There is no official procedures to replace the front shocks.
The way to do it is easy enough. Remove the nut on top and bottom, push shock up past the lower control arm, tilt to rear enough to clear the control arm, and pull down then out of car.
Reverse to install.
There are two problems on installing front shocks on FMJ body cars.
The first is the nuts are a royal bear to get off because of rust.
Using a liberal amount of penetrating oil a few times (day/days in advance) helps a lot. Using heat (be careful of the bushings) or using a nut cracker also helps a lot. There is a small hex on the shaft you can get a Closed End end wrench on (or socket) which is another aid. Large vice grips sometimes helps – but generally not so much.
Using a saw to cut the shaft can also be a means of removing them (I recommend cutting through the bushing) – but not room to do so in all cases. Keep in mind the shafts use hardened steel
The second problem is gas filled shocks. You need to have the shock in a compressed state to install – but being gas filled (if applicable) wants to extend itself so you are fighting it on both ends installing them. Most gas filled shocks have a plastic or metal strap to keep them in a compressed state out of the box. Keep the strap on as long as possible, then remove when ready for shock studs to go into respective holes/bushings.
Three tips I can recommend.
- Use quality shocks.
- Keep an eye on bushing washers. They typically go one way and sometimes are not the same top and bottom.
- The last tip I hadn’t tried yet – but should help on future repairs. Find a plastic sleeve the same diameter as the shock studs. I see them as screw protectors or other names, and typically are color coded.
Add some wheel bearing grease to shock studs, then slip the screw protector over that. That way rust should all but be eliminated.
BudW