Daihatsu Hijet: Front Strut Damper Seal Leak & Oil Loss

The S320V uses conventional MacPherson front struts with a hydraulic oil-filled damper cartridge. Over time and with accumulated mileage, the piston rod seal hardens and degrades, allowing damper oil to bypass the seal and weep down the outside of the strut body. As oil loss progresses, the damper loses hydraulic resistance and becomes progressively ineffective, compromising ride control and vehicle stability. Grey imports to NZ commonly arrive with 100,000-200,000 JDM kilometres and the original struts still fitted, making seal failure at this mileage level highly probable. Front end bouncing, poor braking stability, and accelerated tyre wear are consequences of worn-through dampers.

• Oily film or wet residue on front strut body below the upper mount
• Excessive front-end bounce over bumps — more than two oscillations after bump
• Vague or imprecise steering feel, particularly on undulating roads
• Uneven or accelerated front tyre wear
• Front nose dip under moderate braking more pronounced than expected

With the vehicle on a flat surface, visually inspect both front strut bodies from underneath for oil staining or wet residue below the top mount dust cover. Perform a bounce test — push down firmly on each front corner and release; more than two oscillations indicates damper failure. Compare both sides for symmetry. Inspect tyres for uneven wear across the tread width which indicates suspension geometry deviation from worn dampers.

Parts involved: Shock absorber / strut.

$480 to $950 at New Zealand independent workshop rates. That is for this job on its own, not for the car.

An estimate, in NZD, for the repair as normally carried out. What a specific car costs depends on which part has failed and what it damaged on the way — treat this as the floor for a negotiation, not a quote.

• “Have the front struts been replaced and at what mileage?”
• “What is the total odometer reading including any JDM kilometres before NZ import?”
• “Has there been any complaint of excessive front-end bounce or floaty steering?”
• “Have the front tyres shown uneven wear across the tread?”

The failure described above is documented in published sources — owner forums, technical service bulletins, recall notices and workshop write-ups — held in our fault database. The inspection instructions and the cost estimate are KickTyres’ own interpretation of them, and it is a starting point for an inspection rather than a manufacturer statement.