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Lower Control Arm Removal on '97 SE


piste
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After 15 years of loving service it seems the bushings in my front lower control arms are toast. They are rattling quite a bit. I'm wanting to pull them off and press in poly ones from 4x4 parts.com. Can anyone tell me if I can get the control arms off without pulling the axle? It would seem that I can remove the three nuts holding the ball joint to the control arm and have enough clearance to the axle/CV to pull ball joint bolts out and disconnect there and get the control arm off. This of course also requires removing bolts holding control arm to that center member. This way I can take the contorl arm to my press and remove the old bushings and use my press to get the new ones in. Just trying to plan this project and appreciate any input.

Edited by piste
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  • 1 month later...

After 15 years of loving service it seems the bushings in my front lower control arms are toast. They are rattling quite a bit. I'm wanting to pull them off and press in poly ones from 4x4 parts.com. Can anyone tell me if I can get the control arms off without pulling the axle? It would seem that I can remove the three nuts holding the ball joint to the control arm and have enough clearance to the axle/CV to pull ball joint bolts out and disconnect there and get the control arm off. This of course also requires removing bolts holding control arm to that center member. This way I can take the contorl arm to my press and remove the old bushings and use my press to get the new ones in. Just trying to plan this project and appreciate any input.

 

Anybody? I would have thought SOMEBODY would know the answer. Does the axle need to come out to get the front LCA off? It looks like the axle would have to come out to separate the ball joint from the knuckle. no?

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You can remove the LCA with out touching the axle by removing the three (12mm I think?) bolts that connect the ball joint to the control arm.

 

I bent the @!*% out of mine and had to go to the local jy to replace it. The bent arm is on the left in this pic.

 

403540823.jpg

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Awesome. That's exactly what I was trying to determine. Obviously the other two attachment points are straightforward in terms of procedure to disconnecting them...not necessarily easy with frozen bolts and all...but simple in concept...but I wasn't sure procedurally if I could get the ball joint off the knuckle w/o pulling the axle. so it looks like get the three nuts off and pickle fork it or something.

 

Thanks.

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