Hello guys;

I’ve got a 1997 coupe, and my front suspension developed a squeak. I was sure that my front shock mounts were in terrible shape, so I decided it was time to change them out. While I was at it, I expanded the project to replace the entire front shock and spring assemblies, right down to the nuts and bolts. It all worked out very well, and I learned a lot. I also came to understand just what a worn shock mount looks like when its on the car. I took a lot of photos, so if you’re interested, here we go:

Let’s start by showing a brand new shock mount. Basically two metal plates, with mounting surfaces above and below, and a yellow rubberized or polymer “doughnut” in between.




Here’s what the mount looks like taken apart.




My original shock mounts looked liked this from the top. Squeak was definitely coming from this area. A bit off center, but not much to see here, and really no way to see just how worn the mounts are.




Here’s what the original shock mounts looked like from the wheel well. Notice that the two metal plates of the shock mount are touching (yep, there’s my squeak). The polymer material that was originally between these two plates had been reduced to a thin crust. Compare this to the following photo, which shows the new mount in place.




Same perspective, new mount in place. Comparing with the photo above, you can really get an understanding of what the worn mount looks like from below. You should be able to clearly the see the yellow “doughnut” of material between the two metal plates of the shock mount, although this material can change color over time.




Your front ride height is affected by the state of your front shock mounts. When that doughnut of rubberized material degrades and goes away, your ride height drops by that amount…about half an inch.

I removed both shock and spring assemblies. JTIS has good instructions here, and there’s really nothing for me to add.

Here’s an original, worn shock mount after the shock and spring assemblies were removed from the car. UGLY!




Two photos showing an “out of the car” comparison of the old mount and the new. You can clearly see how the ride height would be affected.





I decided that since my car is now 17 years old (one of the first 200 made, in June 1996), I would replace the entire front shock and spring assemblies, from top to bottom.

New Mina lowering springs (I had already lowered the rear of the car about 18 months ago). Here’s a shot of a new Mina front spring next to the original, tired spring. Paid $ 250 for the pair of Minas.




Two new Bilstein shocks, part number 24-067263. Paid about $ 119 each from Summit Racing.




Here’s a quick comparison of my nasty old lower shock bushings, and the bushing in the new unit.





Two new Spring Pans, part number MJA2166BC. About 8 bucks each from my local Jag parts guys. Here’s the new spring pan next to the old crusty one.




Two new Spring Assisters, part number MJA2150BA. Paid $ 16 each. These are made of the same rubberized or polymer material in the shock mounts, and sit within the gaiter at the top of the shock…I suppose as some kind of bumper to help protect the components during a hard bottom-out. Here’s a comparison of a new Spring Assister with the original one taken from my car…look at how much of the original has completely gone away!




Two new Spring Packers, part number MJA2162AA. This packer lies between the spring and the lower spring pan. Paid $ 2.28 each, but I decided to use my originals, and will show you why below. As you can see, the new part as delivered by Jaguar is simply a flat plastic washer.




The original spring packer in my car had a better design, with varied thickness to better match the bottom of the spring, and a tab against which to seat the end of the spring coil. Here’s a look-




Here’s how the original spring packer was sitting beneath the original spring. You can see how the shape of this packer and its tab are a better match to the seat of the spring.




Two new Gaiters, part number MJA2148AA, $ 13 each. I actually could have saved some money here…my original gaiters were in great shape.




And finally, I decided to go ahead and replace the bolts and nuts at the lower shock mount to the suspension. The originals were a bit rusted. The bolt is part number JBH112167 ($ 2.45 each), and the “energy absorbing” nut is part number NY112041J ($ 2.54 each).





To get the new shock and spring assemblies together, I used a $ 40 set of spring compressors from Autozone and a fantastic new cordless Milwaukee impact wrench. My first attempt at spring compression, done very carefully, and had no problems.

Here’s a look at a brand new assembly, compared with the original. Ah, nothing like bright, shiny new parts!




And, just for the hell of it, say hello to the twins.




And finally, the new assembly installed in the car. Test drive was perfect, the squeak is gone, and I’m very pleased!




Thanks to all of you on this forum for your contributions. I couldn’t do it without you!


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What a great post Coupe..............thanks so much for taking the time to take pics and compile this.

Glad to hear all is now well after the expense and time involved.

 

Nice job, and pictures are always appreciated. New front shock mounts are on my to do list, so this will be my reminder.

 

Great job and superbly documented. The comparison photos of old and new parts are excellent.

I'll bet it glides now!

Graham

 

great job and perfect timing on your post as I am getting the unearthly squeak at this very moment and notice the foam in the upper mount much more disintegrated than yours. Just waiting on parts. Did you order the upper mounts as the kit through Welsh or as the full assembly as offered by partsgeek?

 

I picked up the mounts from my local Jag dealer, at $ 175 each. Didn't want to mess with anything other than OE on this.

I've developed a good relationship with the guys at the Jag parts desk here...if I bring them the best online pricing I can find, they will almost always match it. I save by not paying shipping costs, and parts that aren't in stock are almost always delivered with 24 hours.


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Great post. Very timely as this is an upcoming project on my car

 

There is one thing that has puzzled me throughout the years about lowering these cars... People/techs on the forum state that if the springs and or shock mounts are worn and ride height is compromised, it results in too much negative camber (beyond the 1 to 1.5 or so degrees that is acceptable) which will result in tire wear and replacement of the worn parts is needed to resolve, even the eccentric bolt isn't enough to overcome this. So, when lowering springs are used, doesn't it result in camber spec being too negative even more than the worn springs and shock mounts caused?

 

Good question, and I'm unsure of the answer.

I can tell you that in my case, my ride height AFTER the new lowering springs and new shock mounts were installed is nearly identical to the ride height I had with the deteriorated shock mounts and the original, taller (but tired) springs.

So I guess I can assume that if I had replaced my old springs with new OEM units, my ride height would be 1.2 inches higher than it is now. I wouldn't have been happy with that.

In any case, an alignment is probably in my near future.


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The shock mounts look like a rather unremarkable part. Why are they so expensive?

 

gian - good question - asked the same thing - in my area the dealer wants over $200 each, indie quoted me 165 each while wlesh and partsgeek were both just over 100 - crazy at best

 

I suppose it's a simple case of supply and demand, and the low volume of these particular parts. The company that makes them has to tool up and spend money on fairly low production runs, which drives the cost up. Not sure if this mount is used across several cars or platforms...that would help.



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Excellent presentation. Comparison photos made a big difference in understanding what's going on...kudos.

 

Good to see another replacing the tired old springs. I did this to my 97 last summer and it made a big difference (although I rebuilt my upper spring pads myself).
Just for comparison as I've not lowered mine, here's the thread from that project with some pictures to compare sprung height before and after. I've not bothered with the rear shocks or springs yet.
https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...se-lift-76446/

Mike

 

I need to do most of this to my car. Specially the shock mounts. I just can't afford them right now, but I also can't afford not to. It'll destroy my tires, which are fairly new.

 

In my case, the worn mounts weren't causing irregular tire wear...although I only put about 6,000 miles a year on my coupe. I know from your other posts that you also have some worn suspension bushings...these might be eating your tires more than the worn mounts. The other bits in my front suspension are in pretty good shape.


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Hey guys, I read this great thread by The Coupe... I am about to do a similar suspension overhaul. I also read the one about the uneven ride heights. This got me thinking... why couldn't one put a set of adjustable spring sleeves on the shocks ( they are available and not too costly) this would allow one to adjust the spring pre-load on each spring independently. I do need a "sacrificial" shock to do some tests... anyone out there have an old one I could get cheap? I know this post by the coupe is a bit old... do you still have any of the old stuff? I don't know if anyone has done this yet... it might be a nice mod.... what do you think? Any parts would be appreciated and I would do a write up about it. Thanks in advance

 

TheCoupe, great info, thanks. Does anyone know if the part numbers would be the same for an 03 Vert??

 

Why not download the jaguar electronic parts catalog that we have linked in the FAQ thread?

 

Some flavour of this project is almost certainly on my future action plan, so I've been reading all the posts with interest!

Maybe a silly question, but given the second picture in the original post which seems to show you can disassemble the upper front shock mount, has anyone tried to find a source that would allow us to just replace the shrinking doughnut, rather than the complete upper mount? I assume that others have had the same thought, and either failed to find a vendor, or discarded the idea for reasons that I am probably about to be enlightened with!