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While many brickboarders are quite familiar with replacing MacPherson strut cartridges, there are still occasional questions about doing it. I took some pictures yesterday when I replaced a set of strut cartridges in a 1990 745T. the pictures start with the strut removed from the car. The spring compressors shown in the pictures are quite primitive. I've had this set over twenty years. The new ones are much nicer to use and have nice sliding retainers to keep them safely on the springs. Now for the disclaimer: You do this at your own risk. I have probably done over twenty strut cartridge changes.
The picture below shows the spring compressors fitted to the spring. You want the spring compressors 180º apart, or the spring won't compress uniformly and you will wish you had payed more attention. If the spring starts to compress unevenly because the compressors aren't 180º apart, stop and start over. You also want the spring compressors to be on the same number of coils, and to be on as many coils as is practical to be on.
In the picture below the spring is compressed and I am ready to remove the nut on the top of the strut rod. I like to use an adjustable wrench on the flat sides of the strut rod and a box end wrench on the nut. I leave the handle of the adjustable wrench on the ground and stop on the box end wrench to break the nut loose.
The picture below is of removing the nut that holds the strut cartridge within the strut. Usually this is the most difficult part of the job. I did this on on the ground, but if you have a large vice that makes it easier. I was using a pair of ChanneLock 430 pliers on the strut tube, and a pair of ChanneLock 460 pliers on the nut. A pair of 440 ChanneLock pliers or a chain wrench on the tube would have been better. By putting my knee on the smaller pair of ChanneLocks and pushing down on the large pair of ChanneLocks with my hands I was able to break the nut loose. Yes, the large wrench holding ChanneLocks upis a phot prop.
The last picture shows installing the new strut cartridge retaining nut. Notice the can of Never Seize. You ALWAYS want to use some of this on the threads of this nut, since you might want to get it loose again in a few years.
Now all you have to do is reverse the procedure.
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