Front Lower Strut Bolt Replacement

[Kevin Varnes]

I have searched around, but haven't found the answer I am looking for although I have found many people with the same problem. I am working on a 2002 Explorer 2WD. I replaced the rear struts easy no problem. Moving on to the front struts. I started on the driver's side and what I feared might happen has. The front lower strut mount bolt is frozen in the bushing. Having lived in Michigan I've dealt with this before on other cars and it usually involves cutting the bolt. On my Thunderbirds there is (or was) a readily available replacement lower bolt available through the aftermarket. I seem to recall having to do some searching to find it since they call it something goofy. Does anyone know if such a creature exists for the Explorer? I'm not a big fan of just using a hardware store bolt especially since this is a friend's vehicle. I'd also prefer not to have to buy it from $Ford$ if I don't have to. Any help is appreciated.

 

[FordFool2]

Kevin, I had to buy a new Ford strut bolt and it ran me only $12 from Tousley which seemed fair. Here are couple links on the issue you are battling.

http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=377822&highlight=strut

http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=368322&highlight=strut

 

[Kevin Varnes]

Gotcha. $12 doesn't seem too unreasonable. I was looking them up last night (probably through one of your responses) and I was seeing prices of $25-$27 which just seemed ridiculous. In the meantime I'll have to dig through my junk out in the garage to see what they called that bolt for my Thunderbirds. If I find an aftermarket solution I'll post it up. Usually Dorman is pretty good at that kind of stuff, but a search of their website yielded nothing.

 

[Kevin Varnes]

Monroe calls them "Strut Accessory Kits" which is why I always have a hard time finding them: http://www.monroe.com/assets/downloads/english/08_AK_Kits.pdf

Unfortunately no listing for the Explorer on here. Looks like it's off to the dealer on Monday.

 

[Number4]

I believe it's 10.9 bolt. Fairly heavy duty. Torque is listed at 258 lbs. If anyone you like is driving it, I'd buy the bolt from the dealer. I've found that the "stealerships" have fairly decent pricing on these items. $26 is worth your peace of mind.

 

[Kevin Varnes]

I'm all about using the proper hardware and I did order some from a dealer, but $26 for a bolt is ridiculous. I found some online for $11 and change from Tousley as FordFool recommended.