Strut Bolts with Fitting Position Front and Rear, Front Axle, Rear Axle for HSV SV99 VT

VT SV99 strut bolts hold the strut to the hub carrier, and on many vehicles one of them is also what sets the front camber.

That dual role is why a bolt that looks like ordinary hardware is worth paying attention to.

What Strut Bolts Do on Your VT SV99

The bottom of a strut clamps to the steering knuckle or hub carrier, usually with two bolts through a machined fork.

Those bolts carry the full load of the corner. Every bump, every braking force and every cornering load passes through them, which is why they are high tensile rather than general purpose fasteners.

They also locate the strut precisely against the hub. Any play at that joint lets the strut move relative to the hub, which shows up as a knock over bumps and an alignment that will not hold.

Torque matters more than it does on most fasteners, because the joint relies on clamping force rather than on the bolt shank taking the load in shear.

Standard and Eccentric VT SV99 Camber Bolts

Two types exist and the difference is what they allow you to adjust.

A standard strut bolt is a plain high tensile bolt sized to fit the hole. It locates the strut and nothing more, and on a vehicle with factory camber adjustment elsewhere that is all it needs to do.

An eccentric camber bolt has an offset cam washer built into it. Rotating the bolt moves the hub relative to the strut, which changes the camber angle at that wheel.

That makes a camber bolt both a fastener and an adjustment mechanism, and it is how camber gets corrected on vehicles the manufacturer did not provide adjustment for.

Fitting an eccentric bolt where a standard one was gives you adjustment that was not there before, which is commonly done after a lift or to correct wear related camber drift.

VT SV99 Camber Bolt Sizes

Sizing is straightforward and getting it wrong wastes a trip.

The bolt diameter has to match the hole in the strut fork, with 10mm through 17mm covering most applications and 12mm, 14mm and 16mm being the most common.

Length has to suit the thickness of the joint, with enough thread for the nut to engage fully and not so much that it protrudes into something.

The amount of adjustment an eccentric bolt provides varies by design, usually expressed in degrees of camber change. More adjustment range means a larger cam, which needs clearance to rotate.

Measure the original rather than guessing, since a previous owner may have already fitted a camber bolt in place of the standard one.

When Camber Bolts Are Needed on Your VT SV99

Three situations account for most camber bolt purchases.

A lifted 4WD is the first of them. Raising your VT SV99 moves the suspension through a different part of its arc, which changes camber immediately, and a camber bolt is the cheapest way to pull it back into specification.

Component wear is the second of the three. Bushes and ball joints settle over high kilometres and the camber drifts with them. Where the components are still serviceable, adjustment corrects the symptom.

Accident damage and component replacement is the third, where a rebuilt corner does not land exactly where the factory had it.

What a camber bolt does not do is fix a bent component. If an arm or a knuckle is damaged, adjusting around it leaves the vehicle out in other ways.

How Camber Affects Tyre Wear on Your VT SV99

Camber is the angle of the wheel when viewed from the front, and it decides which part of the tread carries the load.

Negative camber tilts the top of the wheel inward, which loads the inner edge of the tyre under straight line driving while improving contact during cornering.

Positive camber tilts the top outward and loads the outer edge.

A wheel out of specification wears the tyre on one edge and leaves the rest of the tread barely used. On a vehicle covering distance that can cost a set of tyres well before they should be due.

It also reduces the contact patch available for braking and cornering traction, since only part of the tread is doing the work.

That is why camber correction is worth doing properly rather than living with, and why a camber bolt is one of the cheaper parts on a vehicle relative to what it saves.

Camber Bolts After Lifting Your VT SV99

Lifting a 4WD is the most common reason a camber bolt gets fitted, and the reason is geometric.

On an independent front end the control arms swing through an arc. Raise the body and the arms sit at a different point in that arc, which changes camber immediately and usually toward the positive side.

A camber bolt provides enough adjustment to pull a modest lift back into specification, which is why it is the first correction tried on a 2 inch lift.

Larger lifts move the geometry further than a bolt can correct, and those need offset bushes or adjustable upper control arms instead.

Caster moves at the same time and a camber bolt does not correct it, so a lifted vehicle frequently needs both addressed rather than just the one.

Why VT SV99 Strut Bolts Should Be Replaced

High tensile bolts clamping a loaded joint are not ideal candidates for reuse.

They are torqued to a high figure and spend years holding a joint that is constantly loaded in multiple directions. Corrosion builds in the threads and at the shank, and the clamping force they generate on retightening is not what it was.

A bolt that has been through an impact, even one that looks straight, has had load applied in ways it was never designed for.

They cost very little against the labour of having the corner apart, which makes replacing them the sensible call whenever the strut comes off.

Seized VT SV99 Strut Bolts and Getting Them Out

Any strut bolt that has been in place for years is likely to resist coming out, and planning for it saves a difficult afternoon.

The bolt passes through a steel fork into a hole that collects water, so corrosion forms between the shank and the bore rather than only on the threads. The nut can come off cleanly while the bolt itself refuses to move.

Penetrating fluid and time work better than force. Applying it the day before rather than at the moment of the job is worth doing.

Heat helps on a seized bolt and needs care near brake components, bushes and anything with rubber in it.

Where the bolt has to be driven out, support the knuckle so the hub is not hanging on the brake hose and the ABS cable while it is hammered.

A bolt that comes out damaged is never refitted, and the hole it came from should be checked for elongation before the new one goes in.

Fitting and Torquing VT SV99 Strut Bolts

Mark the position of any eccentric bolt before loosening it, so the camber can be returned close to where it was.

Torque to specification with a wrench rather than by feel. Under torqued, the joint moves and the bolt hole elongates. Over torqued, a high tensile bolt can be taken past its useful range.

Set the final torque with the vehicle at ride height on its wheels where the joint includes a bush, since a bush takes a set from the position it is clamped in.

Have a wheel alignment done afterwards without exception, since any work at this joint moves the camber.

Check the bolt holes in the strut fork for elongation while everything is apart. Once a hole has gone oval, a new bolt will not hold the joint properly.

Signs of a Problem at the VT SV99 Strut Bolts

• A knock from the front over bumps that changes with steering input
• An alignment that will not hold its camber setting between services
• Visible movement at the strut to hub joint when levered
• Corroded or seized bolts found during other work
• Uneven tyre wear on the inner or outer edge
• A camber reading that cannot be brought into specification

A camber setting that drifts between services usually means the joint is moving rather than the alignment being wrong, and tightening alone will not fix an elongated hole.

Find Strut Bolts for Your VT SV99

Strut bolts belong to the Formula 4x4 struts and shock absorbers range.

Select your VT SV99 to see the strut bolts and camber bolts available for it, in standard and eccentric types. Measure the diameter and length of your originals before ordering, and check whether your application already has a camber bolt fitted.