Just got off the phone with the mechanic I was going to have replace it for me, and he quoted me 6+ hours of labor. This seems kinda crazy.

How hard is it to do on my own?
Do I actually have to remove the suspension? (the main reason I was going to have someone else do it)

Any other advice is appreciated.

I've done work on the car before, just replaced the rear brakes. So I'm somewhat competent about car work.

The sway bar looks easy... once you remove the suspension...

Follow up question:
How hard is it to replace the entire suspension? While it's out should I just consider replacing everything? (shocks and springs)

 

i think u just have to take out a shock on at least one side, which is super easy. 2 bolts on top and one at the bottom.

as far as considering everything, depends on your goals

 

Ok so it's not as hard as I'm making it out to be to remove the shock and spring? I'm guessing a simple spring compressor will do the trick...

I'm just trying to figure out if its so difficult to do all of this on my own, look into having a professional do it along with the rest of my suspension.

But if taking the springs and shocks out is pretty easy... I may just end up doing this piecemeal (like i planned) on my own.

 

you don't have to disassemble the spring/strut to get the rear bar in, you just need to remove it so it's out of the way

 

Not sure how soon you're wanting to do this, but we did just get an R56 ourselves and will be doing DIY tech articles on it soon. So, if you have any other suggestions for what you'd like to know how to do on yours please let me know!

-Luccia

 

@kyoo: Ok good, this is sounding a lot more like a weekend job. Thanks for the help.

@PelicanParts.com:
Where do I begin? There's a whole lot on my "To-Do" list for this thing, and the more I can cut out an expensive mechanic the more I'm likely to do.
1. Front and rear suspension (sway bars included)
2. Brakes (from simple pad/rotor replacement, to full upgrade)
3. Battery replacement (any tips for eliminating the need for the "re-programming")
4. Intercooler upgrade
5. Short shifter installation
7. Exhaust replacement (would love to know if I can do this myself)
6. Water-Meth injection (this is like the final piece on my to-do list since it requires a tune, doesn't look hard except for running all the tubing around)

 

took me about 2 hours and I never did one before, had no lift, and took my time.
For a shop to quote 6 hours I'd find a different shop

 

To be fair, the guy on the phone said he wasn't sure and had to check his book. My guess is he's not their local "expert" on the R56 and just looked it up. I called last week about the ACTUAL reason I'm bringing it up, bad battery ($220 total, $180 battery, $40 replace/reprogramming), and the person I had on the phone THEN sounded a LOT more knowledgeable.

 

I just replaced mine and the bushings yesterday... I had never done one, either. A floor jack, bottle jack, jack stands and a handful of sockets is all it required for me to do the job.

One take away for me was it was helpful to put a jack under the center of the rear supports (?) that hold most of the rear suspension together (the one that you have to lower in order to wiggle the bar through). I watched a YouTube video (Google is your friend) that mentioned having to use a pry bar to widen the gap, but I found that mine just lowered as I removed the bolts.

You'll get filthy, but it certainly isn't enough to justify 6 (or even 3) hours of professional labor! With a lift and air tools, I think I could have done it in under an hour.

Good luck!

 

We charge 1 hour for it. How-tos exist on the interwebs so you can see what's involved. No spring compressors, and no total removal of the rear subframe.

 

It really isn't that difficult of a job as long as you have the proper tools and a good method to lift and support the car.

These videos may help.

 

@mattsch1981
Thanks, thats actually the video I was looking @ initially, and its the sway bar I'm going to be installing. I was thrown off initially because they don't show the process of removing the shocks, so I had NO idea how to do it.

 

Can you add thermostat housing, water pump and automatic transmission fluid change to the list?

 

Your right on the money, I did mine as well yesterday, took me about 2 hours with a beer break or two built in there. I used a "how to" with pics from this forum, the biggest tip was supporting the subframe with a floor jack (there's a small opening in the heat shield to put the jack) before you undo the bolts to lower it. The prybar also helped in spreading it apart enough to pull the sway bar out. So, if you have the tools and mechanical know who this is very manageable, as is replacing the shocks and springs.

-Trip

 

I will add this to the list. You can take a look at what we have up so far here. As far as the battery needing reprogramming, for the R50 this tool typically solves the issue. (I will have to check and make sure it's relevant for the R56 as well, but typically going to a shop that is certified to do this is cheaper in the long run.) Thank you for your suggestions!

-Luccia

 

Absolutely!

-Luccia

 

Also tips on jacking up the car would also help. Never know where to put the jack stand since the jack is using the jack point.

 

That's typically the first thing we do with any vehicle we get in, but I will make sure to note that as well. If you think of anymore, please let me know.

-Luccia

 

With the help of my brother we removed stock RSB and installed my 25.5mm RSB in less than 35 minutes, loosening the sub-frame made it a lot easier giving us more room to slide the RSB into place. It was my first time attempting such an upgrade.