After 200,000km, what percentage of strut life is left?

Here are some links that looks into strut symptoms:

https://www.cars.com/articles/how-long- ... 676937486/

https://thegarageba.com/6-ways-to-know- ... ks-struts/

If you have winter tires on that too will make handling sloppy compared to all season or sport tires. Since nothing is leaking, I would wait till the spring when it warms up to look at the next steps. Also, have a look at the tires to see if you see any cupping as that could be a sign for suspension issues.

Swerny wrote: ↑0%

If they are at 0%, should the back of the car bounce up and down at lot when I pressed on it? I googled about struts and found the bounce test doesn't indicate how worn a strut really is. Just that if it bounces then the strut is blown but not how worn they really are.

hightech wrote: ↑ Here are some links that looks into strut symptoms:

https://www.cars.com/articles/how-long- ... 676937486/

https://thegarageba.com/6-ways-to-know- ... ks-struts/

If you have winter tires on that too will make handling sloppy compared to all season or sport tires. Since nothing is leaking, I would wait till the spring when it warms up to look at the next steps. Also, have a look at the tires to see if you see any cupping as that could be a sign for suspension issues.

Thanks for the links. I was looking for a way to know what percentage of strut life would be left after 200,000 km on the rear struts. I think the front struts are definitely worn and I plan on replacing the fronts. Thru googling I find that some peeps are running their honda struts over 200k miles which is a lot. Then other info says after 100k miles struts are definitely worn and should be replaced. I just wouldn't want to take out the old struts and then find that they are still as good as new ones.

Not sure why you're so fixated on a % life remaining. At 200k, it's definitely less than 50%.... but beyond that, it depends on what kind of wear and tear, abuse, original quality......

I wouldn't replace struts until there are performance issues... but set aside the money so you're ready to deal with them when you need to.
200k is probably close to what most vehicle manufacturers consider lifetime.... (keep in mind that for drivers that do 10k/yr, this is 20 years old)

cheapmeister wrote: ↑ Thanks for the links. I was looking for a way to know what percentage of strut life would be left after 200,000 km. Thru googling I find that some peeps are running their honda struts over 200k miles which is a lot. Then other info says after 100k miles struts are definitely worn and should be replaced. I just wouldn't want to take out the old struts and then find that they are still as good as new ones.

I generally don't change struts until the springs break.
Or the strut tower bolts shear off.
But that's just me.

cheapmeister wrote: ↑ On a 2000 civic with 200,000km, how worn out would the rear struts be roughly? When doing the press down and release test to see if the car bounces, it seems to be okay, feels stiff (but its winter and the struts will freeze) but the car doesn't handle like it use to. No oil leaking out either. It feels like it floats over bumps and leans a little when turning but no bouncing yet. I also haven't given rides to any bbw's to weigh down the suspension. Sway bar links are still attacked to the sway bars.
So suppose these struts are still good, based on the bounce test, would they be 50% worn after 20 yrs? Less worn, or more than 50%?

At 200,000 km if the struts dont bounce up and down when you test them I wouldn't worry about replacing them. With the mileage on the car it wont handle anywhere near like it was when new.
Replacing the 4 struts on a 19 year old car will be expensive and not sure how much you would benefit.

Chickennbeans wrote: ↑Not sure why you're so fixated on a % life remaining. At 200k, it's definitely less than 50%.... but beyond that, it depends on what kind of wear and tear, abuse, original quality......

I wouldn't replace struts until there are performance issues... but set aside the money so you're ready to deal with them when you need to.
200k is probably close to what most vehicle manufacturers consider lifetime.... (keep in mind that for drivers that do 10k/yr, this is 20 years old)

antigua1999 wrote: ↑ At 200,000 km if the struts dont bounce up and down when you test them I wouldn't worry about replacing them. With the mileage on the car it wont handle anywhere near like it was when new.
Replacing the 4 struts on a 19 year old car will be expensive and not sure how much you would benefit.

Ya its expensive to get them installed but I would install them myself. I also found some kyb struts at 80% off (cost less than $20), even cheaper than rock auto which makes the change really affordable. So I went ahead and ordered a pair. If they were at the regular price I wouldn't order them. Just don't want to see that the old struts are the same as the new ones when I change them or else I might as well cancel my order.

cheapmeister wrote: ↑ Ya its expensive to get them installed but I would install them myself. I also found some kyb struts at 80% off (cost less than $20), even cheaper than rock auto which makes the change really affordable. So I went ahead and ordered a pair. If they were at the regular price I wouldn't order them. Just don't want to see that the old struts are the same as the new ones when I change them or else I might as well cancel my order.

$20.00 for a strut and you do the labor its a no brainer. Make sure you have sway bar links and outer tie rods just in case. Its a pain when you get it apart and realize you need them.

Keep us posted

I didn’t realize that the car was a 2000. I would consider a newer model from a overall safety perspective. You got your money from the Civic and I would not put much money over $500 on the car as it is probably worth $2000 max on a trade.

Hard to say how much life is left as wear is dependant on the road condition where you live, drive, and driving habits. This question is like asking how long your furnace will last after xx years. Who knows. I wouldn't put too much thought into it unless it's bouncing crazy after a little bump and you feel nauseated after a short ride.

After 30+ years of driving and car ownership, I changed rear shocks twice in all the vehicles I've had. Old GM car after 5 years of driving and newer MDX with magnetic shock that was replaced under warranty after 7 years. My buddy who put over 350000km on his 2002 Civic still had good shocks when he sold it recently.

If you can get them off and on without any additional collateral damage yourself, sure.
Otherwise, rust on a 20 year old vehicle might complicate the whole situation.

If it passes the bounce test and you see no external leaks, keep driving.

cheapmeister wrote: ↑
If they are at 0%, should the back of the car bounce up and down at lot when I pressed on it? I googled about struts and found the bounce test doesn't indicate how worn a strut really is. Just that if it bounces then the strut is blown but not how worn they really are.

vtec300 wrote: ↑ Hard to say how much life is left as wear is dependant on the road condition where you live, drive, and driving habits. T...

+1

A) it’s totally dependent on how much up/down motion/force occurs based on how bumpy your roads are and how loaded your vehicle is.

If you travel over a lot of speed bumps at full load, the struts might only last 70km. If you travel only on smooth roads like the 400, it might last 500,000 km

B) the easiest way to tell is when you run over a expansion joint and listen closely, you’ll hear 2 noises ; 1 for the front and one for the rear wheels = Plop.........Plop

If you hear more than 2, then a set of struts are gone

Plop...plop....Plop = front struts
Plop.........,,,,,Plop....plop = rear struts

C) struts wear continuously, so a 1/2 worn strut has about 1/2 the damping force of a new struts. It might still be ok for a smooth road, but not good enough for a rough road. It’s also load dependent- might be ok for 3 passengers but not 4 = the first Transporter movie

Where did you buy your struts so cheap?

rngun wrote: ↑ Where did you buy your struts so cheap?

Amazon. I ordered a pair of agx struts a while back at a really good price too but they cancelled it. Last I checked they had a agx strut selling for like $25, regular price is around $115.

Somewhere inbetween 0% and 99%

I have never heard of % wear estimate on a strut. This is not something you can measure with a meter. The age and kms don't tell the whole story either. If driving on poorly maintained roads, the entire suspension system could be totally worn well before 200000 km. If the car doesn't feel bouncy when hitting a bump, body roll is not excessive and tire wear is normal, then all is fine.