oldracer

Well the 2007 model I have has 133,000+ miles so I figured it was time to do some parts replacement since the front end was starting to feel squishy and a little wobbly in the steering department. I had been price checking various suppliers and saw that Rockauto.com had the Monroe Quick Struts for $103 or so which is $30 to $40 less than anyone else. So I bought one of each and also replacement outer ball joints and a set of front Akebono ceramic pads. We have used them on my wife's 2003 Caddy and they work well.

I was surprised the parts all arrived in 2 days and it took a couple hours to replace everything. The quick struts were really easy to do, much better than having to use a spring compressor! I did a rough alignment and drove a few miles and went over some bumpy sections of road to settle things and then got a real alignment completed. The front end feels way better, no sloppy steering, no saggy springs and the money was well worth it.

Oldblue

Nice but before the alignment did you inspect the LCA rear bushing?

oldracer

I asked my buddy at the Porsche/BMW shop that has always done my alignments to check the control arm bushings, sway bar bushings and let me know if they were falling apart or had gotten hard and he said they looked great and would last a good long time.

Oldblue

Perfect I know sometimes these are forgotten

donbrew

Okay, I give up! What is an "outer ball joint"?

If they are actually "outer tie rod ends", why replace them because of mileage, they rarely wear out.

If I was replacing things based on age the LCA assemblies would top my list. They also cause: "brake judder", wobbly front end, loose front end, bad camber, bad toe & etc.

You would be shocked at what your LCA bushings look like after 130,000 miles, you can't see the cracking until you pull them off. I thought mine were fine on visual inspection and prodding with a bar, then I noticed the RF wheel hanging with an obvious Camber while rotating my tires. It was cracked all the way through in one spot and the other side was showing signs.

Keep a close eye on your tire wear! That RF went fast with the camber out. And then the inside of both tires wore really fast after replacing the LCAs, because I had it aligned a while ago and the guy didn't notice the bad parts, so now the toe was way off. Thankfully, the tires were already nearly at the Guarantee mileage (4K over now) and I have a new set in the garage.

DavidLadewig

What is the Monroe part number. I couldn't figure it out on the rock website. Thanks.

843de

For your '07 HHR you'll need 1 Monroe PN 172179L for the left side, and 1 PN 172179R for the right side, I've used the Quick-Struts and it was a breeze.

One thing to look out for, back when the Quick-Struts were introduced for the HHR, Monroe used the incorrect springs on the initial run.

So check the boxes for an asterisk"*" stamped after the part number indicating a corrected assembly, or ask when the vendor got their order in stock.

Monroe corrected the spring issue in late 2012, so there may still be boxes with the asterisk on the shelves, Quick-Struts made post January 2013 have the correct springs.

Also work safely, use a proper floor jack, jack stands, and wear safety glasses.

oldracer

Opps, I meant tie rod ends........I could not move them at all with the wrench on the their flats which has told me over the years they have had the grease inside turn to cement!

whopper

x2 on the good comments on the Monroe Quick-struts. Mine have been in service for about a year now - and so far so good. Easy job to swap them out!!! I think they should rename them Quick & Easy-Struts.

donbrew

I always thought that the test for tie rod ends and ball joints was the check if there was any movement other than around the ball & socket. You seem to be describing a "good" ball & socket joint. I don't really care, so don't take it any as a bad comment.

Both of these LCA bushings looked good on the car. The one on top is actually "normalish".