So what I've learned from yall - go OEM on front suspension!

[kilbooky]

Newish here - and it's my first time getting my front end suspension components replaced. I have a 2016 Suburban LTZ with all the things. Bought in 2022 @104k miles, now @149k. This is what ive learned from like 4 other recent-ish threads:

- Those 3 digit part number things (RPO codes lol) are on a sticker on the inside of my glove box (2018+ think they are on the door)
- Since I have Magnaride, I need to make sure the shocks are Z95 (if I don't want to passive bypass)
- Some of the good aftermarket quickstruts (Arnott, Strutmaster) seem have a much stiffer ride. A few of you went back to OEM and reported significant
- Arnott used to offer Lifetime warranty on suspension components, but now are only 1 or 2 years
- GM/ACdelco now offer limited lifetime warranty on shocks!
- learned about Rockauto!, and that I can get exact parts I need from there!

What I did to warrant this sage knowledge - I like to pop hills with my kids semi-offroad One time after coaching my son's baseball practice I drive him, and friends over a small hill that blew their little minds....and quite possibly my front suspension! The truck still actually rides surprisingly fine, but now there is a....dry rubbing? sound when I drive plus I get the Check Suspension error code. With the engine off I can actually reproduce the rubbing sound by standing on the running board and rocking up and down. I haven't had the time to go under the truck myself.

I live in Maryland. I initially got quote to replace strut assembly and both lower control arm for around $2600 from Tires Plus. Went to GM dealer and they quoted $2700 (1500 parts + 1100 labor) for strut assembly only. Went to my local shop and they quoted $2400 for strut assembly only. Called my aunt's mechanic of over 15 years and he was like, you by the parts, labor for fronts will be around $300. I think I'll go with him

So I have 4 parts in my cart from rockauto
- GM GENUINE 84977478 shocks, 2 at $433
- GM GENUINE 84114505 Lower control arm left, $186
- GM GENUINE 84114506 Lower control arm right $186

That puts me just a bit north of $1200 for those parts. Am I missing anything?

 

[kilbooky]

Oh, and here's a pic of The White Knight:

 

[Joseph Garcia]

Welcome to the Forum from NH.

Lots of knowledgeable folks here who freely share their knowledge, experiences, and perspectives. Knowledge is power.

I hope that you will become a participating member in the Forum's discussions.

More pics of the truck, please.

You can certainly do this work yourself. Get Liquid Wrench or equivalent on those nuts holding the control arms to the frame well ahead of time.

Once you remove the strut assemblies, take them and the new struts to a local repair shop with a large spring compressor and let them disassemble/replace/reassemble the strut assemblies. This way, you don't have to mess with compressing the springs with light weight tools, and it is much safer for you. Then complete the reinstallation on your truck.

 

[swathdiver]

If yours were mine I'd zero time the suspension, replacing the strut mounts and bushings and all the little pieces that make up the strut too. Would also replace the upper control arms.

Would also inspect the inner and outer tie rods.

Did this to my 2009 at around 160K.

 

[CMoore711]

I second @swathdiver

Add:
*(2) Front Spring Upper Seat - GM (84061243)
*(2) Coil Spring Insulator - GM (20841899)
*(2) Front Upper Strut Mounts
*(2) Front Coil Spring Isolators

*You’ll want to confirm those part #’s

These are smaller parts in the front strut assembly; But all get removed and reinstalled for the same labor you were quoted. So might as well replace with new.

 

[kilbooky]

Huh. Ok appreciate all the feedback thus far. Time is a factor so I probably will have my aunts guy take a look at it. Im tempted though...

Ill tally up the cost of the upper arms, and all the parts @cmore711 mentioned.

Do these parts come with fresh bolts? If not where/ how do you all get new bolts washers etc?

 

[Trey Hardy]

Newish here - and it's my first time getting my front end suspension components replaced. I have a 2016 Suburban LTZ with all the things. Bought in 2022 @104k miles, now @149k. This is what ive learned from like 4 other recent-ish threads:

- Those 3 digit part number things (RPO codes lol) are on a sticker on the inside of my glove box (2018+ think they are on the door)
- Since I have Magnaride, I need to make sure the shocks are Z95 (if I don't want to passive bypass)
- Some of the good aftermarket quickstruts (Arnott, Strutmaster) seem have a much stiffer ride. A few of you went back to OEM and reported significant
- Arnott used to offer Lifetime warranty on suspension components, but now are only 1 or 2 years
- GM/ACdelco now offer limited lifetime warranty on shocks!
- learned about Rockauto!, and that I can get exact parts I need from there!

What I did to warrant this sage knowledge - I like to pop hills with my kids semi-offroad One time after coaching my son's baseball practice I drive him, and friends over a small hill that blew their little minds....and quite possibly my front suspension! The truck still actually rides surprisingly fine, but now there is a....dry rubbing? sound when I drive plus I get the Check Suspension error code. With the engine off I can actually reproduce the rubbing sound by standing on the running board and rocking up and down. I haven't had the time to go under the truck myself.

I live in Maryland. I initially got quote to replace strut assembly and both lower control arm for around $2600 from Tires Plus. Went to GM dealer and they quoted $2700 (1500 parts + 1100 labor) for strut assembly only. Went to my local shop and they quoted $2400 for strut assembly only. Called my aunt's mechanic of over 15 years and he was like, you by the parts, labor for fronts will be around $300. I think I'll go with him

So I have 4 parts in my cart from rockauto
- GM GENUINE 84977478 shocks, 2 at $433
- GM GENUINE 84114505 Lower control arm left, $186
- GM GENUINE 84114506 Lower control arm right $186

That puts me just a bit north of $1200 for those parts. Am I missing anything?

In my opinion when it’s time to replace it you ought as well upgrade as it gives you the excuse too.
I’ve ran these tie rods and ball joints for years along with the wheel bearings and they are great!

KRYPTONITE REPLACEMENT DUST BOOTS

Fitment: All generations on Kryptonite Tie rod ends Replacements also available for all Kryptonite Ball Joints These boots come with a built in grease relief feature. Inner Tie Rods (Kryptonite, Dmax XD) Inner Tie Rods equipped with a Kryptonite Center Link Please be sure to select the correct...

kryptoniteproducts.com

Their upper control arms are good I ended up running fabtech uniballs though because I got them cheaper at the time and allows for a better ride and more travel with the coil overs
Also dirt king makes some nice locking alignment cam plates for our trucks which really keeps your alignment dialed in where it won’t come loose.

https://dirtking.com/collections/silverado

 

[mrkev]

Newish here - and it's my first time getting my front end suspension components replaced. I have a 2016 Suburban LTZ with all the things. Bought in 2022 @104k miles, now @149k. This is what ive learned from like 4 other recent-ish threads:

- Those 3 digit part number things (RPO codes lol) are on a sticker on the inside of my glove box (2018+ think they are on the door)
- Since I have Magnaride, I need to make sure the shocks are Z95 (if I don't want to passive bypass)
- Some of the good aftermarket quickstruts (Arnott, Strutmaster) seem have a much stiffer ride. A few of you went back to OEM and reported significant
- Arnott used to offer Lifetime warranty on suspension components, but now are only 1 or 2 years
- GM/ACdelco now offer limited lifetime warranty on shocks!
- learned about Rockauto!, and that I can get exact parts I need from there!

What I did to warrant this sage knowledge - I like to pop hills with my kids semi-offroad One time after coaching my son's baseball practice I drive him, and friends over a small hill that blew their little minds....and quite possibly my front suspension! The truck still actually rides surprisingly fine, but now there is a....dry rubbing? sound when I drive plus I get the Check Suspension error code. With the engine off I can actually reproduce the rubbing sound by standing on the running board and rocking up and down. I haven't had the time to go under the truck myself.

I live in Maryland. I initially got quote to replace strut assembly and both lower control arm for around $2600 from Tires Plus. Went to GM dealer and they quoted $2700 (1500 parts + 1100 labor) for strut assembly only. Went to my local shop and they quoted $2400 for strut assembly only. Called my aunt's mechanic of over 15 years and he was like, you by the parts, labor for fronts will be around $300. I think I'll go with him

So I have 4 parts in my cart from rockauto
- GM GENUINE 84977478 shocks, 2 at $433
- GM GENUINE 84114505 Lower control arm left, $186
- GM GENUINE 84114506 Lower control arm right $186

That puts me just a bit north of $1200 for those parts. Am I missing anything?

Dont forget teh 5% discount code at rock auto. do a search here. There's a running list for the 5% coupon code for rockauto.
I did not replace the uppers on the shocks. they looked fine. $300 for labor is a steal. It's not just replacing the shock. you have to compress them to remove the spring, then install the compressed spring into the new shock. It's easy work, but consumes much time.

 

[mrkev]

dont forget to do a trim height re-calibration after you install new struts.
mechanic should have a scanner that can do this. My autel can do this.

 

[kilbooky]

Hey yall so updates!

I ended up doing work myself (me and my dad). Storytime:

A bit after I got back from vacation I did two things, one was finally buy the parts from rockauto. Now yall, I decided I was only gonna replace front and rear struts so I didnt buy any of the suggested additional suspension parts (yet). Ill save that for a future job.

The more and more I thought about it the less i wanted to hand the job off. I got a good deal quoted for labor but between forums like this and Dr. YouTube my confidence is much higher. I settled on doing myself.

The second thing was i was finally able to get access to the auto skills shop on the base where I work. I get access to shop tools, my own bay with a lift, compressors, and more. This was fun as me and bunch of army guys sat in a small room and watched a decades old tutorial video and then got a Tour by the shopkeep who was more ancient than the video. Super knowledgeable guy! Guess what - didnt go there to do the work.

My dad schedules time to me this past weekend and I think im going to take him to the skills shop. Then I see all the tools he bought in preparation in his truck and im like, hes going to want to do it here. I grew up watching this man work on everything to know he meant business!

We ended up not going to the skills shop. And this was the right choice for a few reasons:
- the shop is first come first serve and usually pretty busy on weekends
- shop air compressor was down that week and needed servicing
- family time was important and being at my house with my wife, kids, and mother mattered given this was a first time job for me.
- bay time was $12- 14 /hr, so though the cost was low there still was one.

 

[kilbooky]

Once we got to the suburban we started front driver side, removing lugs and wheel. I still dont have the right sockets for lugs, so i just use the e kit in the back + jack handle for leverage. Honestly the hardest part is finding the best mounting points for my jackstands since I have the retractable running boards that steal that real estate from me.
On the Front driver side with a stepladder I popped the hit the 3 strut top mounting bolts with lubricant and after removing the two connectors was able to loosen the nuts there. Then underneath I removed the lower mounting bolts. I also loosened the sway bar to give the whole control arm some play.

Getting the strut out was just a matter of pushing up and down on the control arms, and the bottom came right out. You have to lower it a bit and then pull out from the top.

 

[kilbooky]

My dad hipped me to the fact the local Autozone had tool rental, where basically they charge you the price of a tool then refund it. Works for me as I was able to get a set of strut spring compressors.

Here began the trouble spots. So the spring compressors we got might have been just a tad undersized for the coil thickness. The compressors fit over the springs just fine but the safety slide pins would not click into place by hand. I was worried we would be in a bad spot but I was able with a hammer and extension bar chisel the safety pins in place.

I probably spent too much time the first time around tightening each compressor, but once i got it i got it and I removed the top nut with no drama. I go to get my new strut out the box when lo and behold I realize: they don't ship with a new connector. I wasn't expecting that but thankfully Im pretty comfortable with electrical work. To remove the old absorber from the coils you have to:
- remove the mounting plate after removing the top nut holding in place

- cut the old connector line, leaving at least 2" of line to re-soldier to the new strut

 

[swathdiver]

Great job! That kind of spring compressor scares me! I'll never use that kind again! LOL

 

[kilbooky]

Once you snip off the old connector, remove the old strut and assemble the new one. You dont necessarily have to re tension the top nut yet, you can do that after soldering the new connector on, but that's the annoying part of these, you have to feed the line back through the mounting plate. I found it easier to cut a line vertically through the rubber boot that covers the top plate nut to make maneuvering the connector wire through easier.

To splice a new connector you can approach this one of two ways: disassemble the old connector housing and retrofit the new lines in the old housing. In my opinion this is a tidier approach, but is a tad more complicated.
Aaron hines has a really good video here on how he did this, around the 6:35 mark:

I opted for the messier, but more straightforward strip and soldier method

I couldn't find my old soldering iron, so I went back to Autozone and picked up a new one. While i was there I looked down the aisle and found an even better solution: splice butt connectors that self soldier when you hit it with flame. These are just like the regular heat activated non-crimping butt connectors but have a bead of soldier baked in, so all you do is strip both ends of your connection, slip the connector over each part and hit it with fire.


The two wires for the connector are 18gauge, so I got some for that size and after stripping the outer and inner cladding to expose the stranded wire on the old line you'll feed each 18ga wire (white to white, black to black) into a connector. I got a firestarter and it worked perfectly. You'll want to get your multimeter out after finishing any splice and soldier job to test for continuity. Hearing the meter beep after all this was one of the most satisfying things ever

 

[Joseph Garcia]

Great progress.

 

[kilbooky]

Great job! That kind of spring compressor scares me! I'll never use that kind again! LOL

You know, after having to use them over and over it wasn't that bad. As long as they are sized correctly they will hold pretty well. The key is doing the best you can to have each compressor close to 180° opposite each other. And when you tighten each side with your impact gun do so in even amounts.

Definitely if you have access to a shops wall mount compressor use that! Far better!

 

[kilbooky]

And just like that im done with thr driver side strut!

For the passenger side front my dad recommended this - and glad of him to realize this- if you remove the wheel skirt you can pretty much get lateral access to remove the strut. This is key since getting at the top plate from the top is much harder due to battery, coolant lines, etc. You'll need a 7mm socket, flathead screwdriver, and a T10 torx bit to remove all the pins. Once you do the skirt comes out easy.

Working on thr second strut went pretty much like working on thr first, but because of one minor oversight this actually took the longest.

You'll need to note the orientation of the bottom elbow of the strut in relation to mounting plate bolts BEFORE you disassemble the spring from the shock. If you dont then the elbow can be mis aligned and you won't be able to install the reconfigured strut.

Yall, I attempted to put a single strut in no less than SIX times. Lets just say I got really good and really comfortable with the spring compressors

A rule of thumb (that i learned after the fact) is thr bottom elbow bolt holes need to be perpendicular to the single bolt thread that is marked on the neck of the strut. And usually when the strut is installed one bolt thread will be in front facing you with the other two in rear. Make sure you make note of this when you go to reassemble the spring. The only time you can spin the lower elbow is while the springs are compressed and the top nut is loose.

 

[swathdiver]

You know, after having to use them over and over it wasn't that bad. As long as they are sized correctly they will hold pretty well. The key is doing the best you can to have each compressor close to 180° opposite each other. And when you tighten each side with your impact gun do so in even amounts.

Definitely if you have access to a shops wall mount compressor use that! Far better!

I've already decided to buy a Branick the next time we have to do this!

 

[Badbob]

Once you snip off the old connector, remove the old strut and assemble the new one. You dont necessarily have to re tension the top nut yet, you can do that after soldering the new connector on, but that's the annoying part of these, you have to feed the line back through the mounting plate. I found it easier to cut a line vertically through the rubber boot that covers the top plate nut to make maneuvering the connector wire through easier.

To splice a new connector you can approach this one of two ways: disassemble the old connector housing and retrofit the new lines in the old housing. In my opinion this is a tidier approach, but is a tad more complicated.
Aaron hines has a really good video here on how he did this, around the 6:35 mark:

I opted for the messier, but more straightforward strip and soldier method

I couldn't find my old soldering iron, so I went back to Autozone and picked up a new one. While i was there I looked down the aisle and found an even better solution: splice butt connectors that self soldier when you hit it with flame. These are just like the regular heat activated non-crimping butt connectors but have a bead of soldier baked in, so all you do is strip both ends of your connection, slip the connector over each part and hit it with fire.


The two wires for the connector are 18gauge, so I got some for that size and after stripping the outer and inner cladding to expose the stranded wire on the old line you'll feed each 18ga wire (white to white, black to black) into a connector. I got a firestarter and it worked perfectly. You'll want to get your multimeter out after finishing any splice and soldier job to test for continuity. Hearing the meter beep after all this was one of the most satisfying things ever

Great job, I have to do the same thing on my 16 LTZ, why did you cut the connector off and solder, does the new shock not come with a connector to reconnect

 

[ReaperHWK]

I ordered a heavy duty spring compressor and used that instead of the free auto zone rentals; the ones they have there are not made for heavy duty trucks. I only would use those little compressors for small cars. I would bet a Tahoe spring would be at or over the load rating of the autozone ones. Back in the day I used the free rental ones on a f150. They started to deflect and bend as I tightened it. I went back and I got 2 sets of compressors(so four on one spring) and that was able to compress them.

I used this one and it was super sturdy and I felt confident using it:

Amazon.com