There are shocks on the rear that can both be changed in about 1 hour. The front has struts that will take maybe 2 hours to change if you buy the compete assemble which includes spring, strut, and mounts. If you are only replacing the strut I recommend you have this done by a professional as it can be very dangerous.
to replace the shocks in a nut shell, take off the rear tire, buy a spring compresser and compress the springs, there is bolts that hold the shock in, take those out, one at the top and one at the bottom, after that pull the shock out with the spring, and put it back together just how you took it out.
Compress the shock spring with a spring compressor. Be very careful as the spring will be under several hundred pounds of pressure. Remove the shock bolts on both ends of the shock. Reverse the process to install the new shock.
I am in need of advice on how to remove the rear inside panels to access the bolts for the shocks on a 2004 Mazda tribute, I do not want to break any of the plastic studs in the process, need the locations of the attachment points
Strongly advise you to have this done. Even if you can get the strut removed from the car,you will need a spring compress to remove/replace spring. There is a lot of energy in a spring and you can be seriously injured or killed if spring is not properly handled.
to change the shocks on the rear of the jaguar XJ-6, you need a spring compressor. compress the spring, loosen the top mount plate from under side of car. drop the axle as far as you can. undo the top mounting, then the lower. the car will have to be raised far enough to allow the shock to be removed and the replacement installed.
You should get a factory service manual to familiarize yourself with the procedure. The rear shocks are fairly easy to change for anyone with general mechanical aptitude and the proper tools. The front shocks should be changed by a good front end shop that has a spring compressor.
spring struts
The 4Runner doesn't have struts; it has coil-over shocks in front. After removing the old shocks a spring compressor is required to remove the springs and install them on the new shocks. Take it to a front end shop that has the proper compressor and tools; it's very dangerous if you don't have good equipment and experience. The rear shocks are easy to replace by yourself.
Yes, you have to compress if you remove either.
Potential energy in the form of elastic potential energy increases when you compress a spring. As the spring is compressed, it stores potential energy that can be released when the spring returns to its original position.
It means how "stiff" the spring is; how hard it is to compress or extend it.