Quote:
Originally Posted by bleicht
This was a pain but it is possible and required two spring compressors.
I bought the "Schwaben" copy that's on Amazon. It's quite heavy and cost $100; it seems like it has potential but it's a cheaply made Chinese tool which affected how well it works. I have no idea if the Schwaben is any different but it looks exactly the same.
My car is an E90 with Sport Suspension and is completely stock. I used the two silver plates on the Schwaben initially and the spring flew off in my garage a couple times. I then had to add the "OEM" Autozone rental spring compressor to get the spring off the old strut.
The key to getting the spring back on the new strut is to make sure the top plate is on the top spring cup and to put one of the Autozone compressor's hooks underneat the strut's bottom spring seat. This will pull the strut body up and allow the threaded part of the shaft to come up through the strut mount far enough to get a thread on. I then used a 21mm strut socket (reused the stock nuts because the new Bilsten struts were a smaller/different size) to tighten it all up.
The first strut took a long time and a trip to Autozone to get a second tool to finish. Once I had this figured out, the second strut only took ~10 min.
I hope this helps someone...be careful!
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I also have that same tool from Amazon and sport springs. You do not need to use a second pair of compressors. The tool will compress the springs to lift them off the perch on its own. If you follow the Bav Auto strut compression video then it will work as it should. Mine did not slip on four different struts: one pair of sports, one pair of non-sports.
It is advisable to pick up some Grade 10 hold-down bolts, as the ones that come with the tool are very soft. Both of your spring seats are at high angles. That might be the issue for you if you're using the bolts it came with.
If you're still experiencing issues with it then I'd just send it back for a refund or a new one.