Does anybody have a write up or instructions on replacing the Rear Hatch Strut? I bought new struts but was struggling to get the old one off.

Thanks.

 

what part was giving you trouble? It's pretty straight foward.

 

I am having trouble getting the ball joint out of the piece that bolts to the body of the car.

 

Nissan designed the OEM hatch struts with an internal retaining clip, so you won't be able to simply remove them from the brackets. You can either carefully cut the OEM ones off, or buy new hardware for your new struts.

OR...you can buy my heavy-duty struts from Z1 Auto (http://www.z1auto.com/prodmore.asp?m...r&prodid=2976).

They're 40% stronger than stock, type 316 stainless steel and come with new Nissan mounting brackets. (They're also removable in case you ever need to in the future).

 

I have these struts and its well worth it...no more getting hit in the head

 

you need to get a very small adjustable wrench.

or

you need to source a 15/32 wrench....

or

you need to get a 11mm and grind down the inside to 11.75mm and then use that..if you screw up the original 11mm, then get a 10mm and try again...

effectively, the ball stud mounted to the car is a 11.75 mm hex on it...the closest thing to use US spec is a 15/32 open ended wrench. but thats an odd size to find...

EASIEST THING TO DO:
by far the easiest thing to do is , get a dremel and cut off the top shock body, dont cut so deep and dont ruin the ball stud, simply cut the "head" and pull the round part off the ball stud....

then from there you can get a 12point 12mm deep socket and remove it with out stripping it "IF" your careful.

-J

 

I just bought a set of upgrade struts from this eBay seller, http://motors.shop.ebay.com/invotekk...1&_from=&_ipg=

The struts came with the black hardware parts like the original Nissan ones. I used a 12mm wrench to remove the top stud ball and a 10mm wrench to remove the bottom 2 bolts, then installed the new set. very simple!

 

I bought a set of struts from a member here without two brackets which I ended up buying from dealership. Then, I saw the exact same struts (not too high quality) at NAPA. They were only $20-$30, and I paid $100. So, just go to NAPA and get what you need from there. And, buy the brackets from the dealership unless you have big metal-cut-grint-... whatever it is called.

 

Any pics?
Thanks.

 

bought these same ones from invotekken. came with everything needed and super clear/easy instructions. the swap took all of five minutes, they work great.

 

^^ Same here.... I replaced mine because the stock struts won’t pop or hold the hatch open in cold weather. It was a swap-out/bolt-on exercise. I have a 2003 Z.

--Spike

 

Save yourself the hassle and get the part from invotekken on Ebay. His comes with new stud ***** (hardware that attaches the strut to the hatch) and all the other hardware.

No need dremel the old strut from the old stud ball and try to salvage it.

And if you can't unbolt the old ball stud off the hatch with a wrench...just break it off carefully at the neck and use a socket to unbolt it from the trunk.....saved me a ton of time.

This is a 5-10 minute install.

 

+1

Just ordered it from him yesterday

 

Just got my hatch struts from invotekken. The hardware that comes with them is oem and the struts were a perfect fit. They're super strong too. They actually push the hatch up from anything greater than 25% open.

 

I got my hatch shocks at www.350zhatchshocksandmore.com

They offered 4 different stages, and can work with any type of spoiler!!

I got the Stage 3 since I was told they would help pop the hatch up....since my popper springs were a bit weak.

I love my hatch shocks!!!!!!!

 

I disconnected the bottom of the strut and bent them back and fourth until the ball broke off. After that, no problem pulling them off.

I don't have the patience for that kind of stuff.

Whee.

 

I wouldn't count on that being the case for everyone. The nut that is welded on behind the sheet metal could break off and then you will be SOL.

 

I missed the part where I recommended that everyone do this.

Excellent post. Thank you.

 

listen to this man very carefully, he knows what he is doing. he did mine and i was shaking my head the whole time knowing how long and a pain in the *** it would have been without this knowledge and experience changing these things out.

 

I never said that you did. I just posted to let people know what they risk if they tried what you did.

Your post was pretty excellent too. Thank YOU.