GM 88945178 Rear Shock Absorber Assembly

Raise the front of the vehicle and support it securely on jackstands, then remove the wheel and tire. Place a hydraulic jack under the lower control arm to support it. Remove the brake hose retaining clip from the strut mount and detach the hose from the mount. Take out the brake caliper mounting bolts and hang the caliper out of the way with wire, ensuring it does not hang by the brake hose. Mark the relationship of the strut to the steering knuckle with white paint, then loosen the top strut-to-steering knuckle bolt. Loosen and remove the bottom strut-to-knuckle bolt, followed by the top bolt. From under the hood, remove the cover from the upper end of the strut. Hold the top of the strut piston with one wrench while removing the upper mount retaining nut with another. Remove the strut and check the bearing in the upper mount by turning it with your finger. If the upper mount needs to be removed, carefully scribe around it before taking out the retaining bolts. Remove the mount and retaining bracket. If the bearing is defective, the entire top strut mount assembly must be replaced since the bearing alone is not replaceable. Installation is the reverse of the removal procedure; to assist in installing the upper end of the strut, carefully lower the jack supporting the lower control arm enough to get a hand on the piston, then feed it through the upper mount and attach the retaining nut.

Raise the rear of the vehicle and support it on jackstands.