Does replacing struts raise the car up higher?

Posted by QuasiJudicialBoofer@reddit | askcarguys | View on Reddit | 43 comments

I've got a 2008 Toyota matrix, 130k miles, that is groaning in pain when I get in. Shop told me it needs new struts and it probably does.

But the driveway of my new house is so steep that my front bumper is getting whacked frequently. Really needs to hit at the perfect angle to avoid scraping.

Would replacing the struts, would I get some height. This is a game of CM anything would help. But I don't really want to put much money into it if I'm just going to beat the bumper to shit.

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glade_air_freshner@reddit

Replacing the entire strut assembly will indeed raise your car. Usually a couple inches higher than factory spec. This can be good if you're looking to lift the car, but you will need camber bolts in order to correct the positive camber from being lifted.

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Tendie_Tube@reddit

There is a product that wedges between coil springs and essentially raises the vehicle, but this comes at the expense of more spring stiffness because there is less spring that is able to compress. I've even seen rednecks do it with pieces of wood, lol. Might be worth a try, but be careful around curves and bumps until you figure out how it handles. Also check if your tires are the correct size for the car, and are inflated correctly.

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FeelingFloor2083@reddit

dont do this

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Tendie_Tube@reddit

Yea, a few bags of concrete poured at the base of the driveway seems a much cheaper way to fix it in the long run.

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FeelingFloor2083@reddit

there is a technique to getting into steep driveways with lowered cars I posted already

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tripleriser@reddit

Apparently you share some parts with the Prius and, for some reason, there's a couple lift options for the Prius. If you want to get weird with it, do a hockey puck lift and you'll get a inch or two

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SkeletalBellToller@reddit

I wanted to hear this so bad lol. I have an 07 vibe that I bomb around forest service roads in constantly to explore and take my dog out, and an inch or 2 lift would be a game changer for some of those rocks

As soon as I replace the angry front bearings

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angrycanadianguy@reddit

I know a guy on the matrix fb group that lives in northern Ontario that put a 2” lift on his, and got oversized tires lol

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SkeletalBellToller@reddit

This is what I want to do haha, the digital odometer on the thing maxes out at 300,000 km's so I have no idea how many kilometers I have on this thing anymore, and probably no hope selling it. Engine is still really strong so I want to keep it as long as possible you know? Not the awd unfortunately lol

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angrycanadianguy@reddit

If it helps, the AWD is prone to subframe failure, so you actually have probably the best version for longevity?

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MrBubblehead72@reddit

We have a Yaris with 2" lift on 28" ko2s. It's great

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solbrothers@reddit

The Prius, Corolla, matrix, and vibe all use the same lift kit parts. Do it. I lifted my vibe and love it!! Also went with taller tires for even more ground clearance.

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thaeli@reddit

The Prius is a surprisingly capable overlander.. it's earned that aftermarket support.

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NikonNevzorov@reddit

I recently got new struts and springs on my Subaru Legacy. Raised the car by ~0.5", although I think it was mainly the new springs that did it, not the struts.

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do2g@reddit

You could get some spring spacers to raise the car up a bit. Kinda ghetto but it people do it and it works.

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angrycanadianguy@reddit

There’s lift kits, at least as much as 2”, for the first gen matrix.

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rscottyb86@reddit

The struts themselves, no. Struts with new springs....maybe...but probably too small of an amount to notice or change things for you

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Nextyearcubs2016@reddit

This is the only answer. New springs will probably give a slight lift, but new struts will do nothing to lift

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XtraChrisP@reddit

They will reduce dip though.

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jlusedude@reddit

Unless it’s a 3rd gen 4Runner with saggy ass. Replacing the springs fixes that and is noticeable.

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thaeli@reddit

Put a lift kit on it. You can get 40mm/1.5" easily with a set of coil spacers that just bolt on over the spring/strut assembly - throw on a new set of quick struts at the same time since yours are worn out, but no spring compressor needed. Or if a shop is doing it, there shouldn't be any extra labor time to add the spacers if they're already swapping out the struts.

I don't recommend the kind that go inside the spring and restrict travel, the ones you want are the spacers that bolt to the strut mount on the frame and then the regular strut/spring combo bolts to the spacer instead of to the frame directly.

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FeelingFloor2083@reddit

There is a bit of a trick to entering steep driveways or having low cars, instead of turning in so your bumper hits the entry straight on you pull up next to it, right on the curb, then turn your wheel all the way so when you enter now one wheel goes up first, then the other front wheel

This scrapes the least because the corner of the bumper maintains height as it follows the wheel.

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ethernetbite@reddit

It depends on why the bumper is scraping. If the angle of the road is so much that it scrapes, then no. If the road has a bump in it, then the bumper bottoms out on the road then yes. The new springs will be stiffer (if you get them) and the bump dampening will be more from the new stuts. Bounce on the coner of your car, and if it wobbles (oscillates when you stop) more than once, your struts are shot. I like a softer riding vehicle so i don't change struts until they leak.

But struts are expensive to replace, so I'd get a roll of roof flashing from hardware store and use it to make a skid plate under the front lip ( like a Nascar air splitter, but it doesn't need to stick out front ). It'll still be noisy but protect the bumper and be replaceable. Did that to a Celica i had and that thing was a knife flying along a couple inches of the ground. Poor groundhog...

You should have seen the redneck engineering i had to do to my 67 Camaro to keep it on the road when i was a poor teenager. Roof flashing is good for a lot of things...

Now I'm a poor retired mechanic. The way prices are now i should have worked a few more years!

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HazelKevHead@reddit

It depends on whether its a quick strut or just a strut, cuz if the spring doesn't get replaced you're not gaining any height.

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EffectiveRelief9904@reddit

No. Only if you get coil overs, then you can change the ride height but it’s usually for lowering, not lifting

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roosterb4@reddit

If you have struts with spring combo, yes it will probably raise your bumper a half an inch.

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ElGordo1988@reddit

Does replacing struts raise the car up higher?

The "pre-assembled" all-in-one struts do in my experience, but especially the Chinese brands

I know Chinese brands get shit on generally, but ironically when I bought some "generic" Chinese pre-assembled struts the front end of my Jeep rose like 2 inches instantly lol... 😳

After I left the shop and came home my neighbor remarked "did you put a lift kit on that thing?" since you could visually see the 2" height difference - caused a slight "squat" in the back actually

I suspect the reason for this is more lax quality control or something, maybe they used a coil spring for a larger truck or something? In any case, it was a noticeable "boost" over the Monroe struts I was using before

For what it's worth (...and I don't know if they're even still in business anymore), the brand was called "Replacement"

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Alrjy@reddit

I'm not sure about the Matrix, but many cars have suspension that can be ordered with OEM "cargo" or off-road springs which may raise the car over an inch. I believe this is typically sold in developing countries with unpaved roads but can often be ordered locally.

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Crawlerado@reddit

Seek out some Gambler 500 nerds. One of them will know what year Venza struts swap over. Or you could do strut top spacers.

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secondrat@reddit

It’s possible but not likely. Some new gas struts will raise the car a touch due to higher pressure. but it’s usually less was than an inch.

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andervic209@reddit

Springs/lift kit

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tOSdude@reddit

Complete struts will sit a touch higher until they settle.

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Normal-Memory3766@reddit

Only if you swap the springs for higher ones. You’d probably have to find a trashy looking high off the ground aftermarket front bumper to avoid scraping as bad

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Big_Campaign_467@reddit

...if the suspension you have on there is wickedly worn...installing new strut/spring combo CAN raise the vehicle. They come in assemblies called "quick strut" or "easy strut" depending on the manufacturer. Costs a lil more, but labor is straightforward if you DIY and saves time. Do you intend to keep this vehicle for a long time? Worn suspension destroys your tires and wears them unevenly...adding more costs to your budget... For the first fewdays/weeks after install (depending on how much you drive) the vehicle will look oddly higher as it settles with time. How are your control arm bushings? New components in a system also wreak havoc on older worn components related to said system...just food for thought.

Never owned a matrix (or Pontiac Vibe) but I am WELL aware they run forever. (With proper maintenance of course)

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freshxdough@reddit

Struts don’t contribute to ride height

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ML_for_HL@reddit

I'm just chgd struts and shocks ony odyssey..no height chg noticed..but braking is better. Hope it helps

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albertpenello@reddit

Springs control ride height, shocks are to dampen compression and rebound.

If you remove the springs, the car would go straight to the ground. If you remove the shocks, the car will bounce up and down like a trampoline.

So your car is not going to "raise up" in a material way with new struts since the shop will most likely re-use the springs. BUT, for things like going over bumps, or even up a driveway, blown shocks/struts will help prevent the car from bottoming out as it "bounces" up the driveway.

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MysticMarbles@reddit

Order some cheap strut spacers and install em, or buy slightly taller tires.

Replacing suspension components with original spec replacements isn't going to buy you more than a small fraction of an inch unless your car is CLAPPED out.

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imothers@reddit

If the car has the original shocks and springs in it, there's a good chance the shocks have been worn out for some time. This allows the spring to oscillate up and down more than they would do otherwise, which tends to wear out the springs. So the car may be sitting a little lower than it did when it was new. Also, the worn out shocks will let the car drop down more on bumps, increasing the chance the bottom scrapes.

If the car has the original suspension, there's a good chance that putting in "quick struts" (preassembled shocks and springs, sold as a package) in will solve the rubbing problem. Labor costs are lower for this than just replacing the shocks, which helps offset the higher price for the parts compared to just changing the shocks. If you haven't replaced any ball joints or tie rods, the mechanic may tell you some of these need to be done as well. Good chance they are correct... at 16 years and 130k miles some of these parts may be worn out enough that they have to be replaced to be able to do an alignment.

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briman2021@reddit

Struts don’t carry weight of the vehicle, they control oscillation. Other than collapsed bushings you won’t see any height change. My jeep is currently sitting in my garage without the shocks on it as I’m waiting for parts, it sits at exactly the same height as it did with them in.

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