how hard is putting in new shocks

[84pininfarinablack]

Wondering if i should do shocks myself.. Never have. Directions look easy but that bolt under the master cylinder looks like quite a reach. Im not sure i have a 2 foot extension on my socket set.. lol ill have to get down there somehow i suppose.
is this job good for a rookie ?

[spiderrey]

Its a good job for you. Not difficult. Go for it.

[ITA124]

Im not sure i have a 2 foot extension on my socket set
is this job good for a rookie ?

This is probably one of the easier jobs you'll have to tackle on your Fiat. Not too sure what the 2ft extension is for. The fronts require 2 off 17mm spanners and a 1/4" spanner to hold the top. The rears pretty much the same, but use a jack under the chassis to unseat the springs.

[Foster48x]

Pretty easy job.
Rick

(Edit)

[ITA124]

use a good set of spring compressors

http://www.fiatspider.com/f08/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=5797

You don't need spring compressors to change the shocks. They slide through the middle of the coil and out through the lower control arm. For the rears, jack up the chassis and the springs fall out.

[Foster48x]

My bad For some reason I read springs instead of shocks.

[ITA124]

My bad For some reason I read springs instead of shocks.

Oh, springs are a different matter. Foster48x posted a link. There are a couple of types of spring compressors. I've built a custom one. Just look at the images to get the idea

http://fiatspider.com/f08/viewtopic.php ... 7&start=15

[mbouse]

shocks are a good ego boosting project. builds your confidence in your abilities... goferit

[84pininfarinablack]

thanks guys i will... but whats a spanner ? lol

[mbouse]

consider the source !! a spanner is a king's english term for wrench...usually adjustable.

[ITA124]

a spanner is a king's english term for wrench...usually adjustable.

I’m probably going to be scorned by my fellow subjects of the Commonwealth and I suppose your Northern cousins call these tools by the same as you for ease of proximity, but below is our naming convention for wrenches and spanners.

If I get it wrong, then Mother England will have to ship my convict arse (fanny in the U.S.) to Australia, but then I’m already here. Their mistake, beautiful place.

p.s. You guys need to Google our definition of fanny. It cracks me up

[mbouse]

so, for your American english lesson... we commonly call those (from left to right):
pipe wrench
combination wrench
crescent wrench

and, as you can tell by the tangent this thread has gotten to... we don't commonly use the word spanner when referring to tools.

yeah... we're not going to that google reply...

[launieg]

For the record, in Canada we do not use the term spanner. We follow our American cousins (and even Mike) in that respect (although not in all). However... the English car guys up here have a tendency to start using English terms, probably because they read the English car mags and of course the English manuals...i.e. spanner, bonnet, bodge... (Oh yeah, I even like to read those mags.) Or maybe it's just part of the English car scene.

To keep this thread on topic: Shocks

[mbouse]

see how they treat me? i'd be upset if i didn't resemble that remark!