('99 Cavalier) Replacing rear shock 'catridge'. At the upper end, the shock shaft passes through the spring retaining flange. Below where the shaft goes through the flange, there is a steel collar, which expands into a bell that retains a 'bellows'-type dust cover that surrounds the shaft. (Sketch below)
When I removed the old shock, this collar tore some of the rubber around the hole in the spring flange. And, the collar itself seems pretty firmly bonded to the shaft. The new shock doesn't have this collar, so it's a VERY loose fit where it passes through the spring flange.
This looks wrong. But, the new shock doesn't say anything about replacing the collar/bellows, and it's not clear that the old one is removeable. So, I could convince myself that the shock position will be maintained by the force of the spring against the upper flange. But, it looks wrong.
Any hints would be appreciated. Or, I can try to clarify what I'm saying. Describing things is not easy.
Thanks, George
(use fixed-pitch font to view) collar | || | || || | || || /\/\/\/\/| | || .-------------.|| | v || ----- shock ||| shaft |-----. || ----------------------- ///// || -----------------------///// ----- ||| |-----' (threads) '-------------'|| bellows | || || /\/\/\/\/ || || || || || lower spring upper spring flange flange