How to Replace the Springs in a Toyota Camry

The mid-size Toyota Camry has been available in America since 1983. The Camry come equipped with MacPherson struts and the springs are connected to the arms of the struts. The Toyota Camry is the epitome of reliability. The springs in the Camry do not need replacing until the Camry is quite old, unless you just want to change the suspension setup.

Difficulty:

Challenging

Instructions

things you'll need:

• Replacement springs
• Safety goggles
• Floor jack and stands
• Socket wrench and sockets
• Box wrench
• Adjustable crescent wrench
• Lug wrench
• Torque wrench
• Spring compressor

1. • 1

     Jack up the car, block the wheels with jack stands and remove the wheels. You will need to get out your metric tools before working on the Toyota Camry. The Toyota Camry does not require any special tools other than a set of metric wrenches.

   • 2

     Use the spring compressor to slowly release the energy from the spring. The arms of the Toyota's MacPherson struts have bolts on the top and bottom where the spring is attached. Many models of the Toyota Camry have struts with dual links on the rear. Use the metric socket wrench and crescent wrench to remove the bolts.

   • 3

     Remove the spring by carefully sliding it away from the strut. The spring may need a bit of coaxing, but a few twists back and forth should loosen it up. As a mid-size car, the Camry has a fair amount of workspace, but be careful with the brake lines and tuck those and other obstacles out of the way.

   • 4

     Replace the old springs with progressively wound springs. The coils of these types of springs get tighter the closer they get to the top of the spring. In this way, the spring gives greater support as it is compressed, by supporting more of the load near the top of the coil and providing a smoother ride overall.

   • 5

     Reassemble the Camry's strut and repeat the procedure for each spring. When working on the front of the Toyota Camry, be careful of the advanced electronics, brake lines and hoses. Tie these back, but remember to return them to their original position when finished.

   • 6

     Put the wheels back on the car and hand tighten the lug nuts before lowering it to the ground.

   • 7

     Tighten the lug nuts with the torque wrench and double check that all the lines and hoses are returned to their original positions.

Tips & Warnings

• Buy coils that are powder-coated springs which are coated with a rust proofing before the powder paint is applied and baked on. This process makes the spring much more resistant to corrosion.

• Take the pressure off the springs before disassembling. This is potentially very dangerous as the springs carry a great deal of force which is expended when their restraints are released.

• Be sure the spring compressor is in top condition. The spring holds a great deal of potential energy and this must be released slowly or catastrophe can happen. Some mechanics use a floor jack also beneath the arms of the struts to keep the spring from flying off and tearing through body parts or severing fingers.