Darkshot

iTrader: (4)

I just installed new hatch struts yesterday. Before when I hit the switch it would just activate the motor and pop it, then I would go back and lift it up. With the new struts it goes all the way up, with considerable speed too. Its pretty hard to pull down too, so much that I can see the strut to body mounts flex. Whats it supposed to do? I like how it flys up all the way, I think its cool, but I'm worried that I may be stressing my car in ways I shouldn't be.

Bull

iTrader: (5)

When you say the hatch pops up "all the way", what do you mean?

On my car, the motor disengages the lock and pops the hatch up a few inches and that's it.

Sounds like your struts are a bit...stiff? I don't think I'd like it if the hatch was hard to close.

Frozer!!!

iTrader: (11)

Well my old hatch struts couldnt even hold the hatch up so I got a set locally from somone that were used and now they hold it up all the way and little pressure is needed to push it close. Definantly sound sliek your struts are too strong.

Apeiron

Give it some time, it probably won't be long before they wear in a little.

Epsilon2k

Super struts. For some reason I envision a really short lil guy hanging off of the hatch with legs swinging asking for help.

I suppose up is better than a stick holding it up. I doubt it is going to cause any problems though. They mount pretty securely.

Mine are the opposite. It takes a lil effort to get it open, but it closes rather easily. I'm just grateful it holds it open.

Toehead

I agree, my new ones were the same way, and they are already wearing in.

Apeiron

There used to be different struts available to match the weight of the hatch, depending on whether the car had a rear wiper, spoiler, louvers, etc... but now that these cars are getting old the manufacturers could be consolidating all of those into one part, and it's obviously better to pick the strut that holds up the heaviest hatch.

1989formula355

iTrader: (2)

the struts you picked up are probably the ones for the heavy wrap-around spoiler on the formulas. i had that spoiler on my car then switched the decklid for a trans-am one, and after that it sent the hatch skyward with considerable speed like you described. i think there are actually 3 different rates for those struts.
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beat me to it

1989karr

well, I notice that when you FIRST open the hatch on a given day, it fully opens really fast....kinda scary.

But after that initial opening, IDK what happens but i hear like a sucking sound, and although the hatch opens by itself, it opens much more slowly till it reaches the open position. It's kind of liek those doors that close by themselves, it starts to close really fast but then it slows down till it closes fully.

Heat also has an effect on it. If my car has been sitting in the sun for a while, (been a while since its been out of the garage....no engine) I guess the liquid/gas in the struts gets more pressurized or somethng and then the thing opens fully by itself.
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oh i almost forgot the MAIN reason why I psted this lol IDK if this ever happened to anyone but here goes.


When I FIRST installed my new struts everything went well. But then suddenly the mounting part that the struts bolt to on the body...broke off. The weld apaprently gave way, so I had to have that re-done. The guy said that its a common thing to happen on a lot of cars due to the fact that aftermarket struts are usually a lot stronger than stock struts.

Epsilon2k

Ok. Now That is scary. It's one of them small creepy things that gives a car a personality. It's like the beginning sequence in a horror flick where a guy is stalked and finally murdered by an evil third gen. Ok. I'll maybe not really. I'll go back to hiding in my corner now.

InfernalVortex

iTrader: (4)

Kinda like Christine...

cdoyle

What do you guys recommend for new struts?

I bought some once at pep boys for both the hood and the hatch. They lasted all of a year. Now it's back to a stick or vise grips to holding them up.

I want some that will at least last a few years.

1989karr

....you think THAT'S scary???? This isn't really related but I think it's something interesting that people would want to hear. I remember there was a thread about cars having souls or something like that....

a little long but VERY scary.....more so than Christine lol

I have a 1989 Pontiac 6000 as the daily driver and it does stuff like go to the jy for the bird and what not (I guess it might be related after all lol)...part pickups, school, work, etc... But I've had it for over 7 years now. Well, when I first got it, my relatives, mom and uncle said it was a junk/old car and would break down. Long story short, when they drove it around, it broke down on them and left them stranded in the middle of nowhere. I have yet to be stranded somewhere. Everytime something broke I was always lucky for it to break at home...or to conveniently have something break JUST as I came home like the radiator hose and some kind of coolant gasket. I found that kinda odd.

Some of my friends made fun of the car, called it old and ghetto. When they got in the front door, it wouldn't open. Manual locks too. They had to climb through the window to get in and out. IDK what could have gone wrong and when I came home and looked at it....the doors just opened fine, and have never given me any problems since then. I also took some of those annoying friends around..you know, the ones that bum a ride off of you? Well, when I was taking them around, it kept stalling. No reason. After I dropped them off whereever they were going, everythng was fine. Then when they need a ride again on a different day, it kind of hesitated and stalled a lot .....no fix as it "magically" fixed itself after that. IDK but they haven't wanted a ride since

Then my moms friends son needed to use my car cause he smashed his....so I had to use the bird and thats why i put about 10,000 unnecessary miles on the bird...I sure hope he was greatful!!!......the guy was grounded for doing somethng bad and was only to go to school, work, and home. I saw him dirving around....he was treating my car kinda badly by driving unnecessarily fast and taking the corners to sharp etc.....he's lucky I didn't call them up and take the car back. My mom said she saw my car at the mall one day when he was supposed to be at home or school. Same day we get a call saying the car overheated and gave him "problems" as he was coming home from....so he said...school. IDK what really happened but whatever happened apaprently scared the shnap out of the guy. I really dont know how a water pump going bad scares someone so much....He was just short of tears or something like that. IDK why he was crying seeing that I had to fix and PAY for it and then give the car back to them...........my mom....*sighs*

On top of that, I was testing an older Corolla and was considering a car with better gas mileage....big mistake. As I was coming home from the test drive, literally maybe a half mile from the place where the Corolla was (for those of you on Oahu, it was the Toyota on Nimitz and I was coming home by Moanalua), the 6000 constantly stalled and buckled and what not. After I decided not to get the Corolla, it fixed itself. The fix? IDK....never did anythgn about it and all is good.

And here's the final part.....I think it got really jealous when I got the bird. Wouldn't start at all. I guess they became friends or something because not long after it started and drove fine. I didn't fix anything, and that was like 5 years ago.

Anyway thats my little Christine stories. Just thought I would share. IDK if it's really scary, but the times that these problems occured along with the "magical fixes" and the situations and the people involved.....well, IDK. The bird on the other hand drove great.....buuuttt....when I had to go to my mom's friends house, the same one, just at the time the battery died suddenly. Still angry for those unnecessary 10,000 miles??? lol

Oh and as far as my struts, I got the rear struts from NAPA. That was about 3 years ago and they still work great. A little weaker, than they were brand new, but just a little. The hood struts on the other hand I got from Checkers. Those went bad after a year or so. When i had a hood on the car, they would barely hold it open. The checkers brand is strong arm. They look virtualyl identical to the NAPA ones so IDK if they are just made with a different packaging or if the hood ones have a tendency to go bad, but I'd go with the NAPA ones. BTW, they had struts for Trans Am, Formula, rear wiper and base firebird.....although i don't think there were any rearwipers in 1989???

ChillPhatCat

When I pop my hatch, the motor lifts the hatch a little and it sits there until I go to the back and give it light upward pressure and then it opens fully in about 3 seconds.

Pocket

iTrader: (24)

My hatch opened full upon the pop after new struts too

Lasted 9 months or so

Cold weather will only pop it a few inches, but summertime makes it fuly open

I saw no negative sides of the stress

Had em on for 2 years now. I dont see why people bitch about replacing them annually/bi-annually. They are not that expensive and its always nice for your hood/hatch NOT to bang you in the head

steeljab

iTrader: (3)

Well my 87 maro that has the original struts (i think) pops about 2-3 inches and then takes about 1-2 lbs of presure to get it going and it goes all the way up, this is in about 50-60 degree weather. havn't had it long enough to see our lovely 110 degree days >.< while going all the way up when i pop it would be nice, i seem to keep finding myself in situations where i'd hit the back glass if i wasn't there to stop it (twice since i bought it in december) lol

1989karr

i think I'll mention that I have found some in junkyards that are really hard too. By hard I mean they seem to have a lot of pressure left but they do not open the hatch by themselves. Instead, you can put the hatch at any angle and it won't fall or open up. Takes quite a bit of pressure to close it too just like a new one. IDK if these were made like this or are old/rusty/stuck etc......