Thread: Need details on slotting struts

I just got new tires on my '05 CompG and wanted an alignment but the tech said he needed to slot my struts which would cost $50 a pop. He said I could do it myself and that I needed to slot the bottom hole and that usually they have a mark that outlines how far to slot them. He also said that camber bolts would not get me enough adjustment (apparently they are way out of spec).

I really hate to take a die grinder to my struts before confirming what I need to do. Can somedody tell me how much to slot the holes and if it is in fact the bottom hole that needs to be elongated? Somebody told me that you need to slot the top hole on the front struts and the bottom on the rear, is that correct?

I greatly appriciate any help.
Thanks, Casey

05 CompG, ZZP PCM, 104s, 180 stat, drop in K&N, drilled rotors

Slot the top holes a bolt width on each side of the whole. Mark the center before you start so you can get it close when you put it back together. Slotting the bottom wont do anything it needs to be the top.

So I talked to the guy at the shop and he reassured me that he wanted me to slot the bottom holes, which I did. It does work, although it doesn't allow much movement on the rear struts before the hub assembly bottoms out against the strut body. It did give enough to get back where it needed to be. It would have worked great if you were going for more negative camber. I actually only needed to elongate the hole about 1/8", it makes a bigger impact on the camber than you would think.

BTW I did it all with a round file, I couldn't find a die grinder bit at my hardware store that would cut it and fit in the hole. Don't try using a rotary file bit, the strut mounts are hardened and it destroyed my bit in seconds. The round file works good though if you get a coarse one and clamp the strut up in a vice or something where you can put some umph into it. Hope this post will help someone in the future.

top hole is slotted on my coilovers. who is right? why would you slot the bottom?

I think either way would work. I actually would have gotten more adjustment if I had done the top holes. As long as you leave one hole as a tight fit to locate the strut then the camber could be adjusted by slotting either the top or the bottom.

Originally Posted by Bio248

top hole is slotted on my coilovers. who is right? why would you slot the bottom?

thats what i thought... ive only ever heard doing the top hole in the strut towers

Originally Posted by iroc2

thats what i thought... ive only ever heard doing the top hole in the strut towers

We're not talking about in the tower, we're talking about where the strut attaches to the knuckle at the bottom behind the wheel.

Originally Posted by Aeroheadcww

We're not talking about in the tower, we're talking about where the strut attaches to the knuckle at the bottom behind the wheel.

yup, this.

camber bolts (if not installed correctly, and tightened to spec) have a tendency to spin on their own. i would MUCH rather slot the struts.