Hey. Is there any trick to removing the two bolts from the upper control arm? They seem to be frozen in there and I tried knocking them out with a hammer but I still can drive them out. Something I am missing?
Upper control arm
- Thread starter Matahoe
- Start date
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TheAutumnWind
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Removed mine recently. There was no trick. They do have a flat side that coincides with the hole. Maybe try and see if you can line them up better
sumo
dn ʇǝƃ ʇuɐɔ & llǝɟ ı
Soak it in some kroil or some pb blaster and let it sit for a bit. Its likely rusted and when it swells, they can be a ***** to remove
OP
OP
No I have not. I even tried a press and that didn't work either. There are only a few posts on other forums suggesting to cut off the bolts. However clearance is poor for anything other than a cutoff wheel. Iam going to try heat and air hammer. I will try the cut-off wheel as a last resort. I have bad upper ball joints and now bushings after soaking them in pblaster the rubber is loose but the bolts are rust welded to the bushing sleeves. I have new bolts and camber plates waiting for pickup at the dealer. Time to head on over to HF and see what methods of destruction I can aquire.
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Well.. unless your cut-off wheel is smaller than 4" diameter, you won't be able to make it through the bolt without cutting into the bracket... tried for a couple hours on both DS bolts last night and cut into the bracket about 1/4" and stopped.
I inquired about using a plasma cutter and was advised by a few different folkes to use an oxy torch instead.. so I've got a buddy meeting me next week Wednesday with one to try and get it done. Hopefully i'll have the rust-fused wheel bearing and lower ball joint off the passenger side by then
Godspeed
I inquired about using a plasma cutter and was advised by a few different folkes to use an oxy torch instead.. so I've got a buddy meeting me next week Wednesday with one to try and get it done. Hopefully i'll have the rust-fused wheel bearing and lower ball joint off the passenger side by then
Godspeed
OP
OP
Can you explain your methos of attack using a torch? The metal surrounding the bushing mounting areas is flimsy really. . very thin. A plasma cutter would seem more precise.
Also I have read one post (can't remember if it was here) where someone welded up all portions of the bushing to each other so the bolt would spin by itself inside and not along with the rust welded rubber portion. That's an idea.
Also I have read one post (can't remember if it was here) where someone welded up all portions of the bushing to each other so the bolt would spin by itself inside and not along with the rust welded rubber portion. That's an idea.
This was my thoughts exactly plasma vs. oxy. However, the folks i'm gathering the insight from are familiar with the problem and have performed the procedure time and time again. I'll need to ask more questions as to why i'm not using a plasma cutter for this. Unfortunately they are acquaintances of a friend who i'll be talking with next Wednesday.
The frame mounted brackets ARE flimsy so not damaging those is for sure my concern. I noticed that just gaining a bit of leverage on my wrench cause them to bow in a bit when making contact with the cam stud. So I've got one of the bolts turning snugly, but turning.. unfortunately the nut and tip of the bolt broke clean off and now only 1/4" of bolt protrudes from that, in which I've pounded on with limited space to no avail of it backing away from the inner side of it's bracket. My plan is to use the torch to cut in where the rubber bushings are and go through in hopes i can pull/pry the arm out and then extract/pound/pull/melt out the bolt remnant from there.
The frame mounted brackets ARE flimsy so not damaging those is for sure my concern. I noticed that just gaining a bit of leverage on my wrench cause them to bow in a bit when making contact with the cam stud. So I've got one of the bolts turning snugly, but turning.. unfortunately the nut and tip of the bolt broke clean off and now only 1/4" of bolt protrudes from that, in which I've pounded on with limited space to no avail of it backing away from the inner side of it's bracket. My plan is to use the torch to cut in where the rubber bushings are and go through in hopes i can pull/pry the arm out and then extract/pound/pull/melt out the bolt remnant from there.
sumo
dn ʇǝƃ ʇuɐɔ & llǝɟ ı
See if you can get your hands on of these. An inductor tool. Super heats anything inside the coil. When I have a stuck bolt and I can’t use a torch, I’ll use this to heat the bolt, let it cool and hit it again. This allows the bolt to heat entirely through. Call around. Some places may rent them
have you tried just heating it up? like with a propane torch and then knocking it out, seems to work wonders on all kinds of other stuff
my next thought would be a press of some type, whatever could be fitted on there
and if that fails or can't happen I would cut that bastard off with a metal blade sawzall might take a bit of work but that bastard will come out
my next thought would be a press of some type, whatever could be fitted on there
and if that fails or can't happen I would cut that bastard off with a metal blade sawzall might take a bit of work but that bastard will come out
greenlee makes several different hydraulic press for punching out electrical boxes, you might be able to rent one and get the correct fitting on there it should pop right out
sumo
dn ʇǝƃ ʇuɐɔ & llǝɟ ı
Map gas burns hotter than propane
mooman
Member
Sawzall. Mine were siezed and a sawzall blade is skinny enough to cut through between the mounting plate and the bushing.
OP
OP
I picked up some thick Sawzall blades for metal. They cut through 1 inch hardened steel so should work well.
corvette744
2004 Z-71
My plan is to use the torch to cut in where the rubber bushings are and go through in hopes i can pull/pry the arm out and then extract/pound/pull/melt out the bolt remnant from there. Do that exactly or the sawzall eigther one and its out.Have a water spray bottle near if you torch they will catch fire but go right out with the water.
mooman
Member
Just slide a sawzall in there. Cut the POS!!!
Bombsquad85
Full Access Member
Any luck
OP
OP
This is on hold. Next on my to-do list. In the process of replacing both head gaskets.
OP
OP
Just got done with mine. Wow, let me tell ya... this was a pain in the rear BIG time. I had to sawzall the head and threads off on both bolts. I went through 5 metal cutting blades. The rust and the rubber bushing play made this seem like a near impossible job. I'm sure if this was at a shop they would have used a cutting torch or something.
Bombsquad85
Full Access Member
So what I did was I pushed the control arm all the way up on the passenger side grabbed a big effin ratchet then put my huge adjustable wrench on the end of the ratchet and cranked on it till the bolt broke free. When i finally broke the bolt and pulled it out it was all deformed and rusted. I tried a sawzall with no luck so I just muscled it. Almost threw my back out again
