VSLOATHE

Hey all.

I bought a 98 Civic EX from a good friend about a year ago now, and I knew he dumped a bunch of money into it before I got it. When I got it, he had the coilovers (they're Tokico, but I don't know anything more than that) set to pretty much the lowest I would want them, hardly any spring tension at all. Now, I notice that the springs have sagged in a year, and it's pretty much riding on the suspension stops.

So, I need to adjust the ride height. The problem that I am having is that the pipe adjusters (little platforms that screw up and down the tubes, sorry I'm a n00b) are "frozen", I can't get them to move. Granted, I don't have the correct type of wrench for it, but I am pretty sure I'm going to need some sort of lubricant agent, and I doubt WD-40 will cut it.

Suggestions?

PDiggityDogg

PB Blaster
There is a good chance that you will need to take the entire shock off to get them to turn.

CivicSiRacer

I forget what the Tokico coiloers look like. But I had to use spanner wrenches to get my Koni and GC coilovers to move. And just spray the heck out of them with WD-40 or PB Blaster. And let it sit for a hour or two.

Which way are you trying to adjust it too? Up or down?

VSLOATHE

I am trying to adjust them up, in order to raise the ride height so I get some spring tension and am not riding around on the stops(very bumpy).

Rotor_head

I find "Tri-Flow" w/teflon works better then WD-40. We use it all the time in aviation.

VSLOATHE

ok little update:

Jacked it up yesterday after shooting it a few times with PB Blaster (I shot it as well as I could, drove home, I figured the pressure on the part and the heat of the shock going up and down would help to work it in there). The problem is that I did it in my parents' garage (I don't have one ), and all my dad had was a hydraulic bottle jack, so needless to say I could only jack up one wheel at a time, and I didn't feel like I could really try to torque it much, since I was afraid of knocking the car off the jack. I'm going to go buy a big jack (big lever action type they use in shops, not sure of the name) so that I can jack it up one whole end at a time, and I also think I'm going to buy a set of spanner wrenches (my friend said he's got like 4 sets of the cheapy little ones that come with them, but I've already broken one set of those). So anyway, yeah I couldn't get them unstuck yesterday, but I didn't try too long or hard, since I didn't quite have the right tools for the job.

Thanks for all the suggestions, I have some friends from out of town this weekend, but I think I can get that stuff next weekend and give it another shot.

PDiggityDogg

Try vice grips instead
Be smart and safe - jack the car up and put it on stands. Dont leave the car raised up on just a jack...

CivicSiRacer

You also might have to compress the spring in order to raise it. I know I had to with my Skunk2s.

diamondsleeper

Yes compressing the spring is the way to go. The pressure from the spring on the nut is going to make it just that much more difficult to move the nut. The right tools for the job are a must. Kroil is anonther great product to free frozen threads. You must use spanner wrenches or somthing that puts load equally around the nut or its not going to want to move. Last resort is a propane torch but you have to be real careful to not light the car on fire. Clean all the lubricant off before you attempt this and have a fire extinguisher handy. Like someone else said though, you might end up having to remove the strut and free the threads on a work bench. :bandito:

VSLOATHE

No, that's the thing: When the car is jacked up, the spring makes no contact with either the top suspension spring rest OR the coilover platform(no spring tension). I am trying to jack it up a few inches because I'm literally riding around on the stops: I'm riding on the shocks the entire time, it looks retarded, like I'm one of those 16 year old meatheads who just cut his springs. It wasn't me who made it this way, the previous owner slammed it, the springs have sagged and the coilover platforms have somehow slid down a little bit.