Upper Support and Shock Mount removal?

Ask technical questions or post on problems/issues related to the Kizashi under this topic. Symptoms and pictures of your problem are a good idea.
NOTE: Any car related technical question can be posted here.
Post Reply
User avatar
KIZAWDinKC
Posts: 80
Joined: Fri Dec 03, 2010 1:53 am

Years ago I replaced the rear shocks myself. A year or two later after that, I started getting the "clunk" sound coming from the rear driver's side. I determined that it was not a swaybar bushing or link. I even replaced the links. It was for sure coming from the rear shock. Has something to with the area where the shock bushing inserts into the support (4191257L00), and of course the shock is held in with the mount (4191357L00). I drove it that way for a quite a long time until I finally decided to investigate further and remove the rear shock to see what the condition was of the shock/bushing. Dummy me sheared the bolt head on one side trying to remove the shock mount. I didn't have any problem the first time removing the bolts when I replaced the shocks. But since then, I guess they corroded like all other bolts on my Kizashi. I thought maybe it would still be ok to just drive it with one bolt, but noticed right away that the mount was about ready to snap off after driving it for a couple weeks. It had appeared to me that the only way to get the sheared part of the bolt from the support was to drill it out. Basically drill and disintegrate the bolt into pieces hoping the threads are retained. Not even sure I can get a drill in there and successfully perform the task. I had already ordered new shock bushing, shock mount, stopper, and 2 new mount bolts.

QUESTION: Instead of drilling out the bolt, has anyone ever removed the upper support (4191257L00) that the mount bolts into, or knows if it can be removed? I can see underneath the wheel well cover that there are two larger bolts that appear to hold the support. Appears to maybe be bolted to the chassis of the vehicle. If so, I can just get the entire darn assembly out including the support. And then either replace the support (4191257L00) with a new one, or maybe drill out the bolt while I have it out and on a workbench.
Attachments
20220424_103832.jpg
old tech
Posts: 705
Joined: Mon Apr 23, 2018 1:51 pm
Location: n/w pennsysvania

The upper bracket is easily removed with 3 14mm headed bolts after moving the inner fender liner. This bracket is very pricey new and a bit hard to get. Salvage yards are more than happy to sell you the shock with this upper bracket attached if you request it be removed like this. Drilling this out is hard to do nicely. My first attempt would be to weld a lager nut to the damaged bolt, massage the housing where bolt is tapped into with chisel and hammer .Some torch heat may help but that is risky with aluminum as it can go from usable to melted quickly. If you get it out, dont be surprised
if the some of the aluminum threads are now one with the bolt. Retap 8x1.25 hole starting from the top side and now use stud and nut if you can get a hold of some.
User avatar
KIZAWDinKC
Posts: 80
Joined: Fri Dec 03, 2010 1:53 am

Thanks old tech! I saw the 3 bolts of the upper support under the fender liner. I might opt for just either paying the $ for a new support or junk yard and not mess with the sheered bolt on the original.

I got the car up on a jack stand today with the wheel off to begin the removal process just to get it started before parts come in later. But of course the large 19mm bolt at the bottom of the shock is definitely stuck/corroded. I didn't want to damage it, so I didn't use any more force that I could generate with a standard socket wrench. I did whack the wrench with a hammer a few times, but didn't budge. I stopped and didn't want to break it. So now I have begun the process of soaking the bolt nearest to the threads with Liquid Wrench. But I'm also going to pick up some Sea Foam Deep Creep tomorrow. I'm going to spray the bolt each day for a week and see if it comes loose after that. The engine and transmission are still in decent shape which is why I'm going through the trouble of monkeying with this stuff on a 12 year old car that I bought brand new . It's a free car to drive that I can still get plenty more miles out of.
User avatar
KIZAWDinKC
Posts: 80
Joined: Fri Dec 03, 2010 1:53 am

Well so much for trying to get the long bolt off from the bottom of the shock for removal. It is seized. PB blasted it for a week and tried to even use the car jack to push against the wrench, but that dang bolt wouldn't budge.

Thought I was SOL, but I was able to just pull the shock down by hand and can remove the nut & bushing so a new mount can be put on. No need to remove the shock. I was able to remove the upper support (3 bolts). <--At least those bolts weren't seized! :D

Ordered an upper support, mount, 2 mount bolts, and bushing from SuzukiAutomotiveParts out of NJ. So far the order has not been rejected. So we'll see if they actually have those parts to ship. Otherwise, Megazip is the only place to buy new parts. But they take so long to ship.
User avatar
Woodie
Posts: 1167
Joined: Sun Apr 28, 2013 10:09 am
Location: Laurel, MD

I just got some Kizashi parts from Megazip in less than two weeks.
Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms
Should be a convenience store, not a government agency
User avatar
KIZAWDinKC
Posts: 80
Joined: Fri Dec 03, 2010 1:53 am

Finally got er' done after waiting 3+ weeks for parts: New upper support, new shock mount, new bushing, and 2 new mount bolts. The Kiz had been sitting on jack stands for a month waiting to do this.

Installed the new parts myself onto the driver's rear shock assembly. Earlier, I wasn't able to get the long bolt off the lower part of the shock to remove the entire shock. It was seized. PB blasting for a week did nothing. But then I realized I could just pull the top part of the shock down to remove the upper support and the other shock parts such as nut, bushing, mount. No need to remove the entire shock in this case since I wasn't going to replace the shock itself.

The new bushing was a little taller than the old bushing of the rear shock assembly. The old bushing was worn and compressed a little, so that was the culprit of the LOUD constant CLUNK sound from the driver's rear wheel area. (There is another thread with a post buried deeper on this site of someone that installed a rubber gasket on top of the bushing to cure the clunk sound, so it made sense once I took the old bushing out and compared it to the new one). The only downer after getting the Kiz back on the road is there is still some light clunking noise coming from the rear in general. So, I figure it's either the sway bar bushings or maybe the passenger's rear side is starting to exhibit some of the symptoms as well. Regardless, it's quieter! It's an old car anyhow, so I'll just have to live with some noise unless I wanted to replace the entire back suspension of the vehicle of which I am not going to do of course. Just keep driving it until it falls part.

Went ahead gave it a fresh oil change, new 24F battery, and a carwash. The Kiz is back on the road again. :drive:
Attachments
mount1.jpg
User avatar
SAEED_KIZZY
Posts: 507
Joined: Wed Sep 13, 2017 2:31 pm

Nice job.
Most rust problems are caused by salt on the road in winter, especially in a cold areas. it is best practice to do a pressure wash and clean the fender after a road trip in winter.
Post Reply