When you purchase a new 4WD it isn’t exactly cheap business. Gone are the days where 4X4 dual cabs were cheap and proved an economically wise purchase for people who wanted to get bush. With a dual-cab HiLux costing anywhere from $48K up why are we still settling for vehicles that are missing basic, but useful accessories such as gas struts for your bonnet. We understand the resistance from manufacturers if we start demanding they put lockers as standard in their 4WDs but simple gas struts shouldn’t have to be asked for, it should be expected.

For a simple install, we grabbed ourselves the gas strut kit from Drivetech 4x4. The kit is priced around $125 and comes with all of the brackets and mounting hardware specific to the Amarok. This really is a quick and easy DIY installation when you grab the kit as we did; as long as you have a few basic tools and can read the instructions. Let's take a look at the steps involved.

BONNET
STRUTS INSTALL

DIY
Why don’t all new 4WDs have this as standard?

GUIDE

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STEP 1
The first step is to mount the bottom bracket. This is where your gas strut will connect to your car and ensure it actually holds your bonnet up instead of sliding, scraping, and damaging your engine bay. On the Amarok it’s just two of everyone’s favourite torque screws, size 27, and you’re done, just make sure you have the correct side with the ball joint closer to the front than the back.

1

STEP 2
Next you need to fit the upper bracket to the underside of your bonnet. To mount you need to place a large nut on the inside of your bonnet so you have something to fasten into. However, be careful as if you lose grip of the nut it will fall into the depths of the bonnet and take you a lot of time and much frustration to retrieve it … don’t ask why we know that. Then you take the top hinge support bolt out of the bonnet and attach the bracket, sliding it under the top bolt. Make sure you tighten this down, particularly the bolt for the hinge so you don’t have any accidents in the future.

2

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3
4

STEP 3
This step may sound a little crazy but it is still important. To make sure the new gas strut is in working order place it on the ground and compress it and let it rebound roughly five times. This will make sure the strut is ready to go when you fit it and that you won’t have issues with being able to close your bonnet.

STEP 4
Step four, the final step, is to connect your strut to the brackets. We connected the strut to the body-mounted bracket first and then rotated it to line up with the bonnet bracket and connected it that way, however either way should work.  When connecting the strut you should hear a nice “click” so you know its connected properly and ready to hold the weight of your bonnet. Then complete the other side so you have two working gas struts and you’re finished.

Even though the manufacturers choose to not provide it, there’s now no excuse for your 4X4 not to have gas struts under the bonnet if you want it. Just make sure you have the tools, some basic know-how and maybe a mate too, so you don’t knock the bonnet and drop it on your head.

STEP 5
Before you pack up and drive away, it's always a good idea to check the bonnet opens and closes as it should. A perfect opportunity to admire something so simple, but so glorious.

Offline: This content can only be displayed when online.
5

GUIDE

BONNET
STRUTS INSTALL

DIY
Why don’t all new 4WDs have this as standard?

When you purchase a new 4WD it isn’t exactly cheap business. Gone are the days where 4X4 dual cabs were cheap and proved an economically wise purchase for people who wanted to get bush. With a dual-cab HiLux costing anywhere from $48K up why are we still settling for vehicles that are missing basic, but useful accessories such as gas struts for your bonnet. We understand the resistance from manufacturers if we start demanding they put lockers as standard in their 4WDs but simple gas struts shouldn’t have to be asked for, it should be expected.

For a simple install, we grabbed ourselves the gas strut kit from Drivetech 4x4. The kit is priced around $125 and comes with all of the brackets and mounting hardware specific to the Amarok. This really is a quick and easy DIY installation when you grab the kit as we did; as long as you have a few basic tools and can read the instructions. Let's take a look at the steps involved.

SCROLL TO CONTINUE WITH CONTENT

ADVERTISEMENT

*Terms and conditions apply

STEP 1
The first step is to mount the bottom bracket. This is where your gas strut will connect to your car and ensure it actually holds your bonnet up instead of sliding, scraping, and damaging your engine bay. On the Amarok it’s just two of everyone’s favourite torque screws, size 27, and you’re done, just make sure you have the correct side with the ball joint closer to the front than the back.

1
2

STEP 2
Next you need to fit the upper bracket to the underside of your bonnet. To mount you need to place a large nut on the inside of your bonnet so you have something to fasten into. However, be careful as if you lose grip of the nut it will fall into the depths of the bonnet and take you a lot of time and much frustration to retrieve it … don’t ask why we know that. Then you take the top hinge support bolt out of the bonnet and attach the bracket, sliding it under the top bolt. Make sure you tighten this down, particularly the bolt for the hinge so you don’t have any accidents in the future.

SCROLL TO CONTINUE WITH CONTENT

ADVERTISEMENT

STEP 3
This step may sound a little crazy but it is still important. To make sure the new gas strut is in working order place it on the ground and compress it and let it rebound roughly five times. This will make sure the strut is ready to go when you fit it and that you won’t have issues with being able to close your bonnet.

3
4

STEP 4
Step four, the final step, is to connect your strut to the brackets. We connected the strut to the body-mounted bracket first and then rotated it to line up with the bonnet bracket and connected it that way, however either way should work.  When connecting the strut you should hear a nice “click” so you know its connected properly and ready to hold the weight of your bonnet. Then complete the other side so you have two working gas struts and you’re finished.

Even though the manufacturers choose to not provide it, there’s now no excuse for your 4X4 not to have gas struts under the bonnet if you want it. Just make sure you have the tools, some basic know-how and maybe a mate too, so you don’t knock the bonnet and drop it on your head.

Offline: This content can only be displayed when online.
5

STEP 5
Before you pack up and drive away, it's always a good idea to check the bonnet opens and closes as it should. A perfect opportunity to admire something so simple, but so glorious.

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