Can I replace my rear shocks myself? I recently noticed my shocks mounts are worn down and rather than just replacing the mounts I thought I would go ahead and replace the shocks. Car has 76,000 miles and is probably do to have shocks replaced. Any help advice would be greatly appreciated. I did buy two CD’s JTIS and another but neither shows the XJS?
Thanks in advance

 

It obviously depends on your skill level. However the shocks(dampers) are coil overs. There are 4 in the rear. Put the car on jack stands and remove, you will want to support the swing arm with slight pressure to make removing the bolts easier. The hard part is removing and installing the springs on the new shocks. If you do not have tools to remove the springs safely bring them to a shop and pay them to swap the springs for you. I am not sure but maybe some auto parts stores will do this for you too. You can buy the tools to do this but it is probably best to pay someone else unless you plan to this often. Whatever you do buy good quality shocks.

 

Greg- Thanks for the advice. Can you recommend shocks? I found replacing the front shocks was much easier that I thought, as I didn't have to remove the springs. Since I am getting more adventurous and becoming more confident doing my own car repairs, I think I will invest in purchasing a spring compressor, being that they are on $50 and I have 4 cars to upkeep! Thanks again much appricated.

 

I would personally go with Bilsteins. I plan to replace mine next season with Bilsteins. Koni is a good alternative. Boge or Sachs are good but a little less robust and are softer. Monroe or Gabriel in my opinion are not worth the cheap price. They will leak or lose there ability to dampen very quickly. Yes they are lifetime warranty but who wants to do the work over and over. I want to do them this year but I am going to do a new exhaust and some other more urgent items. My suspension is slated for an overhaul and most likely will be next year.

 

best advice i can give you is that monroe and especially gabriel are the WORST shocks in the world. take my advice, i used to sell them. do yourself a huge favor and get bilsteins, or just replace the mounts and leave the OEM shocks.

 

I would go bilstein here is a link to my spring compressor. I used 2 disc rotors. You can NOT use regular spring compressors as the spring diameter is too small. Be careful there is a lot of tension on those springs they will kill you if they release.

https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/a...d-dscn0244-jpg

 

Now, I like that!!