Aftermarket Struts Ok?
 

For my 2003 Civic LX at 162k miles, the dealer completed a couple of recalls and did a safety inspection. The technician reported that the struts are leaking. I will take a look soon myself. I see that leaking struts and replacement of same is common for this generation. I am a middle aged woman who does not drive this car hard. If the OEM ones are so short lived, I see no reason to pay some $270 each from an online OEM dealer. Anyone see a problem buying a complete aftermarket strut from say eBay?

For example: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Strut-Spring...fd9094&vxp=mtr

Re: Aftermarket Struts Ok?
 

162k is not short lived.

Get KYB struts, they are OEM brand and cheaper.

Re: Aftermarket Struts Ok?
 

I had a 1985 4 door Civic I bought new. Around 100K, it had a little oil film in the dust. State inspector put a reject sticker on it. After inspecting it and bouncing the car (it stopped bouncing in one bounce) I simply wiped it off. Of course, I had to check it every year before inspection. Probably wiped it off many times after that but never did I see a real leak. Struts were still fine when car left.

To me, a real leak is a drip. However, I started from scratch and knew the strut had not leaked out and inspect it carefully.

Not sure how you know if a KYB is OEM. My only experience with shocks is aftermarket was junk. Never replaced a strut.

Rebuilt my lever shocks on my truck but the are 69 years old.

Re: Aftermarket Struts Ok?
 

My OEM shocks say KYB on them :)

Re: Aftermarket Struts Ok?
 

Search this forum & you will see a very similar discussion on struts. Here is a link to one: https://www.civicforums.com/forums/182-7th-generation-civic/364699-fcs-suspension-02-civic-lx.html
The nature of the auto service industry is to sell you stuff. How much you need the things offered is subjective and the buyer always needs to beware.

Based on your car's mileage I'm willing to assume that you'd benefit from new struts. But if yiu have original struts, what about compliance bushings and swaybar end links? If original, its almost certainly time for those too. I recently did all of those on my 01 with 165k miles. Made a big difference in restoring suspension performance.

Back to struts, you could buy KYB quick struts from Amazon or ebay and have them installed an an alignment performed at a reputable shop for a lot less than dealer prices.

Re: Aftermarket Struts Ok?
 

FWIW, I've seen the folks on the Corolla forums (my sons car) say that KYB is the oem supplier for Toyotas too. We did his front struts with KYB quick struts and they have been great so far.

Re: Aftermarket Struts Ok?
 

Don't buy Gabriel from autozone. They lasted only two years on my car. they are life time warranty but it's a hassle replacing them.

Re: Aftermarket Struts Ok?
 

Thank you for your prompt and thorough advice, GolNat, RipSaw, bsmiley and emich. I am indeed wondering if what "leaking" the dealership tech reported on the struts is merely a bit of 'oil film' (like RipSaw said) that is not worth worrying about. Read: As suggested, the Dealer wants to sell service and parts. The service advisor was pretty decent after I mentioned to him that I had been working on my Hondas for years and would get a wheel off to inspect the brake pads (another recommendation for replacement) soon. At this point the service advisor advised going aftermarket struts, too. I'll get the front wheels off sometime in the next couple of months and take a look. A bounce test on each bumper corner did not indicate to me anything serious. Though my standards for ride quality are pretty low. It's a Civic, getting one, maybe two buzillion miles per gallon. I did not buy it for ride quality. Have a nice weekend all. :)

Re: Aftermarket Struts Ok?
 

Click this PDF link (Honda Service News), read Hondas info on page 4:

http://www.urvi.net/forumfiles/SN/A070200.pdf


Title is 'Oil Film At Top Of Damper Working Chamber Is OK'

A light film of oil around the top of the working chamber of a shock or strut is normal and not necessarily cause for replacement. HOWEVER, if it has leaked enough to become weak or soft (excessive bounce), or has covered the entire bottom half of the strut in dirt (dirt clings and collects in the oil film) then it's probably bad. See the pictures in the link above.


HTH

Re: Aftermarket Struts Ok?
 

ezone (HTH), this is too sweet a link. I love it when a problem is nailed, done, Q.E.D. I still have not got under the car, but I was under the car in May, changing the oil and oil filter, and I noticed nothing. Nor have I seen dripping or oily stains where I park.

I asked the service advisor at the dealer specifically if there was dripping. It's been a long time since my community college suspension course and the brief period in the mid-2000s when I did some major suspension work, including changing out the struts. The service advisor said there was no dripping but something like mere oil-iness without dripping still warranted replacement. I know I asked about the dripping, because after his response, I remember thinking he must have taken me as ignorant for asking about dripping.

I'd say the service advisor, his tech, and the dealer are just about busted, hoisted by their own manufacturer's "Service News" petard. Bravo and thank you, ezone (HTH). I will try to remember to post an update following my own inspection.

Re: Aftermarket Struts Ok?
 

HTH stands for 'Hope That Helps', and apparently it did.

YW

Re: Aftermarket Struts Ok?
 

I took off the front wheels a little while ago. I see what ezone's Honda Service News link shows: A little film in the top area but no apparent leaking down below. Nice try, dealership. The front brake pads though are down to about 2 mm, so they got those right. I just ordered an OEM set of brake pads from eBay.

Re: Aftermarket Struts Ok?
 

Just don't buy Gabriel from Autozone. They last 2-3 years.

Re: Aftermarket Struts Ok?
 

Shocks...KYB might be OEM so they can get car out the door. As for lasting. ..years ago, I installed a set of KYB in my sister's BMW. It lasted a little over a year. When I removed them, one can push and pull them at will.
Ive switch to Bilsteins on all of my cars when I needed to. One of my Civic has a set that has 120k on them and they still were new. Only thing is you will pay more. ...so it depends on how long you want to keep your car vs the additional cost. This is truly a case of you get what you pay for.

Re: Aftermarket Struts Ok?
 

^ must of gotten a bad one. My OEM shocks had over 100k on them and they were fine. Put coilovers on and they were sitting in basement.

Bilsteins are nice but if you don't want a performance upgrade then no reason to spend the extra bucks.

Re: Aftermarket Struts Ok?
 

I bought some ebay aftermarket struts for $50x4 (front and rear pairs) each, without coilovers and without mounts for my 2001 Honda Civic EX. When I installed them, I probably had about 165,000 miles back in early 2013.

I recently when to the mechanic and he said my struts were busted. I can hear them leak too. My car is now at 214,000. I suspect the struts gave out sometime a year an a half ago at around 195,000, maybe even sooner. (I started a new job about half a year ago that required me to drive 40 miles each way, which explains the big hike in milage over the past year.)

Anyways, I just bought a new strut assembly today on ebay again for less than $250. I suspect they will last another 3 years or 50,000 miles whichever comes first. That is fine with me, by that time I plan on buying the 2020 Honda Civic EX-L.

If you plan on having a car for more than 10 years, do not get ebay aftermarket parts. Otherwise go for it. The whole assembly is simple to install.

Re: Aftermarket Struts Ok?
 

what are the best struts for 2001 civic lx