987 front spring replacement - DIY ? - Page 2 - Porsche General - PistonHeads UK

I have a broken front spring on my 2.7 Cayman and I’m contemplating replacing it myself. It is standard suspension , not PASM. I’m wondering if it is a relatively straightforward job or is it best left to the local garage ? I’m pretty competent with tools, don’t mind changing pads / discs. Any thoughts or expertise of doing the job ? Thanks.

Having changed bump stops I would say doable with the right tools, my fear is about getting stuck halfway through being unable to put it together again.

It's a straightforward DIY job but only if you have good selection of decent tools and - crucially - good quality spring compressor set. There's a lot of energy in a compressed spring and you don't want to be in way of inadvertent release! The trickiest part is often having the correct tool/through sockets so that you can release/tighten the top piston nut. Helps to undo it slightly while the shock is mounted to ca.r

I didn't need spring compressors on my 987.1 Cayman S with PASM as at full extension of the front struts there is very little compression in the springs. Non-PASM may have slightly longer springs as the right height is higher but still shouldn't need much if any assistance.

stratfordshark said: It's a straightforward DIY job but only if you have good selection of decent tools and - crucially - good quality spring compressor set. There's a lot of energy in a compressed spring and you don't want to be in way of inadvertent release! The trickiest part is often having the correct tool/through sockets so that you can release/tighten the top piston nut. Helps to undo it slightly while the shock is mounted to ca.r I loosened mine with an electric impact driver on one side, the other side I used a normal ratchet and had to get hold of the shock with a clamp.

Thanks guys. I’m going to buy a spring compressor anyway as they are only £20 or so. What do I need to disconnect apart from the brake gubbins, is it the sway bar drop link then once the shock has been disconnected I can swing it out from under the wheel arch ?

I think the caliper bolts are stretch ones, do some reading and research on Youtube.

You don't need to remove the brakes. You want to make sure both front wheels are off the ground. A spreader tool isn't a bad idea, the bottom of the strut is clamped by the hub.

lost in espace said: I think the caliper bolts are stretch ones, do some reading and research on Youtube. Def not. I’ve replaced the discs and the bolts are steel.

Anyone used Porscheshop for parts ? I see they don’t have a phone number for contacting them, always makes me wary.

Waitforme said: Anyone used Porscheshop for parts ? I see they don’t have a phone number for contacting them, always makes me wary. They're legit but OPC is always cheapest if you're buying OEM parts Design911 are good too Agree on the phone number thing it puts me off

Waitforme said: Anyone used Porscheshop for parts ? I see they don’t have a phone number for contacting them, always makes me wary. Check the thread on CaymanOC...

Definitely diy job. However as others have said you need good selection of tools and basic knowledge. You may find the hardest bit is getting the pinch bolts out that clamp the strut in the hub, although you don't have to remove the strut you may find it easier...

Andyoz said: Waitforme said: Anyone used Porscheshop for parts ? I see they don’t have a phone number for contacting them, always makes me wary. Check the thread on CaymanOC... Thanks. I’ll avoid.

tozerman said: Definitely diy job. However as others have said you need good selection of tools and basic knowledge. You may find the hardest bit is getting the pinch bolts out that clamp the strut in the hub, although you don't have to remove the strut you may find it easier... Thanks. I’ve got a good selection of tools / Jack / axle stands / sockets etc. I’m hoping to swing the strut out from under the wing , replace the spring and refit. If I have to remove the strut then so be it, I’ve already given everything a good squirt of WD40. I’ll get the spring ordered. Thanks

anonymous said: [redacted] I'm reasonably certain that most of the 987 caliper and suspension bolts are indeed "one time" bolts according to the workshop manual. In reality, I have reused the caliper bolts on both 986s and 987s with no ill effect. I thought the whole "one time" use thing was total BS but my tuning fork to coffin arm bolt was quite stretched when I removed it (the front coffin arms had been replaced a few years ago prior to my ownership). That was the first and only time I had seen that but I would think that Porsche are keen to cover themselves just in case.

So I’ve now received the new spring and have ordered the spring compressor. Thought I’d just prepare the job. I see the top of the shock has a 7mm Allen socket head. When I tried to loosen the top nut the shock turns , what have you guys used to prevent it turning while loosening the nut ?

Impact gun

Can anyone recommend an impact driver ? I tried loosening the top nut with a spanner and Allen key but it’s too tight. I’ve been looking at impact drivers but they range from £25 to several hundred, what I don’t want to do is buy one and it doesn’t loosen the nut as it doesn’t have the power.

https://www.kielder.co/collections/impact-wrenches... I've got one of these, decent value for money. Can get them in machine mart.

Just for info, these spring compressors are awesomely good: https://smile.amazon.co.uk/Compressor-Clamping-Uni...

Well , I finally completed the spring change this morning. It turned out tot be a bit of a saga. The spring compressor I ordered never arrived , so eventually bought another one , £20 job from Amazon, bit I liked about it was it had locking pins. As I said previously I couldn’t undo the top 21mm nut and thought about buying an impact gun, but then thought I could spend £100 on a gun and it may not do the job. So I decided that I’d get the local garage to do it , they said they wouldn’t as I had bought the spring and they had no paperwork for insurance purposes if whatever happened. They said if I brought the coil over to them they’d change the spring as a favour type of thing rather than do the whole job, but I couldn’t get the top drop link bolt out that clamps the shock assembly into the hub ( after googling it appears to be very common for this bolt to seize into the alloy hub assembly). So took the car to them and they impacted the top 21mm nut loose. Got home removed calliper assembly and tried to undo the nut on the bottom arm of the drop link to separate the ball joint , this nut was seized and just rounded, I needed this undone to get the clearance under the wing to swing the coil over out . I tried to force it down enough and the ball joint popped , good thing was I now had the clearance, swung the assembly out and change the spring ( took a bit of manipulating the position off the compressors to get the spring clamped enough to let me get the top hat assembly and 21mm nut back on back on. Got that done , swung it back in and into position that I’d scribbed lightly round the top 3 nuts In the inner wing for correct angle. Tightened everything up , popped the bottom ball joint back in and job was jobbed. The only issue with the whole job was the seized bolts , other than that very straightforward job. Thanks for the advice above guys

How did you do the 21mm top bolt back up with no impact gun?

21mm spanner. Car’s going in for MOT as soon as I can get it booked, will ask them to tighten with the gun.

Waitforme said: 21mm spanner. Car’s going in for MOT as soon as I can get it booked, will ask them to tighten with the gun. Is that a thing? Tightening with an impact gun rather than to a torque?

Have you only changed one side?

A tip for removing springs on these quickly. Remove the brake calliper and cable tie out of the way. Remove the drop link from the bar end, this end doesn't seize. Loosen the the coffin arm 17mm bolt, don't undo it just loosen it, this will allow the wheel carrier to drop enough to get the strut out under the wing. Now, if you don't have spring compressors, put a jack under the brake disc. Undo the 21mm strut bolt and slowly lower the jack down, the spring will uncompress. (When the car is jacked up they are not that compressed on these, jacked up the springs are almost loose). You can now replace the spring, jack it back up and do the strut nut back up again. Should take no more than an hour.

BertBert said: Is that a thing? Tightening with an impact gun rather than to a torque? Surely it's not

I'd bet my b ks most mechanics would just impact gun that bolt up.

dunc_sx said: BertBert said: Is that a thing? Tightening with an impact gun rather than to a torque? Surely it's not Very common to do it with impact.

Don’t forget geometry. You can get away with marking the position of bolts etc but I would always get geometry done after a suspension change. With springs the car will often sit higher or lower and that will have an impact.

Yeah, geo makes such a huge difference, even slightly out can really make the car feel lose so much in the handling and comfort department. I tried 3 different settings on the Z4 coupe a couple of months back, only slightly different settings each time and the difference was quite staggering. I am having the dampers, springs, bearings, top mounts, drop links etc. changed on my 986 at the moment and I won't even bother driving it until the geo is done. STS charge £50 to have the front done, and you can go back 3 times within 30 days if you want it changed. No brainer. They use the latest Hunter machines too. £120 for if the rear needs doing, and you can go back 8 times in a year if you make any changes.

gizlaroc said: A tip for removing springs on these quickly. Remove the brake calliper and cable tie out of the way. Remove the drop link from the bar end, this end doesn't seize. Loosen the the coffin arm 17mm bolt, don't undo it just loosen it, this will allow the wheel carrier to drop enough to get the strut out under the wing. Now, if you don't have spring compressors, put a jack under the brake disc. Undo the 21mm strut bolt and slowly lower the jack down, the spring will uncompress. (When the car is jacked up they are not that compressed on these, jacked up the springs are almost loose). You can now replace the spring, jack it back up and do the strut nut back up again. Should take no more than an hour. Thanks for the above , will keep in mind if I have to replace the other side. I started a new thread on changing the rear, if you have any tips could you please contribute to that thread ? Thanks. Kenny.

I have never done a rear, but pretty much the same. This video is worth a watch, 996, but gives some good ideas.... https://youtu.be/icbfGIcVENs?t=705

The rear is a pain in the bum - You have to remove a lot of stuff. It's not hard so much as it is time consuming. Plus, if the rear arms etc have been on for a while, you'll probably destroy them trying to remove them

Sorry for the thread bump, having just changed my snapped spring on the front the fast way ie loosening the coffin arm bolt, I can’t get my torque wrench in the gap to re torque it. Has any one got a recommendation for a slim torque wrench ? Thanks

I wouldn't over think it, just do it up with a ratchet as tight as any other M10 bolt would be.