Hello, i Installed a new pair of front & back Monroe strut on my 135k miles Prius 2013. The front pair struct so stiff on bumpy road. As you can see the coil spring differently. Should i swap the old coil spring to a new strut?? Please see picture & advice. Thanks
The strut was not REALLY designed for a direct replacement. It fits, butttttt...... As you know... It won't be the same. Depending on where you got it from, you can return it for a refund and just get the strut from Toyota. Don't forget the bumper and dust cover. Yes, the spring itself will be a little weaker than when new, but still better than aftermarket. In theory, the oem spring "should" fit in the new strut cartridge.... But who knows.... All it will take is time and effort to find out.
The original is a very rate spring you see by the winding at the top being not the same as the bottom the replacements many times are Not vari rate speings. The vari rate will squeeze right in. No issues . You can put the strut tube in a vise and use a wheel to compress vari rate and apply nut if no spring compressor . Many folks have long taken the wall mounted spring compressor down and thrown it away.
Two different types of springs they will both interchange on either strut doesn't matter wal mart tools can make it happen no shop needed .
The stiffness on the bumpy road part won't be affected by the spring. That's in the dampening effect in the other parts. Unless it's bottoming out, or topping out, the real change is in the dampening. If your old struts were worn out, the increased dampening is what you paid for when you changed your struts, and the biggest change I noticed when I changed mine.
