cisurfer

With my strange struts and CC plates i get clunking/rattling noises while going over slight bumps...i heard coil overs are noisey, are yours?

zero2005

coilovers do increase noise slightly(or very much so if you are picky) mainly because of the required have caster/camber plates, and pretty much eliminates all rubber that was there from the factory to absorb the noise.

also keep in mind, some strut manufacturers have slightly smaller strut shafts, causing the shaft to rattle inside the bearing of the caster/camber plate.

good write up. wish i had this when i did my install. i hate QA1. how are the UPR's? do they work with Koni Yellows? i need adjustability.

tbirdscwd

My coilovers are no more noisy than the stock suspension. When I switched the spacers to under the CC Plates I experienced the noise you are describing. I put them back on top and haven't heard anything since. I'd double check how yours are installed and try them on top if they are below right now. Any noise associated with the coilovers should be from the spring itself rubbing on the support mounts. The strut shaft should be tightened by the top nut to the point where there is no play and the spherical bushing will take over and take car of any twisting or play in the top shock mount.

edit: if you are hearing/feeling that much noise, you should go back over the install asap.

cisurfer

ok so i finally went with front coil overs, this install is right on until the end where the spacer goes on. DO NOT PUT THE SPACER ON TOP OF THE CC PLATES. It needs to go on the strut shaft on top of the bearing cover before it goes into the strut tower and plates. I did it like the OP did and it cracked/sheered the spring cap and busted the bearings. On MM's coilover installation it shows to put the spacer on before the CC plates. and i tried it and it worked and is silent.

tbirdscwd

It absolutely does not say to do it that way in the UPR instructions.

cisurfer

with the UPR instrutions it doesnt say which way to do it it. it just says to use the spacer, doesnt say before or after the plates but when i used it after the plates it gave me problems

zero2005

spacers below the plates are there to help the top spring perch clear the strut tower (i had problems with this, as MM called for a smaller number of spacers below the CC plates which caused my perch to rub the inside top of the strut tower and scratched it). i find this more important than the spacers up top. i have QA1 struts, and even with 1 small spacer (the minimum that MM calls for up top) i can barely grab the strut's threads.

of corse, im thinkin about welding the bottom CC plate in (the one with the bolts that you have to drill for, not the parts for adjustment)... i think its actually flexing under the stress (and binding/creaking/cracking noises) and welding would put some more structural integrity into the whole assembly. also thinkin about making up some nylon or poly spacers instead of the metal for just every so slight amounts of flex to reduce creaking noise.

tbirdscwd

It's says to intall the new coil over assembly into the strut tower and through the cc plate. Then it says install the 7/8" stepped spacer. How can you install the spacer on the bottom if the strut is already installed. Honestly, as long as the strut is seated, it really shouldn't matter what side the spacer is put on. I just couldn't get mine to seat correctly with the stepped spacer on the bottom

zero2005

the spacers do matter. if you dont have the right spacers where they need to be you'll create binding problems. without spacers on the bottom - the spring perch will hit the edges of the strut tower hole/bottom plate of the caster camber plates(UPR calls it the stud plate). if you dont install the spacers above, you'll end up having the strut nut right on top of the bearing, and hitting the edge of bearing retainer

im not as familiar with the UPR design, as i am with the MM design, but the MM comes with 4 spacers per side, 2 smalls and 2 bigs. i talked to MM and the MINIMUM that should be used is 1 big + 1 small on bottom, and 1 small on top, per side.

reading UPR's install instructions for CC plates, it says put a stepped spacer on top of shaft (step 17) then slide the shaft up into the caster/camber plate (18). not sure if the coilover install instructions have left something out or not?

here's a question to anyone running QA1's coilover struts and UPR's plates. do you have any noises? one feature i think might be nice of UPR's is the fact that their spacers are "stepped" for proper sizing of shafts and probably have less of a chance of rattling inside the bearing?

cisurfer

ok so i looked at the design of the UPR plates and the MM plates and they are different...the bearing on the UPR plates is below the main plate, on the MM CC plates the main plate is bolted down then the bearing is bolted on top of that, this could be why he was able to get away without putting the spacer on first, but yes in my case with MM plates if you dont not but the spacers on the first the top of the coil over hits the strut tower and causes alignment problems...