Replacing Struts - Shocks on a 1996 Ford Windstar How-To

Hey,

I have a 1996 Ford Windstar with 130,000 miles on it. It is starting to
pull to the right and the tires are wearing uneven. The steering is
also very loose these days.

If I replace the struts then get it aligned will that help? I would
like to do the job myself (except the alignment). What other items
should i replace while i am replacing the struts?

THanks
Brad

You should check the inner and outer tie rods for looseness, bounce the van
to see if the struts/shocks are weak, struts are not a dyer job, caution and
and a strut /spring tool are required.Check for ball joint looseness. These
are all basic checks before any work or alignment is done.
> wrote in message
oups.com...
> Hey,
>
> I have a 1996 Ford Windstar with 130,000 miles on it. It is starting to
> pull to the right and the tires are wearing uneven. The steering is
> also very loose these days.
>
> If I replace the struts then get it aligned will that help? I would
> like to do the job myself (except the alignment). What other items
> should i replace while i am replacing the struts?
>
> THanks
> Brad
>
>



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In article >,
"Shep" > wrote:

> You should check the inner and outer tie rods for looseness, bounce the van
> to see if the struts/shocks are weak,

Ayep...

> struts are not a dyer job, caution and
> and a strut /spring tool are required.

Nonsense.

True, a set of coil-spring compressers is needed (Cheap and easy to get
- Last set I bought was under $20, and the local autozone has 'em on
hand as part of their "loan-a-tool" thing.)

Also true that it does take some reasonable care. ("Don't undo the nut
holding the upper spring plate to the strut until the spring compressers
are solidly engaged and the spring is compressed" is the biggest item)

Not true that it isn't a DIYer job - struts are no biggie for anyone who
has the smarts to be able to change a set of spark plugs. Typically
either three or four bolts on top, and two on the bottom are what's
holding it in place, and removing/replacing the old cartridge usually
means unscrewing a collar after the spring and upper plate are off the
strut. Not at all complex, and difficult, at best, to screw up without
it being too obvious to overlook.

The one critical item other than not letting the top strut-spring plate
loose before the spring is unloaded is to check and see if your
particular vehicle messes with camber by turning the upper mount plate -
Some do (My Mazda adjusts camber in 0.5 degree steps based on which way
the little stamped-in arrow on the mount-plate points) and some don't.
If the Windstar does (and I have no idea whether or not that's the
case), you need to make sure you put the mount-plate back in exactly the
same way you found it, or you'll blow your alignment all to hell.


> Check for ball joint looseness. These
> are all basic checks before any work or alignment is done.


Here you raise a good point - From the symptoms we've heard from the OP
so far, (sloppy steering, especially) I'd be suspecting either bad ball
joints, tie-rod ends, pittman arm, and/or idler arm before I'd suspect
the struts. Not that struts can't cause all the described symptoms, but
it seems to me that it's more likely to be something in the "connect the
steering box to the wheels" hardware. Then again, he DID say it has 130K
on it, so it might well be time for struts, too.

(Personally, I dealt with mine by "shotgunning" everything in the front
end - Mainly because it all needed it to some extent, and I had
everything needed on-hand to do a complete "replace everything that
moves, plus some stuff that doesn't" operation. Since I was in as deep
as I was already - looking at an absolute minimum of ball joints and tie
rod ends - it just made sense to do the whole job once, rather than
having to redo parts of it half a dozen times as the old stuff failed
under the changed stresses that come with only putting some new parts
into an old, "worn in" system.)

> > wrote in message
> oups.com...
> > Hey,
> >
> > I have a 1996 Ford Windstar with 130,000 miles on it. It is starting to
> > pull to the right and the tires are wearing uneven. The steering is
> > also very loose these days.
> >
> > If I replace the struts then get it aligned will that help? I would
> > like to do the job myself (except the alignment). What other items
> > should i replace while i am replacing the struts?
> >
> > THanks
> > Brad
> >
> >
>
>
>
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> News==----
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> Newsgroups
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--
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Short form: I'm trashing EVERY E-mail that doesn't contain a password in the
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See <http://www.sonic.net/~dakidd/main/contact.html> for full details.

Without knowing the skill level of the poster ,you expect someone to
recommend tackling this job, what backround does he have what tools and so
one, that was the focus of my reply.
"Don Bruder" > wrote in message
...
> In article >,
> "Shep" > wrote:
>
>> You should check the inner and outer tie rods for looseness, bounce the
>> van
>> to see if the struts/shocks are weak,
>
> Ayep...
>
>> struts are not a dyer job, caution and
>> and a strut /spring tool are required.
>
> Nonsense.
>
> True, a set of coil-spring compressers is needed (Cheap and easy to get
> - Last set I bought was under $20, and the local autozone has 'em on
> hand as part of their "loan-a-tool" thing.)
>
> Also true that it does take some reasonable care. ("Don't undo the nut
> holding the upper spring plate to the strut until the spring compressers
> are solidly engaged and the spring is compressed" is the biggest item)
>
> Not true that it isn't a DIYer job - struts are no biggie for anyone who
> has the smarts to be able to change a set of spark plugs. Typically
> either three or four bolts on top, and two on the bottom are what's
> holding it in place, and removing/replacing the old cartridge usually
> means unscrewing a collar after the spring and upper plate are off the
> strut. Not at all complex, and difficult, at best, to screw up without
> it being too obvious to overlook.
>
> The one critical item other than not letting the top strut-spring plate
> loose before the spring is unloaded is to check and see if your
> particular vehicle messes with camber by turning the upper mount plate -
> Some do (My Mazda adjusts camber in 0.5 degree steps based on which way
> the little stamped-in arrow on the mount-plate points) and some don't.
> If the Windstar does (and I have no idea whether or not that's the
> case), you need to make sure you put the mount-plate back in exactly the
> same way you found it, or you'll blow your alignment all to hell.
>
>
>> Check for ball joint looseness. These
>> are all basic checks before any work or alignment is done.
>
>
> Here you raise a good point - From the symptoms we've heard from the OP
> so far, (sloppy steering, especially) I'd be suspecting either bad ball
> joints, tie-rod ends, pittman arm, and/or idler arm before I'd suspect
> the struts. Not that struts can't cause all the described symptoms, but
> it seems to me that it's more likely to be something in the "connect the
> steering box to the wheels" hardware. Then again, he DID say it has 130K
> on it, so it might well be time for struts, too.
>
> (Personally, I dealt with mine by "shotgunning" everything in the front
> end - Mainly because it all needed it to some extent, and I had
> everything needed on-hand to do a complete "replace everything that
> moves, plus some stuff that doesn't" operation. Since I was in as deep
> as I was already - looking at an absolute minimum of ball joints and tie
> rod ends - it just made sense to do the whole job once, rather than
> having to redo parts of it half a dozen times as the old stuff failed
> under the changed stresses that come with only putting some new parts
> into an old, "worn in" system.)
>
>> > wrote in message
>> oups.com...
>> > Hey,
>> >
>> > I have a 1996 Ford Windstar with 130,000 miles on it. It is starting to
>> > pull to the right and the tires are wearing uneven. The steering is
>> > also very loose these days.
>> >
>> > If I replace the struts then get it aligned will that help? I would
>> > like to do the job myself (except the alignment). What other items
>> > should i replace while i am replacing the struts?
>> >
>> > THanks
>> > Brad
>> >
>> >
>>
>>
>>
>> ----== Posted via Newsfeeds.Com - Unlimited-Uncensored-Secure Usenet
>> News==----
>> http://www.newsfeeds.com The #1 Newsgroup Service in the World! 120,000+
>> Newsgroups
>> ----= East and West-Coast Server Farms - Total Privacy via Encryption
>> =----
>
> --
> Don Bruder - - New Email policy in effect as of Feb. 21,
> 2004.
> Short form: I'm trashing EVERY E-mail that doesn't contain a password in
> the
> subject unless it comes from a "whitelisted" (pre-approved by me) address.
> See <http://www.sonic.net/~dakidd/main/contact.html> for full details.
>



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Don Bruder > wrote in article
>...
>
> True, a set of coil-spring compressers is needed (Cheap and easy to get
> - Last set I bought was under $20, and the local autozone has 'em on
> hand as part of their "loan-a-tool" thing.)
>


Fact of the matter is those $20, long-bolt "spring compressors" are
dangerous in themselves........you won't find them in professional shops.

If not carefully aligned, they can slip and fall off.....

Some strut springs must be compressed at an angle.....something the $20
"spring compressors" are incapable of doing.

Anybody who uses these on a regular basis - if they're honest - can give
you a horror story of one slipping off and either cocking the spring at a
weird angle, or shooting the spring across the shop.

We never hear the stories because everyone figures it was somnething THEY
did wrong....Truth is their mistake was when they bought these compressors.

Place them in the hands of an inexperienced DIY, and you have a REAL
potential for trouble.

Amen.
"*" > wrote in message
news:01c5bad4$cdfbee00$fda2c3d8@race...
>
>
> Don Bruder > wrote in article
> >...
>>
>> True, a set of coil-spring compressers is needed (Cheap and easy to get
>> - Last set I bought was under $20, and the local autozone has 'em on
>> hand as part of their "loan-a-tool" thing.)
>>
>
>
> Fact of the matter is those $20, long-bolt "spring compressors" are
> dangerous in themselves........you won't find them in professional shops.
>
> If not carefully aligned, they can slip and fall off.....
>
> Some strut springs must be compressed at an angle.....something the $20
> "spring compressors" are incapable of doing.
>
> Anybody who uses these on a regular basis - if they're honest - can give
> you a horror story of one slipping off and either cocking the spring at a
> weird angle, or shooting the spring across the shop.
>
> We never hear the stories because everyone figures it was somnething THEY
> did wrong....Truth is their mistake was when they bought these
> compressors.
>
> Place them in the hands of an inexperienced DIY, and you have a REAL
> potential for trouble.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>



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----= East and West-Coast Server Farms - Total Privacy via Encryption =----

"*" > wrote in message
news:01c5bad4$cdfbee00$fda2c3d8@race...
>
>
> Anybody who uses these on a regular basis - if they're honest - can give
> you a horror story of one slipping off and either cocking the spring at a
> weird angle, or shooting the spring across the shop.
>
> We never hear the stories because everyone figures it was somnething THEY
> did wrong....Truth is their mistake was when they bought these
compressors.
>

Either that or because they are dead when the compressed spring shot
straight
into their chest.

OTC makes an inexpensive clamshell spring compressor that sells on the net
for under $200, (in addition to their expensive one that costs $700) and
Harbor Freight sells a cheapo Chinese knockoff of this for $40 that works
OK if you replace the bolts in it that are made out of Silly Putty with
decent
Grade 8 stuff.

Ted

In article .com>,
says...
>Hey,
>I have a 1996 Ford Windstar with 130,000 miles on it. It is starting to
>pull to the right and the tires are wearing uneven. The steering is
>also very loose these days.
>If I replace the struts then get it aligned will that help? I would
>like to do the job myself (except the alignment). What other items
>should i replace while i am replacing the struts?

It will help, but probably not with the pulling right. Depending on the uneven
wear you are getting, it might help there too. You should check the rest of
the suspension/steering system to make sure all is ok.
---------------
Alex

In article <01c5bad4$cdfbee00$fda2c3d8@race>, says...

>Fact of the matter is those $20, long-bolt "spring compressors" are
>dangerous in themselves........you won't find them in professional shops.

Danerous, hardly. I've used them with no problems. They are tedious to use
and take more time than more expensive tools, but they are not inherently
dangerous.

>If not carefully aligned, they can slip and fall off.....

They come with safety hooks that you should always use. So that at worst,
they will slip a bit, but not shoot out.

>Some strut springs must be compressed at an angle.....something the $20
>"spring compressors" are incapable of doing.

>Anybody who uses these on a regular basis - if they're honest - can give
>you a horror story of one slipping off and either cocking the spring at a
>weird angle, or shooting the spring across the shop.

slipping and cocking yes, shooting out, never. Slipping is not a big deal.
Just start again.

>We never hear the stories because everyone figures it was somnething THEY
>did wrong....Truth is their mistake was when they bought these compressors.
>Place them in the hands of an inexperienced DIY, and you have a REAL
>potential for trouble.

any tool in the hands of a fool can have disastrous results. You need to make
sure you understand how to properly use the tools before you use them. It is
not rocket science.
--------------
Alex

In article >,
says...

>OTC makes an inexpensive clamshell spring compressor that sells on the net
>for under $200, (in addition to their expensive one that costs $700) and
>Harbor Freight sells a cheapo Chinese knockoff of this for $40 that works
>OK if you replace the bolts in it that are made out of Silly Putty with
>decent
>Grade 8 stuff.

The harbor freight compressor will not work with smaller springs, like on a
Honda Accord. Has anyone had any experience using
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=47890 ?
It looks like it would be faster to use.
-------------
Alex