Replacing the suspension on the AW11 is not too difficult a job. You don’t need any out of the ordinary tools except for a set of coil spring compressors, and these can be picked up for less than £20 from Halfords or any good motor factors. You need to be fairly confident with working on your car, and therefore it is not recommended for the novice mechanic. You need to know basics such as bleeding the brakes, as this job involves removing the brake lines to all four calipers.

I changed my suspension for a combination supplied by Fensport (01354 696968).

I had KYB shocks (£46.50 each +vat) and 30mm lowered & 20% uprated springs (£109+ vat for set of four).

What you will need however, is either a good, strong, sturdy vice and a LARGE Stilson wrench. Alternatively, you can call in the help (as I did) of a friendly local garage who have those tools. (Thanks to the guys at Wootton Garage!)

The procedure is as follows:

Decide which end you’re going to tackle first. It makes no difference which you choose as the procedure is exactly the same. Loosen, but don’t remove the wheel nuts and jack up the car with a trolley jack and support it securely on both sides with axle stands. Remove the wheels.

Remove the metal clip that secures the brake pipe union to the suspension strut. This is located under the bracket that is welded to the strut. It comes out with a pair of pliers quite easily.

Put a container under the brake caliper to catch the brake fluid. Remove the brake pipe from the caliper, and pull it up through the bracket on the strut. Either clamp the hose with a set of mole grips or insert a suitable size piece of rubber hose into the banjo fitting to stop the loss of more brake fluid.

Remove one end of the stabilizer link bar. It doesn’t matter which end, one is bound to be siezed! If your MR is an ’87 or newer, then you’ll be fortunate enough to have a hex hole in the end of the balljoint so you can hold it still while you undo the nut with a spanner.

Locate the two large bolts that hold the strut to the hub assembly (these are 17mm A/F on the front suspension, and 19mm A/F on the rear). You will see that the top of the two bolts has a camber adjustment cam sandwiched between the strut flanges and the hub body. This cam has a horizontal line cast into it. Mark this cam and either side of it with a dab of paint (I used Tipp-ex). Scribe a line across all the painted bits, as this will enable you to get the camber right on re-assembly. Remove these bolts – you will need to drown them in WD-40 and get some serious leverage. I managed with a 2ft. breaker bar. The hub assembly should now come away towards you. Free the hub assembly completely from the strut.

 

Undo the nuts on the strut top plate. At the rear there are 3, and one of them is not immediately accessible. Lift the engine cover, and remove the 3 cross head screws that hold the small body panels at either side, (RHS also has an earth wire attached) and remove them. All the nuts are now accessible. On the front there are 4 nuts, and post ’87 models have a strut brace which uses 2 of the 4 nuts holding the strut top plate. On these, be careful not to lose the washers under the strut brace. The strut should now be totally free from the car.

Using a set of spring compressors, compress the spring so that it is loose, and clamp the top plate in the vice. Undo the top nut of the shock absorber. This is a Nylock type nut and should not be re-used. The replacement shock absorbers should come with a replacement nut. Once this nut is free, remove the top plate and put it to one side. On the rear, there is a small spacer under the nut. Don’t lose it! Slide off the spring, and remove the compressors. Remove the rubber sleeve that sits at the top of the shock.

  

Liberally soak the large collet nut through which the piston joins the body of the strut. Clamp the strut extremely tightly in the vice, being careful to avoid crushing it or damaging the stabiliser link, if it is still attached. Using a large set of Stilson or other suitable wrench, remove the collet nut (sounds easy but believe me it isn’t). Once the nut is ‘cracked’ it should come out fairly easily. Don’t worry about the nut getting gnarled by the wrench, as a new one should be supplied with the replacement shocks.

 

That’s it! The rest is just putting it all back together again. Re-assemble the strut using the uprated coil springs. Make sure you use the supplied Nylock nut. You may well find, as I did, that the springs need very little, if any, compression. Once the strut is re-assembled it needs to be re-fitted to the car, which is literally the reverse of removal. When you come to put back the two large bolts that hold the strut to the hub assembly, ensure you line up your previously scribed marks. This will enable you to get the camber roughly right, but once you have finished the job completely, it is advisable to take your car to an alignment shop to get it checked. If it is not right, the handling may be affected, and you may experience abnormal tyre wear. Once the strut is back on and everything is tightened, bleed the brakes. The best way to do this is with one of the commercially available kits as it enables it to be done with one person.

Then you’ve only got another three more corners to do!

It’s a long job – easily a day’s work, more if you experience problems. The only trouble I had was removing the large collet nut, but like anything, having access to the right tools is always helpful.

                                                                             Rear Strut removed                              

The result – total transformation! The handling is superb, and the braking is also much improved. There is little discernible dive of the front end under heavy braking, and the overall ride is hardly affected. It is a slightly harder ride over standard, but not teeth-chattering by any means.

A worthwhile upgrade, but not something a novice could carry out. If you’ve got experience working on cars, and are comfortable and confident carrying out major jobs then you should have no trouble.