Fitting Quicklift Bonnet Struts

[junebug1701]

Yesterday I fitted a set of QuickLIFT gas-spring struts on the bonnet of my '08 Limited. It was a little more challenging than I thought, but I ended up with only one Band-Aid! Here's the before picture with the old prop rod:

And the after picture with the new struts:

Ordered them from here:

http://www.redlinetuning.com/QL-TOY-RAV4-06+.html

I got the basic kit for $69.95 and painted the brackets satin black. To install you need a tape measure, fine point marker pen, utility knife, center punch, drill with #11 and 5/32" drill bits, Pop rivet gun, and a ratchet with a 5/16" socket. You have to measure and drill 10 holes, remove and trim the weatherstripping on either side, install the hood brackets with 6 pop rivets and the fender brackets with 4 self-tapping bolts. Re-install the weatherstripping, then just snap the struts onto the brackets and remove the old prop rod. Keep an old towel or cloth on the fender to catch the metal shavings, and put tape on the drill bits so they don't go too deep. If you take your time, you can knock it out in an hour or an hour and a half.

I made a short video to show how it works:

[St Thicket]

Nice!

That looked really handy!

Is it hard to close it again?

[bothwell_buyer]

AWESOME!!

Must admit the sound deadening is new to me - I haven't seen as much since I lifted the Humber Hawk bonnet!!

[Davrav]

Yesterday I fitted a set of QuickLIFT gas-spring struts on the bonnet of my '08 Limited. It was a little more challenging than I thought, but I ended up with only one Band-Aid! Here's the before picture with the old prop rod:

And the after picture with the new struts:

Ordered them from here:

http://www.redlinetuning.com/QL-TOY-RAV4-06+.html

I got the basic kit for $69.95 and painted the brackets satin black. To install you need a tape measure, fine point marker pen, utility knife, center punch, drill with #11 and 5/32" drill bits, Pop rivet gun, and a ratchet with a 5/16" socket. You have to measure and drill 10 holes, remove and trim the weatherstripping on either side, install the hood brackets with 6 pop rivets and the fender brackets with 4 self-tapping bolts. Re-install the weatherstripping, then just snap the struts onto the brackets and remove the old prop rod. Keep an old towel or cloth on the fender to catch the metal shavings, and put tape on the drill bits so they don't go too deep. If you take your time, you can knock it out in an hour or an hour and a half.

I made a short video to show how it works:

Excellent and useful mod. Had considered this myself - does anyone know of a UK supplier or agent?

[junebug1701]

Nice!

That looked really handy!

Is it hard to close it again?

No, not at all--it closes very easily. It's a very well-thought out design. The bonnet opens quickly then slows down for the last few inches. It stays open very securely--even in windy conditions.

[Steve-Jeep]

It looked so neat, I decided to try it out.

I ordered the kit from RedLine Tuning as advertised - There is a firm by that name here in UK, but they seem to specialise in engine power, not gas struts.

The kit price is good in dollars, but we have a tradition of paying more over here. Once the USPS shipping was added, the package had a short break in UK customs so the chancellor could take a slice to help out with the recession fund; then the UK carrier added their 'clearance fee', and I still had to go to their depot to collect the parcel and part with the cash. :censor: Overall cost: £95.00.

Like you, I sprayed the brackets satin black - Pity they don't ship them that way, like the ones in their catalogue. Fitting the struts was a simple job. The instructions were clear and easy to follow. Once the rivet heads were painted over, they looked like they had always been on the car.

Just out of interest for those folks on this side of the pond, I made a few measurements to see if they could be sourced in UK. The results were interesting...

Although I cannot find a complete kit of parts in UK, there are a number of suppliers who have everything necessary in their on-line store to assemble what is needed.

Overall impression: