How to Replace the Shocks and Struts in a Ford Mustang

Repairing your car is easier than you might think and usually cheaper than taking it to a repair shop. Replace the struts and shocks on your Mustang model yourself after 60,000 miles of normal driving conditions, and keep the ride smooth and safe. These instructions work best for coupes built after model year 2002.

Instructions

Replace the Front Struts in a Mustang

1

Lift the front end of the car with a floor jack, and support the control arms with jack stands. Use a tire iron to remove the nuts so you can remove the front wheels. Use a ratchet to pull the nuts off the brake caliper gripping the rotors, and remove it. Unbolt the bracket holding the wheel speed sensor in the wheel hub.

2

Use a wrench to remove the nuts holding the upper side of the strut assembly, which looks like a coiled spring with hardware on either end, to the frame. Remove the bolts holding the assembly to the wheel spindle behind the wheel hub. Compress the strut with a compressor, and pull it out of the wheel well. Remove the upper mounting bracket from the strut, and mount it on the new one.

3

Position the strut assembly in the wheel well and hand-bolt it to the wheel spindle. Remove the compressor, and twist the dial on the torque wrench to 141 ft-lb. Tighten the bolt at the bottom of the strut to the spindle with the torque wrench until it gives slightly.

4

Install the upper retaining nuts, and torque them to 25 ft-lb. Bolt down the bracket for the speed sensor. Put the brake caliper back on, and mount the front wheels. Lower the front end of the car and have a professional align it.

Replace the Rear Shocks in a Mustang

5

Remove the trim panels in the trunk to gain access to the shocks.

6

Ratchet off the upper retaining nut and the bolt connecting the shock absorber to the shock tower. Pull the shock out through the hole in the trunk.

7

Extend and depress the new shock absorber fully a few times. Position it through the hole in the trunk, and torque the bolt connecting it to the shock tower to 57 ft-lb. In the SVT Cobra model, torque it to 98 ft-lb. Tighten the upper mounting nut to 25 ft-lb with the torque wrench.

8

Put the trim panels back in the trunk as they were initially.