I bought new front struts for my 2004 honda civic. They are gabriel ultra ready mount. They are were installed earlier this year. The issue is there is a squeaking sound coming from the front right strut when turning and the front left strut clunks when driving as it moves up and down a little. The front left strut assembly looks fine accept where the shock piston shaft comes through the upper mount. The rubber around where the nut attaches to the piston rod is torn. I sprayed some silicone lubricant in there and the clunking stopped. The front right rubber is not torn but is starting to crack. Is this just a thin piece of rubber molding around the shaft that will crack or is it not supposed to crack?
Are these struts bad?
- Thread starter joegreen
- Start date
One would need familiarity with that part to answer your question.
I believe many 'ready made' struts are not regarded highly due to cheapness, not sure about Gabriels.
I believe many 'ready made' struts are not regarded highly due to cheapness, not sure about Gabriels.
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- Mar 8, 2022
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Off hand I'd recommend replacement. The 1st picture shows the shock mount broken completely around the rod holding the shock in place. It’s possible that there’s nothing holding it in place.
I was hopeful even cheap struts would last more than a few thousand miles.
Honda sells OEM quick struts for your 2004 Civic, but they are kind of expensive 
Gabriel's quick struts are Chinese now. KYB or even Monroe would be better than Chinese Gabriel.
Gabriel's quick struts are Chinese now. KYB or even Monroe would be better than Chinese Gabriel.
Gabriel was good back in the day, but I wouldn't use them now. Replace them with KYB's or Monroe.
I contacted Gabriel and they were pretty nice. They confirmed there was an issue but unfortunately they are out of warranty. They understood i wanted a cheap repair as the rest of the strut is fine. They suggested i replace the top strut mount. I bought two top strut mounts so we will see how that goes.
GON
$175 Site Donor 2026
I don't know anything about a 2004 Honda Civic. I do want to share my story on a 2014 Acura RDX.
After buying the one prior owner dealer maintained 2014 RDX from the same dealer that sold the RDX new, came across two issues. One was the brakes would squeak from time to time, the other issue was a noise from the front shocks when going over bumps.
I purchased new pads and rotors, without inspection the pads that were currently on the RDX. When I went to replace the pads, discovered they were like new...... hmmmmm.
Next I installed new struts (OEM), yet after installing, the replacement OEM struts, same noise from the struts going over bumps.
The problem ended up being the sway bar links. I visually inspected them and didn't see a issue. After replacing the sway bar links, both the noise from the front struts went away, as did the squeaky/ grindy brake problem..........
After buying the one prior owner dealer maintained 2014 RDX from the same dealer that sold the RDX new, came across two issues. One was the brakes would squeak from time to time, the other issue was a noise from the front shocks when going over bumps.
I purchased new pads and rotors, without inspection the pads that were currently on the RDX. When I went to replace the pads, discovered they were like new...... hmmmmm.
Next I installed new struts (OEM), yet after installing, the replacement OEM struts, same noise from the struts going over bumps.
The problem ended up being the sway bar links. I visually inspected them and didn't see a issue. After replacing the sway bar links, both the noise from the front struts went away, as did the squeaky/ grindy brake problem..........
That explains a lot. I heard they used to be great, bought and installed a set, and they were no better than the set that came off the 150k vitara. I’ve never used them again and just wondered what I missed.
It does look like the top mount replacement is what’s needed. The rubber looks to be loosing its integrity. The damper itself may be perfectly fine.
I bought aftermarket top mounts from Autozone and replaced them yesterday. Rest of the strut was good. No more clunking or squeaking noises now. They were fairly easy to change out. Both of the old top mounts were bad. It’s almost as if there was not enough rubber in the top mount as there was an 1/8 or more gap between the rubber and the metal of the mount. The new ones didn’t have that issue.
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