Hey
This is weird. I was loaded with lots of stuff (maybe too much) and when I turned left into my driveway I heard I nice boing. Jacked up the car and the driver spring is off for over a turn. What a pita! Now I gotta remove it and compress it.

wow.... idk how that would even happen ... they sit into a mount pretty well even if your loaded down it shouldnt shoot off like that

that musta been a loud boing

I was turning. I think the spring got bound and it was a loud one.

Gardening! never again.

i say u just cut it and but new struts and springs

Was this a sharp turn or was it just a slow corner and it happen to go on yah?

Shoot, before compressing, you are going to have to find a way to get it out of that position it is in once you have the whole assembly in your hands. Unless it is easier than it looks, which I hope.

Qcarver: struts are new and the rest of suspension. Did it last year. The springs are the only original one.

Grandprixgt - the turn was pretty sharp.

I thought that was an aftermarket looking strut, even though it is filthy!

Looks like a busted spring to me.

Nope, the spring is sprung, no compressing necessary.

He'd have to compress it to get it back on though, is what I meant.

Correct, I believe he's going to need a new spring, which will also have to be compressed, but getting the old spring off should be no problem.

crimpton, I thought that it simply bound up and did not rotate with the strut when I was turning. Why would I need to buy a new one. It did not break in the middle somewhere? Is it now "damaged"?

PS. I does look filthy. Have not really cleaned it after the winter up here (and it was a loooong bad one)

I don't know for sure, but it looks broke from here. Compare it to your RF spring on a visual basis, you will know for sure.

wow, you see somthing new everyday!

in the words of the wise man "gigidi".

I was saying, it will be fun trying to get that thing out. I am not sure how it will come out. Hopefully you can like twist it like a screw and it will come out. Then you'll have to compress it to get it back on. It looks fine, it just sprung and you need to figure out how to get it off before you plan to compress it and put it back on there.

If it turns out you'll be needing new springs, the GM part# is 22133030.

Why is going to need new ones?
Think his just are shot, and can't keep a tension, therefore this will happen again under a even less stress?

It looks broke in the picture.... If it isn't broke, carry on.

On a similar issue on somebody's car, I had to cut the spring out with a pnuematic cut-off wheel.... took a while.
I'd have to look at it, but you MIGHT be able to re-compress it and reposition it. If you did them somewhat recently you could've messed it up?

WOW ..Bad install forsure, good thing it did not catch the tire!

Looks like it wasn't seated properly and it jumped off the base plate.

So I discombobulted the unit yesterday. I did not remove the tie rod out of the steering knuckle but only loosened the bushing of the bar. With spring compressors on medium the strut came out. To my chargrin it was a broken spring. Crap! Well I ordered a new one which will come on Friday. Now I gotta do the other one! I thought I was done with suspension last year and of course one thing I did not change goes, its like Murphy is right here in the cockpit with me.

After six years, my original springs & Monroe struts were already shot; it was like driving a 4 wheeled pogo stick! I'm surprised your springs lasted as long as they did, given the quality of the OE struts on our cars...

Bummer.

Bummer to say the least. My springs are 10 years old and have over 100k on em.

I noticed that Moog now makes coil springs for our cars: Front Springs CC 670 (97-02), Rear Springs 60197 (97-02 GTP Coupe, SE sedan, GT Coupe & Sedan) or 60199 (97-02 GTP Sedan).

mine are fine and they have 8 years... 155K on them..

I never got to it, but here is one picture of the new spring. I got one with a weird winding so I installed it so.

Is that on a GP?

I don't recognize the top mounting assembly.

I've seen the rubber casing before, but not on a GP..... I think it was a Regal.

that's what I got from the parts store and what the assembly was when I took it apart.

Something's wrong...... Maybe that's why it broke in the first place.

I posted that picture on my local board and I've got 2 people agreeing with me that the top part of that assembly is not typical. It looks like someone stacked 2 bearing assemblies together.

That doesn't look right. And those top two coils shouldn't be touching, unless load put on them.

Here's a write up. I looked through my photobucket pics, but I don't have one showing the top of the coil on the strut.
Maybe this will help you out http://rmcgp.clubgp.com/struts.html

The top assembly does contain two rubber spacers crimpton, in regards to the spring itself that is what I was a bit weirded out in getting for the car. It looked like the last two coils were would tighter. Why?

i dont think that any of that is for a GP.

There shouldn't be any spacers...... Just the top mounting plate. That's why the 2 rungs of the spring are making contact.
The spring sleeve I've seen on the Regal, not an issue.
The spacers, I would call an issue. What's your ride height with that setup?
FWIW... You might consider buying new top plates just to keep the strut rod from punching through your hood.

I had changed the struts last year and put back on the old springs without the heavy rubber spacers. By about week 2 after the repair I got a bit of a funky clunk. I gave it to a shop and they told me that I am missing spacers. I took the front ones apart and found that the rubber insert that rides on the bearing was twisted due to the spring! so I followed the shop's suggestion and put on another heavy rubber.

I wonder if that spring was broke all along???

I've worked on a few strut spring combos and I've never seen that kind of a setup. Is it possible someone before you put that spacer in there instead of replacing the spring??

Does anyone have a picture of a stock strut/spring assembled.

i wish i took pictures. i cant find anything. i will keep looking for one

Found this over at ClubGP: Grand Prix Strut Upgrades Hope that helps!

Man... Is that an old write up or what?

The top assembly looks the same as quarks, but the spring doesn't have as many windings.

The top plates are 1 year old from Zoomer. height-wise, the new spring was less then 1 inch taller then the old spring, but yes, the spring constant was higher and it was a bit more muscle to compress it. Other then that nothing has changed. The feel of my ride.