Compared to the fronts, the rears are a piece of cake.

1. Put the car up on jack stands, remove both wheels. Again, if you try to lift/do one at a time you'll be working against the sway bar.





2. Remove the lower shock mounting bolt. 19mm. You're probably going to have to move the parking brake cable out of the way to get the bolt out. You may also have to 'encourage' the bolt to come out with a hammer and punch.



3. Remove the upper control arm bolt. 18mm/19mm. Just like the fronts, it will pop up a bit when released from the tension in the bushings.



4. Remove the four bolts holding the upper housing to the car. 17mm.



5. You need to separate the bottom of the shock from the lower control arm, then push it towards the car in order to lower it into the gap between the control arm and the car. (Ignore the jack, it's not doing anything)



6. Be *extremely* careful here. Quarters are very tight, both the upper control arm and the upper shock housing will get very close to the fender lip. Complicating things are the locating pins for the housing and the wheel liner--the edges of the housing tend to hang up on both of them. Slowly lower the shock into the hole, then tip the upper part out away from the car. Lift the whole assembly up and out.



7. Take the shock someplace where you can work on it.



8. Remove the upper mounting bolt. 19mm.



9. Once the end of the bolt clears one side of the housing, force from the spring will pull down and bind the bolt. Using a punch is tough since the end of the bolt is conical. Luckily, you can simply turn it out with a ratchet.



10. When you do get the bolt all the way out, the shock will pop out three or four inches. Move your beer out of the way first. You could also use a spring compressor here if you want to avoid the excitement.

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