Front strut casing and the steering knuckle will not come apart...

[ry260z]

To start, I have a 1974 260z (early).  I'm in the process of getting the strut out of the car and have run into a really fun issue. 

The steering knuckle (the thing that attaches to the steering rack) is stuck to the strut casing.  The final goal is to replace with Koni inserts.

I've seen videos where folks just take out the strut once the two 17mm bolts are released that connect the strut and the steering knuckle.

That is not happening for me...

Things I've tried:

• PB blaster (overnight soak)
• Heat (blow torch)
• Banging on it
• Applying torque
• Pulling on it
• Pushing on it
• You name it

If I'm an idiot and have missed something, can you let me know?  From the FSM, it looks to me like I just have two bolts on the bottom to take care of and that's it?

FYI: I've already taken out the spring (with a compressor), the strut (and the gland nut), and can take out the brake disk if that's helpful.  Yes, the damn strut casing is stuck to the steering knuckle. 

Thanks in advance!

 

PS: I'm hoping to not deal with the ball-joint thus this is the preferred method.  If it comes down to taking it out, I guess I'll do it, but definitely not preferred...

Edited July 7, 2019 by ry260z

[Patcon]

25 minutes ago, ry260z said:

To start, I have a 1974 260z (early).  I'm in the process of getting the strut out of the car and have run into a really fun issue. 

The steering knuckle (the thing that attaches to the steering rack) is stuck to the strut casing.  The final goal is to replace with Koni inserts.

I've seen videos where folks just take out the strut once the two 17mm bolts are released that connect the strut and the steering knuckle.

That is not happening for me...

Things I've tried:

• PB blaster (overnight soak)
• Heat (blow torch)
• Banging on it
• Applying torque
• Pulling on it
• Pushing on it
• You name it

If I'm an idiot and have missed something, can you let me know?  From the FSM, it looks to me like I just have two bolts on the bottom to take care of and that's it?

FYI: I've already taken out the spring (with a compressor), the strut (and the gland nut), and can take out the brake disk if that's helpful.  Yes, the damn strut casing is stuck to the steering knuckle. 

Thanks in advance!

 

PS: I'm hoping to not deal with the ball-joint thus this is the preferred method.  If it comes down to taking it out, I guess I'll do it, but definitely not preferred...

Can you post up a couple of pictures of what you have and the bolts you have removed

[ry260z]

Thanks @Patcon,

Attached is what I've got.  As you can see, I've taken off the tie rod from the steering knuckle.

The bolt I'm talking about is already taken out in this picture.  I've taken out the corresponding bolt on the other side.

[Patcon]

The knuckles have a milled area that fits up into the bottom of the strut

They can be really difficult to separate. There is also a small O-ring that goes in there to keep water out of that joint. If you are just replacing the strut insert, it can be done without removing the strut from the car. If you really want to separate them, then it will have to be driven down with some force, which is going to stress the ball joints or you could try to drive a painters 5-way in between the parts.

[ry260z]

Thanks @Patcon!  I'll try building the strut/spring in place for now.

The milled area explains why it's so stuck.