# Q2 on Shocks/Struts

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/q2-on-shocks-struts/80574>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [September 9, 2001, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/q2-on-shocks-struts/80574 "2001-09-09T23:39:28Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Jinx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Jinx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jinx)\
**Post date:** [September 9, 2001, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/q2-on-shocks-struts/80574/1 "2001-09-09T23:39:28Z")

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Can someone explain the difference between a “strut” and a MacPherson “strut”? (Are MacPhersons just on trucks?) I have a '93 Escort Wagon - what kind of struts would it have, if any? Also, must all four struts be replaced together, or can I do two at a time (to spread out the total cost)?

- Jinx

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**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\
**Post date:** [September 9, 2001, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/q2-on-shocks-struts/80574/2 "2001-09-09T23:47:56Z")

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All struts are “MacPherson” struts, named after the guy that invented them. And yes, you can do the front and rear pairs separately if you like.

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**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\
**Post date:** [September 10, 2001, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/q2-on-shocks-struts/80574/3 "2001-09-10T02:35:56Z")

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What Hail Ants said, except that the term “strut” just means a structural member under compression. In automotive suspension terms, strut usually refers to the strut used in Macpherson strut suspension, which is a (the most?) common type of suspension.