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Suspension and brakes diy

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by danielscottclark, Jan 20, 2019.

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  1. danielscottclark

    danielscottclark New Member

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    First time poster, long time browser. Love this forum! Just bought Kyb full assembly struts and shocks plus R1 concept brake pads and rotors to replace on my 165k Prius that I'm driving for rideshare on bumpy city roads. Planning on putting about 50k on it this year.

    The suspension has been squeaking recently with some thuds and bottoming out. Hope this is the right move. Want to get another 3 years out of the car...

    How do I jack up the suspension properly when I work on a corner of the car? Can I use my scissor jack for this? I only got two jack stands and the scissor jack right now.

    Do I need any other parts?

    Tips? Tricks? Might just do it at a diy garage in order to have all the tools and part and such, but already out about $600 which seems reasonable for all those parts and want to be frugal.
     
    #1 danielscottclark, Jan 20, 2019
  2. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    Get a real hydraulic floor jack if you are going to do suspension work. One use for that jack will be to apply upwards force on the bottom of the suspension which may be useful as you install the new struts.
     
    #2 Patrick Wong, Jan 20, 2019
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  3. padroo

    padroo Senior Member

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    I agree with Patrick, a good excuse to get a good floor jack.
    A good supply of good wood blocking is always good to have anytime you are working under the car.
     
    #3 padroo, Jan 20, 2019
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  4. working1

    working1 Active Member

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    The hydraulic floor jack is used with the front and back lift points toward the center of the car. Suggest having 4 jack stands and supporting the whole car. Start with lifting the front end first, position jack stands. Move to the rear and lift/place jack stands.

    This set-up worked best for me since I can work on the suspension/brakes and not deal with repositioning the car during the project.
     
    #4 working1, Jan 20, 2019
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  5. tweedle99

    tweedle99 Member

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    I would pick up the sway bar bushing and maybe the both stabilizer bar end links. When i did mine, the bushings and the end links were worn.
     
    #5 tweedle99, Jan 20, 2019
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  6. Fostel

    Fostel Member

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    #6 Fostel, Sep 30, 2020
  7. tweedle99

    tweedle99 Member

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    There's not much option for Prius. I went on RockAuto. I think they were Moog.
     
    #7 tweedle99, Oct 9, 2020
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  8. Kenny94945

    Kenny94945 Active Member

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    You could proceed with two jack stands.
    Scissor Jack, well, this may not provide enough lift height.

    Some say, "The right tool for the job".
    Not sure if those DIY garages have what you need.
    A floor Jack can be a life long desirable tool to own.

    This forum is always happy to answer and me too.
    I'll ask a question back, were your sure your squeak was from the from struts and not a bushing?
    Good luck in your repair.
     
    #8 Kenny94945, Oct 9, 2020
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