chance this is the last set of shocks this Jeep will see...it will be a crumbled pile of rust with four perfectly good shock absorbers...and four superb bolts...
Since you've already removed them, replacing them should be a 15 minute job.
You can get a flange head from Bolt Depot.com Zinc Plated. Don't, buy from the dealer. The Dealership will sell you another ISO 8.8 tri-roundular. Even has the 8.8 marking on the bolt head. If you go with bolts from somewhere else make sure its a 13mm flange head or use a grade 8 washer.
I would never use SS bolts on my jeep. They are barely stronger then grade 2 bolts. I would use grade 8 or 10.9, and slather them with anti-seize. I think most grade 8 bolts are zinc plated and are resistant to rust anyway.
There a different grades of stainless steel bolts. You can get high strength stainless steel bolts. And for shocks, I'd rather risk breaking a bolt than having them rust.
I could find no way to get around the fender liners without removing them, so I sprayed up through the shock hole with the little red straw on my Liquid Wrench. Seemed to work as I broke no bolts using a 3/8" ratchet and about 18 inches of extensions.
For the drivers side you can open the tailgate and lift the carpet up and you will see a oval black plug on the left side of the tub, pull the plug and you will be able to get to the top bolts.
I've replaced shocks at least 15-16 times on TJs and never had to do anything special to access the top bolts for the rear shocks. The only thing I needed was a 4-5 extensions to reach that far up with my ratchet wrench. Spraying the top bolts with a good penetrant like Kroil, Break-Free, or Liquid Wrench a day or at least a couple hours ahead of removing the bolts is a good idea.
I've replaced shocks at least 15-16 times on TJs and never had to do anything special to access the top bolts for the rear shocks. The only thing I needed was a 4-5 extensions to reach that far up with my ratchet wrench. Spraying the top bolts with a good penetrant like Kroil, Break-Free, or Liquid Wrench a day or at least a couple hours ahead of removing the bolts is a good idea.
Jerry, that works out there. Over here in the Midwest or North east, the salt and other crap they put on the roads will play hell on your hardware. The new stuff they are salting the roads with is ridiculously corrosive.
Two weeks of PB blaster on the upper shock bolts and they still were seized up and broke 2. Air chisel time.
I had the same problem (rusted upper shock bolts) when I got my LJ. Rather than cut holes in the floor, I used air chisel and just cut through the bolt and weldnut in one swoop and replaced with hardware (yes, slathered in anti-seize)
Another option for those that don't want to cut holes in their tub.
Try something besides PB-Blaster like Kroil, Break-Free, or Liquid Wrench next time. I'm not necessarily saying they can perform miracles but PB-Blaster just doesn't work as well for that kind of work as those other three brands do. The consensus in my local area is PB-Blaster isn't much better than WD40 is... which as we all know sucks as a penetrant. Try Kroil. It's not cheap but it is superb stuff. Really
I agree. Last year I installed new shocks on mine. I soaked everything in PB Blaster for a week and it didn't do anything. I did it at my dads shop and he had something made by 3M. We sprayed everything with that stuff waited 1/2 hour and it worked!
I broke all four on my TJ, what this post was originally about. But when I did the shocks on my LJ, I only broke one bolt after soaking them all in PB blaster.
I used a dremel cutting wheel to remove the broken bolt nut (went in from the bottom inside the shock hole). Then I fished a new nut in between the frame rail and fender liner.
And then installed the new shocks using all new stainless steel bolts with anti-seize on them
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