96blkonblkse

iTrader: (18)

well tomorroww or on wednesday i am going to be replacing both my driveaxles (ripped both boots) so while i am down there anyways should i consider replacing my LCA bushings? I have quite bad wheel hop and i read that the LCA bushings when they go bad cause excessive wheel hop. the car has 180,000miles so theres probably a good chance they are worn out. ive read about them but id like to hear some personal experience on replacing the lca bushings. also is there a write up anywhere i didnt see one in the how to's or faq.


thanks
chris

SNOMAX

iTrader: (14)

After 180K miles, it's more likely the ball joints are worn. I got a new LCA off ebay from seller worldsuspension (or something close) and swapped the LCA's in. That replaced the ball joint and bushing. They are around $70 each side.

96blkonblkse

iTrader: (18)

thanks, did you notice a decrease in wheel hop?

KaZ

iTrader: (5)

I just did an entire suspension/drivetrain update... while I was in I wanted new bushings everywhere to fix highway jitters during sweepers at speed... Purchase new LCAs off eBay ($115 shipped), and purchased new ES Bushings for like $34 + shipping... yanked the brand new bushings off the LCAs, installed the ES Bushings and installed the LCAs with those. LOVE THEM!! Would highly recommend them. Getting the OEM/Stock bushings off is a REAL pain though... I ended up using a pulley puller (like a CRANK PULLEY puller and popping the bushings off that way). Getting them off the new LCAs was one thing... getting the pivot shaft off the OLD was a REAL pain in the rear!! I think I beat on that thing with a sledge hammer for HOURS, and then I ended up having to slice the sleeve off the pivot shaft with a die grinder to get it off... had just rusted in place after years of Chicago winters (I purchased the car in Chicago after finding it on eBay and drove it home to VA).

Let me know if you have any questions.

1991tsi

iTrader: (2)

i just did mine this weekend. balljoints are not hard to press in/out, and neither are the bushings. if your car hasn't been in an accident (ie no bent control arms) I'd stick with the stockers. especially if you plan to swap bushings anyway. bushings from cattman = $38.95 shippped, balljoint is about $30 from parts store. front-end jitters and play on launch have been reduced dramatically.

KaZ

iTrader: (5)

Good info... my LCAs were rusted all to hell... Sway Bar Endlink mount point looked like it was on its last leg... =( So I opted to just replace it.

96blkonblkse

iTrader: (18)

alright thanks guys im going to get the cattman bushings, mines never been in an accident, and last time i had the wheel off the LCA looked fine, no noticeable rust or anything! thanks for your help!