Weak 2006 V8Vantage Bonnet/Boot/Door Struts

[dbl0]

Car has 16k miles. I know the weak struts are common. But, where do I get replacements that will not fail as soon? Did AM improve the versions available today?

[raceboy]

I'd say 15 years life out of the gas struts isn't too bad, the mileage is pretty much irrelevant
Don't think the Main dealer prices are a great deal different to Aston Bits but you're looking at about £30 each for boot/bonnet, and £20 for the doors.
https://www.astonmartinbits.com/search?search=stru...

[LTP]

dbl0 said:

Car has 16k miles. I know the weak struts are common. But, where do I get replacements that will not fail as soon? Did AM improve the versions available today?

To be fair to Aston, gas struts failures tend to be age-related rather than mileage- or usage-related - I had 12-yo struts fail on my last Volvo V70; they were the ones that supported the main luggage floor when you needed access to the spare wheel, which I rarely raised. If they're the originals then the door struts in your car are 15 years old against a design life of 10 or 12 years.

The struts Aston use are made for them by one of the big strut manufacturers and use conventional gas strut technology - the only issue you'll have with an alternative is finding a strut that has the required overall length, stroke length, end fittings, load and any end-of-stroke damping.

Edited by LTP on Wednesday 6th October 16:48

[phumy]

Try here:

https://www.sgs-engineering.com/car-boot-tailgate/...

[AdamV12V]

phumy said:

Try here:

https://www.sgs-engineering.com/car-boot-tailgate/...

Interesting the comment they make about replacing both at the same time rather than just one.... If thats the case why dont they just sell them in a pair at twice the price??

[phumy]

AdamV12V said:

phumy said:

Try here:

https://www.sgs-engineering.com/car-boot-tailgate/...

Interesting the comment they make about replacing both at the same time rather than just one.... If thats the case why dont they just sell them in a pair at twice the price??

Why would you want to only replace one, if one has failed surely the other one will be on its way out much like changing struts or springs on the car, you dont just do one, or do you, I certainly wouldnt just do one?

Edited by phumy on Thursday 7th October 08:59

[mrpseudonym]

15 years is pretty good. Its not worth hunting around for anything other than OEM. Dealer pricing is good on these. Boot struts are the easiest job you can do yourself, literally 30seconds. Do bonnet and door struts while you are at it and the car will feel like new

(Door is a bit more difficult..but only because of access, and the doors are heavy..)

Edited by mrpseudonym on Wednesday 6th October 21:47

[JonnyCJ]

And whilst you're replacing the boot struts, replace the boot pop up buttons which raise the boot slightly when you operate the key fob.

[BiggaJ]

My cars a 2009 (with 23K on the clock) and the first job I did was replace the boot and door struts, the bonnet struts were fine and still are. Makes all the difference, especially the door struts knowing they wont come back and crunch your shin. They aren't a costly item but the door ones need to have the front wheel arch lining removed to fit them.

[xstaticx]

phumy said:

Try here:

https://www.sgs-engineering.com/car-boot-tailgate/...

They will regas your existing struts for about £6 each if you are feeling tight. I had my fuel filler cap and armrest struts done recently without any problems.