Hey guys, I noticed in the couple of pics posted to the sway links thread a problem with your lower shock mounting. You should be installing a large washer (larger than the diameter of the mounting housing) to prevent the bolt head from pulling through the bushing.
You can see that if the rubber bushing in the shock body itself fails, there is nothing to prevent the bolt head from going right through and thus you have no attached shock down there. Bad.
This is a major safety issue. I cannot count how many times I see this when I inspect cars and it still floors me. This issue may not be as common anymore but I think it’s due more to people installing a proper washer. This has been known for a long time, I knew of this way back in like '99 or even earlier.
Seriously, install a large washer to prevent this dangerous situation from becoming reality.
If you look at most Koni set ups you can see they have a washer fitted onto the end of the bushing for this exact reason. I think the Bilsteins come with a large washer but most people put it at the top instead of the bottom. In fact I just checked quickly and even the instructions show to mount the washer down there. I typically replace the Bilstein washer with an even larger one but the one that comes with should stop the bolt head from pulling through completely.
I know of people who have wrecked cars due to this issue, it’s not an urban/internet myth.
Be safe.
