Well. I was inspecting the front end of my max today. The steering wheel has been crooked for a little while and the left wheel seemed to have a bit more camber than the right. I haven't really gave it much thought but luckily I did. I attached a picture of what I found. Ya. That 21mm nut. MISSING. Luckily the local dealership had one. It was actually more off than that. Before I took the picture i mean. I had to get a dead bow hammer and beat it back on.
Anyone ever have that happen before?!?

 

Wow, Ive not seen that one. Make sure you torque that bolt down with the correct tq spec. (87-108 ft/lbs)

 

Will do man. I actually broke a cheap Chinese ratchet trying to torque it down lol.

 

Please don't use inferior Chinese tools. Mine was actually the opposite. It took a lot to break it free.

 

Interesting. You owe anybody money?

 

Oh no. I usually don't. I just couldn't find my craftsman 1/2 inch ratchet at the time.

 

Lol. No. i figured If I did, they would cut my brake lines or slash my tires.

 

Is that 21mm or 27mm? I just installed new LCA's and mine was 27mm. THe passenger side I was able to use an impact gun to remove mine and torque it installed in the car. The Driver's side was too tight to get a socket on it, so I torqued it when it was still still out of the car.

Hopefully you got the appropriate washer as well from the dealer. It rides only on the bushing sleeve and nothing else.

We all need a high clearance garage with a nice lift!

 

That is lower control arm bolt, right? I don't think it is 21mm, should be larger than that.

 

I know oem is smaller than aftermarket.

 

That bolt helps hold the lower control arm on, yes.

 

21mm. That's what it was. Same thing on the other side. The tech told me that the washer was nothing special. I trust him. I looked at the other side and it didn't look like anything special. I got a big washer from ace hardware.

 

Impossible!!!! The bolts on the underside of the LCA require a 24mm socket and they're 14mm bolts! That pivot link is even bigger than that!

 

Found out Saturday while getting an alignment after replacing the struts on my '95 SE that I needed new bushings on my LCA's. The shop said that replacing the LCAs was cheaper than just replacing the bushings. Found two from moog on RockAuto (one in the $40s and one in the 70s) haven't checked just the bushings yet (that is what I have signed on to do now but saw this first). I don't want to hijack, but do want to ask a few questions...


1) Is it better to replace the LCAs or just the bushings?


2) I am a Moog fan, is it better to go with the $40 or the $70 ones? I don't mind spending the extra cash if the difference is worth it.


3) How difficult is it to change the LCAs and is there something/anything else that I should do while doing this? The struts were pretty easy and straightforward to me (I did use one of the tutorials from here) the hardest part to me was getting those %^$# brake clips back in place....the struts were the 'problem solver' all-in-one things...love them so far btw...


Thanks for all and any help!

 

Is that the one that is 27?

 

Start your own thread. Thanks.

 

Go with the Moog Problem Solver LCA's. Complete with new bushings and ball joints already installed. Easier and yes, cheaper. Having bushings replaced or pressed in, as well as new ball joints, adds to the cost of the cheaper ones. And the cheaper ones are literally cheaper made. AND Moog uses quality bushings and ball joints (with grease fittings) in the better ones.

No Brainer!

Might as well do the Sway Bar End Links and Sway Bar Bushings while you're there. Moog End Links and Energy Suspension Sway Bar Bushings.

I did all of the above in December in my 99 Max SE. NICE! If you aren't pulling the axles to get access to the ball joint nuts, find a nut splitter that will fit in there or you have a potential nightmare when the nuts round over. Hitting the joint with a hammer is the only way to make the ball joints drop out after the nut is removed.

If you have more questions, it's better to start your own dedicated thread to develop it fully.

Now, back to the regularly scheduled program

 

Problem solver isn't availble for the 4th gen at least on Rockauto it's not! the difference is the lower balljoint! The problem solver LCA have greaseable lower balljoints and the Lesser Moog is a sealed unit! Raybestos Professional grade is equal to the Moog Problem Solver line.....