im replacing my passenger side control arm because the bushing is practically gone (from oil...not sure if its from oil changes or the oil seal). it makes the "bang, ting" sound whenever i drive over any dip or bump, likes to steer a bit in the wrong direction at shifts/messes up my traction...sometimes trying to throw me off the road when i barely turn at 80mph+ speeds (of which i refrain from driving at now!!).

anyhow, i have my haynes manual and ive surveyed the actual situation underneath my car. i went ahead and purchased the control arm. seems like all i need to do is remove the bolts/nuts, replace part, and then tighten a bit, lower car, and then tighten bolts to recommended torque.

is there anything that complicates this situation or any special tools i might need? haynes is an awful repair manual and they always leave out the small, important details!

 

The brass bushing on the inside of the rubber bushing often seezes up and u will have to dremel it off..good luck

 

Lower control arm? http://www1.autozone.com has a site and it provides the steps in the steering and suspension section. I'm sure there are better directions but I'd need to google. Perhaps, there is more detailed info in one of the faq sections?

 

yeah it's a great site check it out

 

After changing the control arms go and get it realigned as the new control arms will change the alignment quite a bit. Good luck.

 

yeah, i had it aligned a few months ago and it didnt do a damn thing because that passenger side likes to move in/out a little depending on where/how ive been driving. not a lot, but enough for me to notice a difference in the performance/noisiness.

 

hmm; everything was real easy (got the SUPERsized socket wrench out) until i tried to undo the 3 nuts that hold the control arm and ball joint together. anyone have a good opinion on how to get them to ease up other than using wd40 or having a torque gun?