When you bought your Honda Accord new, the ride was smooth and comfortable. After you've driven 60,000 miles under normal conditions, you need to replace your shocks and struts to keep the ride smooth. If you do it yourself, it helps save on the hassle and expense of having a mechanic do it for you.
Lift the front end of the Accord with a floor jack, and support it by the frame with jack stands. Use a tire iron to loosen and remove the nuts holding on the front wheels. Set the wheels aside.
Locate the shocks behind the wheel hub. They're the assemblies attached to large coil springs. Follow the brake hose from the wheel hub back to the strut, and remove the bolts securing the hose to the strut. At the bottom of the strut, you see the fork with the pinch bolt at the top connecting it to the bottom of the strut. Remove the nut and bolt at the bottom of the fork, as well as the one at the top connecting it to the strut.
Disconnect the strut from the frame by removing the upper mounting nuts, as well as the 8 mm and 10 mm bolts at the top of the strut. Pull the strut out of the bottom of the wheel well. Repeat Steps 2 and 3 on the other side of the Accord.
Disconnect the self-locking nut from the top of the strut assembly, and replace it. Slide off the washer, the upper bushing and the mounting base. Remove the collar, the lower bushing and the spring cushion. The spring comes off, followed by the dust cover and plate and the lower spring cushion. Pull off the bump stop plate and the bump stop. Lay out the parts in the order they came off the shock so you can put them back on without confusion.
Reassemble the strut assembly with the new shock, in the reverse order you took it apart. Repeat Steps 4 and 5 with the other strut assembly.
Position the new strut behind the wheel well with the aligning tab pointing in, if there is one. Hand-tighten the upper mounting nuts to hold the strut to the frame. Slide the bottom of the strut into the top of the fork, and insert the damper bolt and nut. Hand-tighten them, and hand-tighten the bolt at the bottom of the fork. Repeat on the other side of the Accord. Mount the front wheels.
Lower the Accord. With all four wheels on the ground, set the dial on your torque wrench to 47 ft-lb, and tighten the bolt at the bottom of the fork until you feel the wrench slip. Torque the bolt holding the fork to the strut to 32 ft-lb and the upper mounting nuts to 28 ft-lb. Torque the 8 mm bolts to 16 ft-lb and the 10 mm bolts to 37 ft-lb. Have a professional align the front end of the Accord.
Lift the rear end of the Accord with a floor jack, and support it by the frame with jack stands. Take off the rear wheels. Slide another jack stand under the rear axle to support it.
Pop the trunk, and remove the bulkhead cover so you can access the top of the rear suspension system. Remove the two flange nuts just below the opening from the cover. Lower the jack stand beneath the axle. Remove the nut and bolt at the bottom of the strut, and pull out the strut.
Disconnect the self-locking nut from the top of the strut assembly, and replace it. Slide off the washer, the upper bushing and the mounting base. Remove the collar, the lower bushing and the spring cushion. The spring comes off, followed by the dust cover and plate and the lower spring cushion. Pull off the bump stop plate and the bump stop. Lay out the parts in the order they came off the shock so you can put them back on without confusion.
Reassemble the strut assembly with the new strut, in the reverse order you took it apart.
Position the new strut in the suspension, and install the two flange nuts under the bulkhead cover. Raise the jack stand beneath the axle until the suspension starts to compress, and insert the lower bolt. Torque it to 43 ft-lb. Repeat Steps 3 through 5 on the other side of the Accord.
