Strut and/or strut mounts???

Hello,

Here I am once again complaining about the rattling in my car.
I know for sure that the strut mounts need changing however some mechanics told me that if you just change the mounts, the problem might still persist so they recommend to change the strut as well.
If I ask them to check the 2 parts first and to confirm if yes or no the struts need change, they will say yes of course. One mechanic told me that it takes time to get to the strut so I will be better off using that labor for changing the struts.
1) Is that true or not?
2)Is there a way I can tell if this is just caused by the mounts? In other terms would having bad struts show other signs other then the rattling?


If there is no way to know, I will go by what the experts on this forum tell me. I just still have not found a mechanic that I can trust.

Thanks in advance for the help,
Leila

First of all it would help to know the mileage of the car. If you are nearing 100,000 miles I would change out everything with Monroe Quick Struts. They are a 1 piece strut, spring, strut mount assembly and all the rubber boots and insulators. I used them on the rear of my 98 Camry to solve a rattling problem. It's kind of a shotgun approach to the rattling problem, but if you are nearing 100,000 miles, all the parts in the strut assembly have considerable wear anyway. It will also be a bit less labor, as the tech does not have to disassemble anything. He just removes the old strut assemblies and bolts in the new strut assemblies. Expect to pay about $200 a side for the strut assemblies, plus labor. You will also need an alignment after replacing the front struts or any of the parts in the assembly. I'm not affiliated with Monroe; just a satisfied user. YMMV.

Mike

Thanks Mike for your fast answer.
Well, we only have 61K on the car. It's a 99 camry.
We bought it in 2002 when it had 19k on it. We drive carefully ( avoid pot holes...). Maybe the previous owner was rough on it....
I got a quote today from Sears 680$ (for 2 struts + 2 strut mounts+ labor and alignment). If I want to change the mounts only, it would cost 415$.
So far this is the best deal but they won't let me provide the parts...

Thanks,
Leila

Thanks Mike for your fast answer.
Well, we only have 61K on the car. It's a 99 camry.
We bought it in 2002 when it had 19k on it. We drive carefully ( avoid pot holes...). Maybe the previous owner was rough on it....
I got a quote today from Sears 680$ (for 2 struts + 2 strut mounts+ labor and alignment). If I want to change the mounts only, it would cost 415$.
So far this is the best deal but they won't let me provide the parts...

Thanks,
Leila


Shop around. Try a couple of independent shops. I would also try the local Pep Boys, if you have them in your area. They had the best price for the rear strut assemblies in my area. (Parts Only). They can also install the strut assemblies and do the alignment. This is a straight forward job. It's not that complicated.

Mike

Thanks for the information. I checked online and there is a pep boys at 9 miles from my house. Hope that they will be cheaper then the other places I went to.

Thanks for the information. I checked online and there is a pep boys at 9 miles from my house. Hope that they will be cheaper then the other places I went to.
Here you can read our discussion about Pep Boys!
http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=638324&highlight=pEP+BOYS
I would never go near them for repairs!!!

Sam

Somick,

Thank you for bringing to my attention Pep Boys' problems.
I searched on the Better Bureau's Web Site http://www.search.bbb.org.
It seems like our local Pep Boys has a good record.
I said to myself since it's not a very difficult job, I am going to take the chance and get the job done there.
It turns out that they use the same parts as Sears does but there is a big difference in the price. It went from 680$ to 550$.( struts+ mounts + labor+ alignment).

Mike,

You were right, they use Monroe Struts and they offered a great deal.
Thanks a lot. I am getting this day in the next 10 days.

Once again, I am very happy with the help I received on this forum.
You were all very helpful.


Sincerely,
Leila