Front Suspension – 2023

The front Tokico shocks finally showed up.

The first side went together great but the second gave me trouble until I cranked the top hat nut way harder than the 18 pound/ft specified in the service manual. I’d guess it was closer to 50. The retainer at the bottom of the top hat would become loose after uncompressing the coil. Prior to that it appeared tight. Tightening the nut as I uncompressed the coil seemed to keep it tight.

The manual specifies a 25 degree angle between horizontal center and outside top hat stud. Printing and laminating a protractor was the best I could come up with but it worked great as both sides slipped right into place without an ounce of force.

I had a memory of almost stripping a bolt when installing the front OME/Bilsteins. Specifically, I remember thinking “fuck it, I won’t be changing these for years”.

Turns out it was the inside top hat nut on the driver side. The long 14mm I had, and all the others, were 12-point and I could feel it wanting to strip. I searched all over town but nobody had a 6-point 14mm. I had a crow’s foot but not enough room to get the ratchet on it.

I guess I’ll give it a week or two and then maybe try the OME 906s in the back for a little rake. But for now it feels a lot less like a Calistoga wagon.