Control arm removal

[95stocker]

I've been fighting the old control arm bolts for 2 nights now and have had no luck getting any of them off. I don't have any air tools so that makes it like 10 times harder. I'm going to buy some liquid wrench and a new can of WD-40 tonight and let it sit on there for a few hours before I try taking them off again. Any suggestions as to how to get these things off???? I'm using a 1/2 drive and a sledgehammer right now, and it's not working at all.

 

[rdksek844]

Mine were extreemly hard to break loose. They were not rusted, they were just really tight. I had to use a motorcycle strut bar as a breaker bar just to break them loose, and it's amazing my 3/8" drive ratchet diddn't snap in half.

 

[89roadster]

1/2" breaker bar extended with a 3+ foot of metal pipe over the handle

 

[95stocker]

Yea mine aren't rusted either. Like you said, just really tight. I'm about 5 new cuss words from putting a new air compressor and tools on the ol' sears card.

 

[95stocker]

1/2" breaker bar extended with a 3+ foot of metal pipe over the handle

how do you get all that under the car!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

I think I'm going to have to invest in deepwell metric sockets as well. (never had any use for them before now)

 

[shawnster]

I had to deal with the evil control bolts last weekend and I never did get them out..I cut the control arm in half!! I was installing a rear end though and put new bbk control arms on..BTW..if you decide to cut them with a sawzall..be prepared to spend about an hour for each bolt and 5 sawzall blades for each bolt, the bolts are 10.9 grade and harder then hell..Good luck!

 

[85GTlover]

how do you get all that under the car!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

He is assuming your car is on a lift or blocked up well off th ground. I have mine jacked up with the stands on blocks. Must be careful but it helps to be high as possible. Yes "high as possible" whatever you get out of it.

 

[79dog]

Wow, on my ol' 79 they weren't that bad. You are putting a wrench on the opposite side right? I just moved it till the wrench became lodged against the frame and used leg power on the breaker bar. Be careful though, make sure the car don't come off the stands.

 

[dastang2]

cutting torch for me and then replace with new grade 8's.

 

[horseplay91]

i just did all this recently and encountered the same problems

what i did was just use the breaker bar and jacked it up with the floor jack. worked pretty good. also you might want to break the bolts loose from the bolt side and not the nut so that the bolt will break free from within the bushing, otherwise you may find that the bolt itselt will be siezed inside the bushing after you take the nut off.

goodluck, Don.

 

[Rick 91GT]

Soak them with liquid wrench or PB blaster, let them sit then use a breaker bar as mentioned.

Then if they do not come loose use some heat, propane torch, etc...