Worn out struts?

[Owner of Fords]

My wife took her '04 Expedition in for an oil change and the shop told her she needs new struts. ($788) They said it looked like the struts were leaking and that the leakage could damage the brakes.

I've been driving for 30 years and never had a vehicle (upwards of 150K mi.) need new struts.

This vehicle has 80K mi. on it, all on-road miles. The handling seems fine to me (no bouncing), although I don't drive it every day.

Is replacing struts at 80K mi. typical wear and tear on an Expedition?

 

[Bremsen]

Really? I hope you're not one of those people I see go over expansion joints and the car doesn't settle for 1/4 mile.

Every vehicle I've owned has needed new shocks/struts somewhere between 60-120k. I pretty much plan on it at 100k. In my experience, the bouncyness is a later indicator once they are completely shot and not providing any dampening. Leaking and a jittery ride is more the indicator when they start to go. I bet once you replace them you will realize how the truck should ride/handle.

If you want to verify, take it to another shop or check them out yourself. Not hard to see if a strut/shock has blown a seal. That being said, you can pick up a full set (f/r) of Bilsteins for <$400 and any indy shop shouldn't charge more than a couple hours of labor to install. If $788 was 4 corners installed w/ alignment then that's not a bad deal, if not then I'd find a new shop.

 

[seeker]

My 2 cents

Replaced all four shocks on my 2002 model with Pro Comp shocks for $160.00 and about 3 hours of time in the drive way. Driver side rear was a PIA and took up half that time. Truck had 100k on it. Major repeat major improvement. I have used Bilsteins in the past and very happy with those as well.

 

[panda24619]

Replaced all four shocks on my 2002 model with Pro Comp shocks for $160.00 and about 3 hours of time in the drive way. Driver side rear was a PIA and took up half that time. Truck had 100k on it. Major repeat major improvement. I have used Bilsteins in the past and very happy with those as well.

agreed. my driver rear was the biggest pain. did the front in no time. and went to do the rear and nope! i think next time i do shocks im going to remove the spare and put her on a lift. that way i can just do that coil spacers i want too.

 

[Owner of Fords]

$788

Estimate of $788 was for the front struts only, installed.

 

[Stoned06]

That estimate is high just for the front struts. Bilsteins will only cost about $90 per corner. That leaves $500+ for labor? BS.

And needing struts by 80,000 miles is common on most makes of vehicles. You may not notice it since it is a gradual loss of performance, but it's there. My '06 needs them bad at 65,000, but waiting until Spring to replace them. It skips and twitches over most bumps...no bouncing, but just feels jittery. The Motorcraft struts usually do not live much past 50,000 miles in my past experiences. My '02 Harley F150 needed them at 27,000 and it was only 3 yrs old.

 

[KWT2000]

what year is your expy and is it 4wheel or 2wheel thanks

 

[Owner of Fords]

2 WD, 2004 Model

 

[KWT2000]

I called and asked for a quote here... and they said $520 with alignment plus tax... that is with monroe sensatrac struts 50k warranty