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Mazdaspeed3 Rear shocks

Warning ! working on your own car is dangerous and all parts listed below are not guaranteed to work on your case so do your homework. this is just a guide of what I did to remedy a problem and how I was able to trouble shoot and resolve my issue as inexpensively as possible.

 I have had a slight clunk/extra bounce going on for a few weeks. So i figured it was time for new rear shocks it has been a few years since I last replaced them. I did them when, One of my rear springs cracked and became two pieces. www.napaonline.com did not list a suitable replacement and I could not find a great kyb, koni, or any other suitable replacement so I went back for the originals from www.onlinemazdaparts.com and have had good luck with them in the past.

 https://www.onlinemazdaparts.com/p/Mazda_2008_323L-MTMazdaspeed-Hatchback/Shock-SHOCK-ABSORBER--Rear-From-09302008-To-09302008/48660292/B37F28910E.html

as you can see the one on the far right is a bit shorter and had nothing left to give, you could easily just fully compress it without much effort. As a note: the ones from online mazda parts come as shown with the new mount and bump stop already installed. Most likely you will need to purchase those separately if you do not get the OEM, they are about $30 a piece from napa. 

Start by chocking the front wheels,  loosening your rear lug nuts, Jacking up the rear of the car  and supporting on jack stands. 

  1. remove the rear rims / tires
  2. use some penetrating oil on bolts upper and lower ( you know who you are and where you live that this is necessary) 
  3. loosen the lower 17mm ( i think it was 17) bolt that holds the shock into the lower control arm.
  4. remove the upper two 12mm nuts ( with a deep socket, the threaded portion is quite long)  that hold the bump stop and mount assembly to the car
  5. Remove the lower 17mm bolt
  6. Compress the shock and move the bottom toward the middle of the car
  7. the upper should now drop down and you should be able to pull out of wheel well.
  8. Reinstall in reverse order, torque down lower bolt with wheels and car sitting back on solid ground
Good luck and happy motoring!

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