Superb II Rear Shock Removal

[Othen]

The right side rear shock on my 2013 Superb diesel estate has a slight weep, I've bought a pair of replacements and had a look at changing them today.

 

It all looks straightforward, apart from the 21mm bolt that secures the bottom and faces straight inwards to the coil spring. There doesn't seem to be a way of attaching a socket spanner (which I would prefer) apart from removing the coil spring (which I could do, but would prefer to avoid if I can). Would it be possible (and safe) to use a 21mm ring (combination) spanner, which might just have enough clearance? If so, how could the nut be torqued up on reassembly?

 

I'm hoping someone has done this and come up with a simple solution for what looks like an otherwise simple job.

 

I've attached a photo which explains the problem.

[chimaera]

I did this job recently and the only remotely sane way to do it was to remove the springs to gain access. I initially started out with a 21 mm ring spanner, which got the bolt undone, but the spring got in the way of removing it cleanly, and when I did get it out, getting it back in was almost impossible. The angles and forces in play also made it challenging to screw it back in without cross threading. In the end I resorted to removing the springs to get clear access and it was plain sailing from there.

 

The easiest way to remove the springs is to undo the pinch bolt that attaches the wishbone to the hub carrier and drop the wishbone down: the spring falls out easily. For safety it's a good idea to use the trolley jack to support the wishbone while you knock out the pinch bolt, it'll give you some control over it as it drops down. Be careful doing the passenger side if you have xenon headlights as it's easy to pop the ride height sensor linkage apart. Pop off the sensor droplink before you let the wishbone down.

 

The wishbone pinch bolt uses a deformable locknut and the service manual recommends replacing the nut and bolt after removal, though you could probably get away with reusing them once. P/N's for the nut and bolt are N106 286 02 & N101 064 02. The bolts securing the shock to the top of the wheelarch are torque-to-yield (stretch) bolts and must be replaced after removal. P/N for these is N906 484 02. A dealer can get these overnight for you.

 

One problem I ran into with changing the shocks was getting the nut on the end of the rod off so I could swap the top mount over to the new one. If you don't have the special socket for this it may be difficult to undo. One of mine was so stiff I ended up grinding the sides of the rod flat so I could clamp it in a bench vice. The OE top nuts are 16 mm, and replacements are often 17 mm.

[Othen]

18 minutes ago, chimaera said:

I did this job recently and the only remotely sane way to do it was to remove the springs to gain access. I initially started out with a 21 mm ring spanner, which got the bolt undone, but the spring got in the way of removing it cleanly, and when I did get it out, getting it back in was almost impossible. The angles and forces in play also made it challenging to screw it back in without cross threading. In the end I resorted to removing the springs to get clear access and it was plain sailing from there.

 

The easiest way to remove the springs is to undo the pinch bolt that attaches the wishbone to the hub carrier and drop the wishbone down: the spring falls out easily. For safety it's a good idea to use the trolley jack to support the wishbone while you knock out the pinch bolt, it'll give you some control over it as it drops down. Be careful doing the passenger side if you have xenon headlights as it's easy to pop the ride height sensor linkage apart. Pop off the sensor droplink before you let the wishbone down.

 

The wishbone pinch bolt uses a deformable locknut and the service manual recommends replacing the nut and bolt after removal, though you could probably get away with reusing them once. P/N's for the nut and bolt are N106 286 02 & N101 064 02. The bolts securing the shock to the top of the wheelarch are torque-to-yield (stretch) bolts and must be replaced after removal. P/N for these is N906 484 02. A dealer can get these overnight for you.

 

One problem I ran into with changing the shocks was getting the nut on the end of the rod off so I could swap the top mount over to the new one. If you don't have the special socket for this it may be difficult to undo. One of mine was so stiff I ended up grinding the sides of the rod flat so I could clamp it in a bench vice. The OE top nuts are 16 mm, and replacements are often 17 mm.

Many thanks, I'd just been having a good look at the job and had more or less come to the conclusion that the springs would have to come out (plus I couldn't find a 21mm ring anywhere, and certainly didn't want to risk a 21mm open ender).

 

Thank you for the part numbers as well, I had not realised about the stretch bolts at the top so I'll have to order some before I come back to this job. For today I'll give it a clean up and put everything back together whilst I wait for the bolts to arrive. This is frustrating, with a tiny change to the design this could have been a 15 minute job!

 

Many thanks again,

 

Alan

[DEL80Y]

Might as well get new springs for it as well while your in there 😎
They are notoriously weak 

[Othen]

4 hours ago, chimaera said:

I did this job recently and the only remotely sane way to do it was to remove the springs to gain access. I initially started out with a 21 mm ring spanner, which got the bolt undone, but the spring got in the way of removing it cleanly, and when I did get it out, getting it back in was almost impossible. The angles and forces in play also made it challenging to screw it back in without cross threading. In the end I resorted to removing the springs to get clear access and it was plain sailing from there.

 

The easiest way to remove the springs is to undo the pinch bolt that attaches the wishbone to the hub carrier and drop the wishbone down: the spring falls out easily. For safety it's a good idea to use the trolley jack to support the wishbone while you knock out the pinch bolt, it'll give you some control over it as it drops down. Be careful doing the passenger side if you have xenon headlights as it's easy to pop the ride height sensor linkage apart. Pop off the sensor droplink before you let the wishbone down.

 

The wishbone pinch bolt uses a deformable locknut and the service manual recommends replacing the nut and bolt after removal, though you could probably get away with reusing them once. P/N's for the nut and bolt are N106 286 02 & N101 064 02. The bolts securing the shock to the top of the wheelarch are torque-to-yield (stretch) bolts and must be replaced after removal. P/N for these is N906 484 02. A dealer can get these overnight for you.

 

One problem I ran into with changing the shocks was getting the nut on the end of the rod off so I could swap the top mount over to the new one. If you don't have the special socket for this it may be difficult to undo. One of mine was so stiff I ended up grinding the sides of the rod flat so I could clamp it in a bench vice. The OE top nuts are 16 mm, and replacements are often 17 mm.

... I wonder, you don't happen to have the torque settings for all the bolts to hand?

Many thanks for your help,

Alan

[chimaera]

2 hours ago, Othen said:

... I wonder, you don't happen to have the torque settings for all the bolts to hand?

Many thanks for your help,

Alan

4 & 5 are the ones for the shock. I don't have the pinch bolt one on the phone but it's on the laptop - I'll post it later.

[chimaera]

Tightening torque for the pinch bolt is 90 Nm + 90 deg. All bolts on bushings must be tightened in the unladen position i.e. the position the suspension would be in when the vehicle is sitting on the ground. Easiest way to do this is use the jack to raise the hub until the centre of the hub is about 390 mm from the top of the wheelarch. Position the jack as far out on the wishbone as possible to do this or you risk raising the vehicle off the axle stands: I usually use a block of wood on the jack so I can jack on the upright/hub carrier for this part.

[Othen]

41 minutes ago, chimaera said:

Tightening torque for the pinch bolt is 90 Nm + 90 deg. All bolts on bushings must be tightened in the unladen position i.e. the position the suspension would be in when the vehicle is sitting on the ground. Easiest way to do this is use the jack to raise the hub until the centre of the hub is about 390 mm from the top of the wheelarch. Position the jack as far out on the wishbone as possible to do this or you risk raising the vehicle off the axle stands: I usually use a block of wood on the jack so I can jack on the upright/hub carrier for this part.

Wonderful, many thanks Chimaera. The bolts should be in tomorrow's mail, so I'll get the job done then (as long as we don't get washed away by the rain).

Alan

[Othen]

Well, I have good news and bad news today.

 

The good news is the bolts arrived in the mail, I followed chimaera's advice (which worked perfectly) and everything came apart easily - the bad news is that the (online) motor factor had sent the wrong shock absorbers. Everything looked fine with the new parts until I checked the bottom bolt for size, and found it was too narrow to accommodate the 21mm bolt:

 

 

This is how it fits in the original:

 

... everything had to be re-assembled and the shock absorbers will have to be exchanged for the correct parts - so this will be a job for next week. Fortunately this is not an urgent task, it was just an advisory point on the car's recent MoT test, but it is still irritating to have wasted a couple of hours.

 

This job really shouldn't take long once I have the right parts. Once the wishbone is lowered and the spring dropped out, access is really easy. I used my motorcycle lift to lower the wishbone and realign the bolt afterwards:

 

This worked perfectly, and in addition allowed me to get the suspension to the right height for torquing up the bolts.

 

Alan.

 

PS. One learns something new every day: I have owned the car from new (6 years) and only today discovered by accident that if I hold down the 'open' button on the key fob it not only unlocks all the doors, but winds down all the windows as well... Wow!

[DEL80Y]

@Othen
At 6 years I would honestly change the springs as well.

Are you fitting both rear shocks?

And on the windows it works in reverse with the close button.
A great feature having dogs in the car😎

Edited 31 July, 2019 by DEL80Y

[Othen]

26 minutes ago, DEL80Y said:

@Othen
At 6 years I would honestly change the springs as well.

Are you fitting both rear shocks?

And on the windows it works in reverse with the close button.
A great feature having dogs in the car😎

Many thanks for that.

 

I discovered both functions of the remote fob today. I only found that the mirrors folded after a long press of the fob a few months ago, perhaps I should have read the book (but it still pristine in its case). 🙂

[Othen]

The replacement (Monroe) shock absorbers arrived yesterday, and I have the driver's side one fitted already this morn. As Chimaera predicted, this is an easy job once the spring is removed.

 

There were no particular pitfalls, just a few things of note which may help those doing this job themselves:

 

a. It is useful to have a stable jack to lower the wishbone under pressure (and replace it). I used my motorcycle lift, which was perfect in that it is broad and stable, and it lowers further than most car jacks.

b. A 16mm ring (not a combination spanner, it has to be the cranked type) is needed to remove the upper nut on the shock absorber. It took me some time to locate one in the garage. Chimaera was right, the replacement had a 17mm nut, so make sure you have a ring to fit as well.

 

The replacement Monroe shocks look to be well manufactured and were an absolute bargain at £46.92/pair delivered, which I think was remarkable, and the stretch bolts were £14 for two pairs - so the whole job has cost me 60 quid. I suppose the job might have cost me £300 to supply and fit at a garage, so I'm pleased with the outcome.

 

I gave the spring a clean up and a good looking at, but decided it was fine and so did not replace it.

 

Now, time for a cuppa and to get the left side done (should take an hour or less).

 

Many thanks to @chimaera

 

Alan

Edited 3 August, 2019 by Othen
Spelling.

[Othen]

... just one more thing: remember to disconnect the ride height sensor before lowering the wishbone the left side, it is a bit difficult to get to and needs two 10mm spanners (an open ended and a ratchet where the best solution due to the difficult access).

[Dom1982c]

I’ve had a go at doing the shocks today to replace the bump stops but the 21mm bolt will not budge. I might have to remove the springs like you suggest. Is the photo below the bolt you are referring to remove to remove the springs? Cheers Dom

[chimaera]

14 hours ago, Dom1982c said:

I’ve had a go at doing the shocks today to replace the bump stops but the 21mm bolt will not budge. I might have to remove the springs like you suggest. Is the photo below the bolt you are referring to remove to remove the springs? Cheers Dom

Yup, just make sure to support the wishbone while you remove the bolt, and if you have xenon headlights disconnect the ride height sensor from the wishbone.

[Dom1982c]

Anyone know the torque setting for the wish bone bolts? Cheers Dom ..... think they are pinch bolts so 90nm.... if I’m reading correctly 

Edited 13 January, 2020 by Dom1982c

[chimaera]

47 minutes ago, Dom1982c said:

Anyone know the torque setting for the wish bone bolts? Cheers Dom ..... think they are pinch bolts so 90nm.... if I’m reading correctly 

Posted earlier on this thread:

On 30/07/2019 at 10:57, chimaera said:

Tightening torque for the pinch bolt is 90 Nm + 90 deg. All bolts on bushings must be tightened in the unladen position i.e. the position the suspension would be in when the vehicle is sitting on the ground. Easiest way to do this is use the jack to raise the hub until the centre of the hub is about 390 mm from the top of the wheelarch. Position the jack as far out on the wishbone as possible to do this or you risk raising the vehicle off the axle stands: I usually use a block of wood on the jack so I can jack on the upright/hub carrier for this part.

 

[Dom1982c]

Got the shocks off however the bump stops GSF sold me are too small so had to fit the old ones back on and put it back together 😖. Skoda bump stop part number is: 3c 0511 395 b 

[Dom1982c]

All done, cheers for all the info guys 👍

[Gdcobra]

Did this job today so just like to say thanks to all contributors, helped a lot.

found it a bit difficult to get a socket onto the rearmost top mount bolt with the wheel arch liner in place (nearly rounded) first one off. Removed liner and much easier. For the sake of removing about 8 screws I’d highly recommend it.

[Othen]

On 31/07/2019 at 18:05, DEL80Y said:

@Othen
At 6 years I would honestly change the springs as well.

Are you fitting both rear shocks?

And on the windows it works in reverse with the close button.
A great feature having dogs in the car😎

Here we are 3 years on Delboy. The motor car has just failed the MoT with a broken spring (NSR). I've ordered a pair of new ones; having taken them off to fit the shock absorbers once that should be a trivial job at the weekend to get ready for the re-test.

Yours was good advice, but there again they have lasted another 3 years 🙂

Good fortune,

Alan

Edited 21 July, 2022 by Othen

[DEL80Y]

@Othen
i am amazed you got 3 years😁

[Othen]

9 hours ago, DEL80Y said:

@Othen
i am amazed you got 3 years😁

I’m quite pleased. The motor car has a pretty easy life though - it has only done 75,000 miles in a little under 9 years, I’ve owned it from new and have been the only driver. The new springs will be here in the morn, so I should have them swapped out tomorrow and booked in for the MoT re-test on Monday. I’ll get the wheel alignment checked and adjusted at the same time.

Alan

[Othen]

This is only slightly away from the original subject. The new springs arrived with the postie this morn.

 

The first one (OSR) took about 45 minutes to swap, but a fair portion of that was finding tools: 2x18mm sockets, 10mm ratchet, 10mm open end, a drift, rubber mallet, trolley jack, motorcycle lift, various pry bars and similar stuff. Just jack up the car, then put the motorcycle lift (or another jack) under the wishbone to take the strain and remove the pinch bolt where the wishbone meets the hub (2x18mm sockets).

The NSR only took 20 minutes, remember to unhitch this little chap (ride height sensor for the lights) with two 10mm spanners, otherwise you will end up buying another one after you lower the springs.

All in all an easy job for a Saturday morn. The MoT garage had quoted about £320 for the job, although to be fair that did include checking and adjusting the wheel alignment which will still have to be done at the re-test on Tuesday. Allowing £40 for the tracking, the springs were £42 delivered so just over an hour’s work has saved me about £230. Well worth it I think.

 

Alan

 

Edited 23 July, 2022 by Othen

[Othen]

… I nearly forgot to mention. Both springs were broken - at the bottom where they always fail:

 

 

I suppose because they both broke at about the same place the ride height wasn’t altered much from side to side.