2006-08 Dodge Ram 1500 Front & Rear 4 Piece Complete Strut Assembly & Shock Absorber Kit TRQ SBA60403

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In this video, we're going to show you how to install the strut and spring assembly in this 2008 Dodge Ram 1500. We do this on the passenger side, but the driver side is the same procedure.

You'll need a new strut assembly from 1AAuto.com, 15 to 35 millimeter sockets, ratchet, extensions, and a breaker bar, along with the same size wrenches, a small pick, hammer, bungee cord or mechanics wire, pry bar, small flat blade screwdriver, a punch, torque wrench, and jack and jack stands.

With the vehicle on the ground, using a 22-millimeter socket and breaker bar, break the lug nuts for your wheel loose. These chrome lug nuts tend to be swollen, so make sure your socket's on there good. Using a small pick, remove the center cap from the wheel. Using a 35-millimeter socket and a breaker bar, crack the axle nut loose. Raise and support your vehicle, and finish removing the lug nuts. Remove the wheel and tire from the hub.

Using a 24 millimeter socket and a breaker bar on the nut, and the 21 millimeter wrench on the bolt on the other side of the control arm, remove the bottom bolt for the strut from the lower control arm. Leave the nut. Flush with the end of the bolt.

Using a hammer, carefully hit the end, making sure that the nut does not come farther in or out than the end of the bolt, as to avoid damaging either of them. When you get to the end and you know it's moving, you can let a few threads out. Once the bolt's far enough through that you can't have the nut threaded on any more carefully, tap the end of the stud here. Make sure that if it looks like it's mushrooming over, you stop.

I've stacked three wrenches together that are wider than the shank of the bolt, but narrower than the flange on the back of the head. I'm going to stack those between the bolt control arm, push out against the back of the nut with them, while we turn it out with a 21 millimeter socket and ratchet. You may have to add more wrenches to the stack as the bolt comes farther out.

We've now added a sixth wrench, and I have an assistant prying down the control arm while I turn the bolt out. Using a 15 millimeter wrench, remove the three nuts on the top of the strut. If you have a ratcheting wrench or very shallow ratchet, you could use that as well. It might actually be a little bit easier for you. Remove the two 21 millimeter bolts securing the caliper bracket to the spindle.

We're going to use a 21 millimeter socket and a breaker bar. Once you crack them loose, go ahead and switch to a ratchet. Remove the caliper and carrier assembly. Using a bungee cord, mechanics wire, or a zip tie, secure it off to the frame and out of the way. Remove the rotor. Place it off to the side. Using a 22 millimeter box end wrench bottom of the upper bolt joint and use another wrench locked in to the open end to break it loose. Remove it the rest of the way.

One of the ways to remove this upper bolt joint without damaging it is to use a hammer and hit the side of where the stud goes through to egg the hole out for a second, and allow it to pop out. Be careful not to hit it too hard because this is aluminum, and you can crack and break it much easier than a cast steel piece. You can also try using a pry bar to put some upward tension on the control arm. Brace the hub with a pry bar, and finish removing your axle nut.

Behind the fender liner is the wheel speed sensor connector. Using a small flat blade screwdriver, pop up on the red safety tab. Push in and remove the connector. Using a small flat blade screwdriver, unsnap the connectors from the harness under the control arm, allow the ABS sensor to hang. Remove the lower portion of the sway bar from the lower control arm. Ours has an 18-millimeter hex on the top side. If yours isn't there, you can use a pair of vise grips to hold this metal collar on the top side and an 18 millimeter socket and ratchet to remove the nut on the bottom. Using a punch in the center hole here on the CV axle, I'm going to go ahead and knock it out of the hub with a hammer.

Once the splines are free, we'll allow the upper control arm out of the spindle. Finish working the axle out. Using a pry bar bring the lower control arm down out of the sway bar, going to push down on the spindle while holding the strut up into the mount. Move the bottom off to the side and allow it to drop through.

Here we have our old part from the vehicle and our new part from 1AAuto.com. As you could see, we have the same strut mounts up top, same spring, same strut assembly, same amount at the bottom. The only thing that's different is that it's up top here. We have a spacer for the lift and level on our truck. That just means that it makes the front of the truck sit a little bit higher so we can clear those big wheels and tires. This simply unbolts, bolts over to our new quick strut assembly, and bolts right back into the vehicle. This means that our new part comes complete with the spring already installed under the new strut mount onto our new strut assembly.

Now you don't have to worry about the headache and high risk of using a spring compressor at home. Simply remove your old part, and install your new one, just like factory.

We've placed our strut spring assembly into a vise so we can remove the three 15 millimeter nuts holding our leveling spacer onto the strut assembly. Start all of the nuts. We don't have a socket that can get in here, but if you do, the torque spec for these is 45 foot-pounds. Reinstall the strut.

Line up the bolts on the strut mount into the frame. Tighten the nuts on the top of the strut mount. Again, if you can get a torque wrench in there, it's going to be 45 foot-pounds on these nuts as well. Reinstall the bottom of the sway bar link into the control arm. Start the nut on the bottom of the lower sway bar link joint, counter hold the base of the lower joint with an 18 millimeter wrench. Tighten the nut with an 18 millimeter socket and ratchet.

You'll notice in the next few shots that the sway bar length is not connected in the video, despite us having just shown you the step to install it. You should be able to install your sway bar link after you've installed the strut and upper control arms, but in our case our vehicle is lifted, and we went through a few steps before realizing we had the incorrect sway bar link, meaning we had to go back a few steps in order to install it.

We're inserting a pry bar into the slot of the lower control arm so we can pry the strut over to the bushing. Install the punch. Hammer the punch in to help line up. Line up the bolt hole by manipulating the punch. Once you're in a good ways and the threads are inside the sleeve and lined up, you may need a pry bar to help line the back of the strut up. Finish tapping the bolt through.

Start the nut by hand. Don't tighten the bolt fully until the load of the vehicle is on the suspension. Line up the splines on the axle. Put the splines in the hub. Once it's started, we're just going to install the axle nut by hand to keep it in place while we line up the rest of our suspension.

Reinstall the upper bolt joint into the spindle. Tighten it with a 22 millimeter socket and ratchet. Torque the upper control arm nut to 40 foot-pounds. Add an additional 90 degrees.

Reinstall the harness into the keepers on the bottom of the control arm. Reinstall the connector. Push down on the safety tab. We're going to use a screw jack to put load on the suspension because we're on a lift. If you're doing this from a jack and jack stands you can use a floor jack. Torque the bottom strut bolt to 155 foot-pounds. You can now release the load from your suspension.

Reinstall the rotor onto the hub. Make sure that you don't twist the line on your brake hose. Reinstall the caliper carrier assembly onto the rotor, and start the bolts on the back side. Tighten the bolts down with a 21 millimeter socket and ratchet. Torque the caliper bolts to 130 foot-pounds.

Reinstall your wheel and tire onto the vehicle. Start the lug nuts with a 22 millimeter socket. Get all the lug nuts as tight as you can in the air. Then lower the vehicle. After tightening your axle nut, torque it to 185 foot-pounds. Pop the center cap back into place. Torque your lug nuts to 135 foot-pounds in a cross pattern.

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