2004 Explorer front springs

[jmt21022]

My wife has an '04 Explorer that my step-son drives. Close to 200k miles. He found a chunk of one of the front coil springs in the driveway the other day. Are these hard to replace? The vehicle has a lot of rust and probably not worth putting a ton of money into but it runs great, new tires, no engine or trans issues.

 

[imp]

My wife has an '04 Explorer that my step-son drives. Close to 200k miles. He found a chunk of one of the front coil springs in the driveway the other day. Are these hard to replace? The vehicle has a lot of rust and probably not worth putting a ton of money into but it runs great, new tires, no engine or trans issues.

@jmt21022
No, not hard at all. However, beware that a shop giving an estimate is likely to tell you you must replace both sides; given the age and miles, I'd replace the bad one and be on my way. imp

 

[jmt21022]

Is there a good place to purchase the lower strut mount bolt and nut? It looks like Ford wants at least $50 for each bolt.

 

[TechGuru]

Is there a good place to purchase the lower strut mount bolt and nut? It looks like Ford wants at least $50 for each bolt.

What's wrong with the old bolt?

I'd get two cheap quick-struts for the front from RockAuto.

 

[ROBinGa]

Is there a good place to purchase the lower strut mount bolt and nut? It looks like Ford wants at least $50 for each bolt.

I suspect you have experienced the lower strut bolt seizing to the strut and having to cut yours off to remove. Been there and done that. My drivers side was fused solidly and had to cut it off to remove strut. I bought a Ford bolt and reused my nut with the “flag” attached to it. The bolt was for a Mustang that the desk guy at dealer parts counter cross referenced. It was still like $15-20 bucks if I recall but those are big beefy grade of metal. The Mustang one was about 1/4 inch shorter but still had a few threads sticking out of the nut after torqued it down. If that’s why you are asking I think there were a few old forums about those bolts.

 

[ROBinGa]

Is there a good place to purchase the lower strut mount bolt and nut? It looks like Ford wants at least $50 for each bolt.

Do a search here on the forum using - Front Strut Bolt - as the search words and you will find plenty giving you the Ford part numbers you are after