techman41973 wrote:

Don't know about that version of Accord.  But on the 4th-gen ('90-'93),
the springs tended to break at either end of the coil, although this was
more likely for cars driven in winter climates.  When the right spring
cracked on my '93, it had about 110k miles on it at the time.

Have a 97 accord with almost 200K on it and struts are OK - springs in
struts are ok - don't think the springs will go - struts could loose
their dampening ability - jump on bumper and off - does it spring up
and down - if not struts are probably ok.  If a spring breaks - really
rare - you would see one side of the car down - like the air bag
lincoln continentals with a leak.  If you do replace the struts - be
damn careful with that spring compressor - had one to let go - really
comes out with a vengance - can tear off fingers - break bones.

Spend your money on something else besides your honda's springs/struts
- replace the ATF every 30K - change oil filter every 4 to 5K depending
upon how much you drive.  Figure my honda is good for at least 250K
before I replace it.

How can the mechanic tell if they should be replaced? Do

Not restricted to Hondas, I have seen springs sag, or lose their strength,
over time.  And, yes, occasionally one with break.

You can  measure from a  ground level hard surface ( a garage floor)
to a reference point on the car chassis to see if the height is correct.
I believe this measurement is available for most cars. If you cant find
the data for yours, you can measure each side and get a pretty good
idea if one side has relaxed.

If your springs are not broken nor 'relaxed', I see no real reason to
replace them.

Check your ride height.  If it is within spec, I would not worry about the
springs.  The noise you hear is probably some bushing/s that went bad.  You
should look into that and replace the bad part/s while you have the struts
out.  
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Alex