Just sharing my experience with changing my inner / outer tie rods, sway bar end links, control arms, and driver side spindle. A couple of weekends ago I spend all weekend working on my car changing these parts, so that I could take a 10hr drive 2 days after.

The Wheel bearing on the driver side was going bad and I was going to replace the whole spindle, the outter tie rod nut couldnt come off no matter what. So a hack saw made easy work of the inner tie rod (thanks Kevlo for that suggestion). The main part I was worried about was the Link bushing pin. I knew it would be a pain to get off but I had no idea. After taking the spindle off with control arm still attached I tried to seperate the link bushing pin but had no luck.

I remember someone used fire so I figured I'd try that. I got some propane (not hot enough) from home depot and put my yoga flame on the bushing pin. 20 mins of burning it up, no luck. I used a drill with a small bit to drill thru the rubber and eventually I was able to free the bushing pin. Now I realize the metal cyclinder on the pin has to come off . . . Having no idea how I'm going to get it off now, I made a post on here and a member JwaxMax99 suggested I use a grinder.

Trip to home depot, got a grinder and spend a good amount of grinding, shooting parks and wearing down the metal. a 11,000rpm grinder made quick work of the cyclinder on the pin but it was just wearing it down and not giving me an opening to break it off. I said F**k it and moved to the passenger side, outter tie rod was being stubbon so I didnt hestistate to put the hack saw to that side. Passenger side went easy, I have large hands but found the easiest part was getting the tie rods on and tq'd down. BUT for the passenger side control arm I did something I should have done on the driver side. After I got all the bolts off the control arm except for the three 27mm bolts on the bushing pin, I then kicked the control arm giving suffient force to break the bushing pin free, then when I took the control arm off, it was cake to get the bushing pin off. I went back to the driver side that I was grinding off, the pin had much time to cool, and the metal part I was trying to grind off had started to pell off the bushing pin, I was so happy because before it looked like it was getting fused on, I grabbed it with some plyers and pulled that biiitch off, Did a quick happy dance and finished up the car.


To sum up my rant. Spent all weekend (with a lot of brake, part runs, and having to pick up people) working on the car, fighting certain parts to come off, and basically I was able to finally get everything done at about 4am Monday, dropped it off to get an alignment (they had a hard time adjusting the caster and got the car back to drive 10hrs down to Palm Beach Florida)


advice:
when changing the control arm, take off all the bolts except for those on the bushing pin and push or pull to losen that pin so that it will slide out with ease, or buy a new pin so that you dont have to deal with it at all. OR get a Big assss C-clamp like Nick has in his write up


Done ranting.

 

http://forums.maxima.org/showthread.php?t=476661

 

thank you sir for the link and the suggestion, it did the job.

 

Put the Link Pin in a vice and start twisting the LCA as you pull at the same time. It eventually comes out.

As far as grinding, you really need a cut off wheel to get through the metal collar around the bushing.

 

yea I didnt have a vice and the stores around me were out of vices.

 

"someone used fire" sorry but i got a kick out of that.

thanks for the info im doing a whole front end restore adventure at the end of the summer.