:banghead: Greetings Neon fans and Happy New Year!

So I was taking a hard turn on the FRD drive yesterday when the car swayed more than it usually does and made some banging noises in the trunk. After careful inspection I noticed the tip of the driver's side strut sticking up into the trunk space by a good four inches. The body seems intact with no rot or visible damage.

Does this mean that the strut is shot and can I replace it myself?

After the help I got here with replacing my radiator I thought it best to return before getting under the car!

I swear, if I didn't love this car or if I had bought a Sonata, I'd have torched it by now!

Thanks for reading and pondering,
Tommy In Brooklyn

You may have a broken strut mount. It's not hard to replace.

Thanks for the direction. It does look like that could be the case. Now all I have to do is get under there and see if you're right. I'll let you know how it goes!

Thanks again,
Tom

Well, I got under there and pulled the strut. The mount hole looed more like a psychadellic oval rather than a nead circle. the metal collar was nowhere to be seen. I just assumed it wore away. Instead it fused itself to the strut shaft. Of course it took me the better part of an hour, a few angry calls to the auto parts store thinking they sold me the wrong part and a guest appearance from my super who told me that the ring was stuck on the shaft.

After that it all went back together well except now I have this deep rumbling when I get the car up to speed. No vibration, just a rumble. I'm afraid I did something wrong and I'm going to rip the rear wheel off on the highway.

You probably changed the alignment on the wheel. On a sunny day look the job over make sure it is set in exactly place. If you see clean metal next to it loosen it and make sure the new part covers all of the clean metal.