MI5

Took the opportunity of the good weather today to replace the weeping front left shock and the okay right front shock on my 01.
Got a good deal on a pair of 05 low mileage front shocks from Andy at Integrastella.

A bit of prior planning, last week I soaked the 6 bolts that have to be removed in plus gas and repeated it on Tuesday. I also checked to see how much the bolts would move before I started, after 13 years I feared the worse.
This revealed 2 PITA bolts, one each side. Specifically the lower bolt on each shock, where it is connected to the lower arm assembly. These 2 bolts would not move, even with a breaker bar, albeit doing the work outside my garage didnt give me the leverage i needed.

So Wednesday, a quick visit to my local tyre fitters, who I know well, and both bolts cracked and removed oiled and replaced for the cost of a couple of pints.
This meant today the whole job took 40 minutes a side with everything coming apart easily and going back together without problem including the torquing.
Was pleased to see that the main bolts, including the pita's had no corrosion present on the shafts at all, and once undone all pulled out easily.