02 Q45 trunk strut replacement - quick way

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lmheim
Posts: 41
Joined: Wed Feb 26, 2014 8:23 pm
Car: 2002 Q45

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If anyone is annoyed by the weak struts on the trunk, there is a sticky on the Freshalloy forum that give some great info about fixing that. I did it this weekend but have a couple thoughts and changes to the original.

First, the original thread suggests the Strongarm 6322 - which is available at Advance for about $25. It is a straight drop-in replacement that does provide much better lift/resistance than the OEM, but it is a couple inches shorter than the original and prevents the trunk lid from coming up a full 90 degrees. I am going to look for one a bit longer.

The better news is that I came up with an installation method that takes about 2 minutes per strut rather than the full back seat disassembly method in the original thread. I apologize if someone else previously posted this - I didn't find it anywhere and wanted to help other folks out by getting this out there.

Step 1: On the new replacement strut, unscrew the black fitting at the end of the chrome rod.
Step 2: Open the trunk and lift the lid all the way. You may need someone to hold it up while you do this. CAUTION - once you disconnect the original strut, the lid cannot stay up on its own.
Step 3: Using a flathead screwdriver, disconnect the original strut from the trunk hinge. If you don't know how to do that, the Freshalloy thread has pics and details.
Step 4: Rather than disconnecting the complete strut as described in Freshalloy, you can unscrew the strut from the black connector that is attached to the connection point behind the seat. You may need pliers to grab the chrome rod and twist the threads loose, but once that is done, you can simply unscrew it by hand.
Step 5: Screw the new strut into the original connector - mine was a 100% straight match. You will probably need a flashlight to see in the dark space, and you may need to stick a hand back there to align things, but once you get the rod threaded, it just screws right on in.
Step 6: Rotate the strut until tight, align the other end connector with the connection point on the hinge and pop that on.

That is it. Seriously, this took about 2 minutes from start to finish. The hardest part was getting my hand in the cavity to align the connector to get the new strut initially threaded into it. I will post the longer strut model number when I find it.

Hope this helps folks.


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Q451990
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Thanks for the write-up! My only caution to anyone reading this, is to not scratch the new strut's chrome rod when threading on the end. It'll allow the gas charge to leak out as the scratched area passes the seals.

Heath

lmheim
Posts: 41
Joined: Wed Feb 26, 2014 8:23 pm
Car: 2002 Q45

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Thanks for pointing that out. What I found with the Strongarm struts is that the chrome rod does not rotate separately from the strut body so you probably won't need pliers for the installation because you can screw things in just by hand and without having to grab onto the rod. The pliers were needed just for the removal of the originals. But if you want to keep the original ones in proper working condition, that is something to consider. I admit that I just tossed mine so I didn't treat them with particular kindness.

Dachristianman
Posts: 64
Joined: Thu Apr 12, 2007 12:43 pm
Car: 2002 Q-45
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How does the shorter strut impact the operation of the automatic trunk opener on the premium models? Does it matter that the replacement is shorter?

Also, is there 1 or 2 struts on the trunk?

Tom

lmheim
Posts: 41
Joined: Wed Feb 26, 2014 8:23 pm
Car: 2002 Q45

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Good question. I don't know about the automatic trunk. And there are indeed 2 struts - one connected to each hinge. The quick install process works on both of them just the same.

KTD
Posts: 6
Joined: Sun Feb 13, 2011 10:07 am
Car: 2002 q45

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Did you ever get the model number on the longer support for this fix?

Dachristianman
Posts: 64
Joined: Thu Apr 12, 2007 12:43 pm
Car: 2002 Q-45
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I purchased 2 of these from fleabay at the link below. Hopefully I won't get banned for posting this, but since they are discontinued from Nissan...maybe they'll cut me some slack.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/2-PCS-Rear-Tru ... 2749.l2649

I tried the screw off/screw on end trick, but the 2 I ordered were different threads. But I was able to get a long screwdriver in the area and pop the old one loose. Easy. I replaced both of the struts, but found that the new chinese struts were quite a bit stronger than my originals must have been from new because my auto trunk closer wouldn't close the lid. So I put one of my old ones back on the passenger side and with the new chinese one on the driver's side and a weak strut on the passenger side, it seems to work well. Not a bad fix for $8. Since I bought 2 for $16, I guess I'll have a spare for when this one goes bad.

I also found it funny that I'm replying to a question I had back in 2014. I guess after 6 years I finally got tired of getting whacked in the head with the trunk lid. :-) Hopefully this will help someone in the future.


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