Bilstein install ? - Type 44, rear

[David Conner]

[ Converted text/enriched to text/plain ]
Greg,
The rear Bilstein >shocks< do not fit inside a strut housing the way the front
struts do, so this wouldn't help with my situation.

Could you elaborate a bit on your problem? What does it sound like and under
what conditions do you get the noise? Is it coming from the front of your car?

Some struts are smaller diameter than the housing they fit into, and these are
supposed to be installed with a spacer to secure them from flopping around
inside the strut housing. I think I recall my front Bilstein's came with these
spacers, but I'm not sure cause it's been awhile since I put them in.

I bought a car once that had KYB struts installed without the required spacers
and it drove me nuts til I found it. I didn't have the factory spacers, but
made some by hammering several L shaped shims out of the proper size sheet
metal and jamming these into the space.

The sound I experienced with the missing spacers was a loud clunk that a deaf
person could feel, and it mainly occured when steering/maneuvering the car at
low speed, like into a driveway or parking space.

HTH,
Dave C.



At 08:44 AM 7/21/2003 -0400, you wrote:
>>>>


I'll take a gander.
Sounds like you're chasing the same sound I am. Rattle/clunking from the rear
after a bilstein install/suspension rebuild.

Mine is on a 4kq, but I think it's the same thing.
I've replaced everything, including the spring perch, strut bearings, ect.
I've finally figured out what it is, but haven't pulled it apart to fix it
yet.

When you get Bilsteins, they come with a new cap to hold the strut insert into
the housing. My bet is that the new one isn't tightening down enough, and your
strut insert is moving around inside there, making a clunking noise.

My plan is to take the assembly off of the car, disassemble, clean up the
threads on the strut housing, and retighten.
Should fix the problem, I hope.

If not, the car will be flying off of a cliff near you, because it's cursed
with a phantom bowling ball rolling around in the trunk.

Good Luck!
Greg Roa
Cincinnati, OH
86' 4kcsq
93' 90 cS
83' 944
and another 86' 4kcsq on wednesday.


>To: 200q20v at audifans.com, quattro at audifans.com
>From: "Dave C." <conner at cfm.Ohio-State.edu>
>Subject: Bilstein install ? - Type 44, rear
>
>Bernie sez...
>"You're making way too much over bolt/nut torque! Throw your torque wrench
>away, only to be used for head bolts thereafter. Tighten until it feels
>right for that size thread. My bet is that this is not your problem. Is
>the symptom a rattle or a squeek? Spring not seated in the perch properly?
>If a squeek, check and relube the upper link ball joints. Had this problem
>on an old '87 5K @ 250K."
>
>Bernie,
>It's definitely a metallic rattle, and the links/ball joints are new.
>
>The spring spring/seat orientation is another possibility. The diagrams
>in Bentley show the proper orientation for the stock springs, but the
>Eibach's are different. Stock springs have upper and lower ends in line
>with one another, whereas the Eibach's have the ends on opposite sides of
>the coil. I've installed them so the upper end is oriented in the rubber
>bushing/bearing as shown in Bentley. They side of the car with the loudest
>rattle had been oriented somewhat different, but I haven't had a chance to
>test out the current orientation yet. I still need to settle on how tight
>to make the top nut before putting it all back together and taking it for a
>drive.
>
>I find it difficult to feel the torque on these nuts cause I'm tightening
>them against the spring and rubber bushing. Maybe I'm supposed to tighten
>them with the spring compressed to relieve this tension. Hmmm... now that
>I think about it, this makes perfect sense. (Duh!)
>
>Further, Al Powell wrote to say he bets the Bilstein instructions are meant
>to read 37 +/- 7.5 ft lbs. I think he's right ... upon reading further in
>the newer Bentley I find they do spec 37 ft lbs for the 200Q20v.
>
>So I will tighten to 37 ft lbs with the spring compressed. I bet this has
>been my problem cause IMO there is a big difference between 15 and 37 ft
>lbs, and especially if I was erroneously tightening against the spring.
>
>Thanks for the input guys.

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