Avo Coilovers

[Chris_W]

Right, I've just bought some Avo coilovers for the front of my nova, and in their infinate wisdom Avo forgot to include any instructions! DOH! So, it being the weekend, their closed, so I won't be able to ask them till Monday.
Anyway, I pressed ahead with help from a friend and we thought we'd try and get them on the car, and basically this is where the problem is. We've taken the top mounts of the old shocks, but they don't fit. We started off by trying this order:
http://www.chriswardy.btinternet.co.uk/avo1.jpg
But we can't get it compressed enough to get the nut onto the piston, so we then tried this:
http://www.chriswardy.btinternet.co.uk/avo2.jpg
Now we can get the nut on and all the way down, but it's now loose so rattles around.
Avo supply the shocks like this:
http://www.chriswardy.btinternet.co.uk/avo3.jpg
So my question is, has anyone got any ideas on how this is supposed to work, or should I just bite the bullet and buy some eccentric top mounts for them instead?

Chris

[brian]

well i got Bilstein coilovers just like ur Avo's but got adj' top mounts with them. don't kno if they will fit standard top mounts but the adjustable ones are an excellent jobbie.
:snipersm:

[Rick Draper]

Chris i initially built mine like in your first picture and they went together no problems but they just ran on the bumpstops as it all bottomed out so thats why i got the eccentric top mounts. Mine came with no instructions either cause avo are muppets they sent them me later and i had put them together right in the first place. Rick

[Rick Draper]

O and it dont look like you have pulled the shock shaft out in the pics as far as you shud, it will come out but you might have the shocks set on fully stiff and that means it wont come out easy. Rick

[barnes]

hey anyone got billy coil overs???? maybe after a set for the turbo beast

[Dicko]

its not working becuz ur hands r too clean, hahaha, you from down south :OP

[Dave_Hay]

and check how clean them tools r, i see why southerners get abuse.

u been to the breeny tanning booths n all ??

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

[barnes]

whats wd40? we call that a hammer and a chisel

have you ever used that jack or is it a show and shine winner?

[Ste_Nova]

your trainers/clothes/jack are too clean.....

p.s. i think you get rid of most of the top mount

also the avo top has to go down the shaft till it stops...

[djp_y2k]

Pull on the rod that goes into the damper. This will raise up enough fo you to get the nut on. That how I did mine

[CP]

Right first of all you were right in pic 1 - I did get instructions wiv mine.
As Rick says you haven't pulled the piston up.

2ndly I have now been to Avo and complained bitterly about the design.
My gripe is that the inclusion of the old std spring carrier and bearing ofF the old suspension set up assembly is a crock cos it wastes about 30 -40mm of space. This means that on 15's and with the springs wound fully down the car is only a bit lower than std.

Here are some of the classic quotes from the Avo boss:

"Oh once programmed in to the CNC machine tool we can't change the design cos its (wait for it ) "locked in ""
Thats total bollox and I told him so.
So then he said they couldn't change it cos someone else made it - thats bollox too. Then he said they had to consider the safety aspect -bollox. Then he said that they had to cater for all wheel sizes - err so thats why you haven't designed it to be adjusted down enuff then? Then he said they had to make it as simple as possible to install for all the thicko's out there - so that'll be why they don't bother to send out instructions then I s'pose? Plus, he said, its important not to go to low other wise it puts the steering out - bollox as well. You make any changes from the std geometry up or down and you'll need to check the steering alignment anyway.

I think you get the picture
I then told him that he had a good opportunity to get it straightened out cos I knew peeps were having probs. Oh no apparently nobodys said a dicky bird about it to them so they aren't going to change it - more bollox.

The only useful suggestion he could make was that we should all buy TAS top mounts as Rick has done. Prob the best solution but will put the price up a lot.

As for myself, I'm gonna get the ally bearing retainer they supply machined out to take a top mount bearing so that I can do away with the std one and get a load more space.

[Ste_Nova]

they should come fully built with new std topmounts or tas style ones for extra ??