Wrx Coil-overs on a 98 gen2 rx liberty..

[liberty_gen2]

i have got a set of coil-overs for my liberty but am worried if the rear ones ill fit..
i have fitted the fronts already and they are 100% spot on but the rears im worried about the strut tops..
the coil-overs are off a 99 model wrx wagon but they have also been in the same model wrx sedan..
i have heard from some1 a while back they i'll need to change my rear strut tops but i've also been told that they'll fit..


i just wanna make sure they'll fit before i pull my car apart to do it.. im a mechanic so doing the actual work myself is no dramas but i just dont wanna waste my time..

any help would be appreciated cheers, Mitch

[adhar]

Rears definitely won't fit, but you can keep the fronts as they should be the same.

From my foggy memory the WRX strut top on the rear is 3 bolts, whereas liberty is 2 bolts.
And the rear WRX bottom is a two bolts set-up (like the front struts), whereas the liberty bottom is a long single bolt running at a right angle to the strut.

I've only worked on WRX, Lib gen 3, and Lib gen 4 suspension so Gen 2 could be entirely different and everything i've said is crap, but i reckon Gen 2 rear is same is all the other Libs suspension.

[adhar]

I just realised that maybe my description wasn't very good so some pics might help.

You should stick your head under the back of the Liberty to see which type it looks like.
Your Liberty suspension should look similar to the pic on the top (struts on the right) . Your WRX rear coilovers should look similar to the pic on the bottom

0622011.jpg (90.67 KiB) Viewed 1956 times

teinsswrxgc8.jpg (13.18 KiB) Viewed 1956 times

As you can see if this is the case there's not much chance of anything fitting.

[Adrian2627]

Gen 1 and 2 Liberty use a McPherson strut setup like the Impreza but the actual strut tops could be different. It wasn't until Gen 3 that the multi-link rear end was introduced. It shouldn't take too long to change the rear struts on the Gen 2 over, maybe 30 mins in a workshop with a hoist air tools etc.

[liberty_gen2]

nahh the rear set up is mcpherson struts with 2 bolts on the bottom... pretty much like the fronts.. and it has 3 bolts on the strut top just wanna know if the stud pattern on the strut tops are the same...


and doing the work is no dramas i just dont wanna pull my car apart and then realise i have to put it all back together for nothin.. it'll take me 20 mins to do as im a mechanic but just want some sort of insurance that they'll fit thats all..

cheers

[adhar]

well how bout that, i didn't realise gen 2's had macpherson strut rears. sorry for my misguided advice then!

i guess you'll just have to remove the back seat and check if there is 2 or 3 bolts. If there are 3 gaps then its worth making the attempt to see if they fit!

by the way, why would they change suspension the design in later model liberty's? more boot space or something?

[liberty_gen2]

definately 3 bolts there as i've had my springs in and out numerous times this year due to defects...

and they change it coz theyve found a cheaper easier more convenient and mostly because its more efficient and yeahh they gotta change it due to the wieght and other aspects of the cars geometry i guess..