Does anybody know what special tools are required to change the control arm bushings? I suppose a shop press would help but Im wanting to do it myself without have to pay a shop to press them in for me. Any tricks? or am I stuck paying someone to press them in? Thanks.
Something I use at work is a air hammer with a chisel bit. I put the control arm in a vise and take the nuts off with my impact wrench and then I use the air hammer to walk the bushings out. Make sure the shaft is not worn also, if so, the new ones are not expensive. Don't forget to put the shaft back in before you put both bushing in.
I use a little spray lube on the bushings. You can put a big socket that will clear the rubber part but touch the outer metal ring. Usually you can drive the bushing in with a regular hammer, but if you have the air hammer, you can change bits to a hammer bit and use it. This works for me, ofcourse you need the air tools and air supply. Its not as hard as it sounds. Hope this helps. When you put the "A" arm back on the car, try to tighten the shaft nuts all the way after the wait of the car has the control arm where it normally rides. This keeps the rubber in the bushings from twisting. Any questions, just email me. Good luck, Tom
I used a few pieces of pipe (same OD as the new 1LE bushings, pipe cut into halves the long way)with a screw clamp device that a friend of mine made (He's an HVAC guy and everything is simple for him! The guy can do anything!) Another larger OD pipe section on the outside to support the arm. Email me and I can try to explian better. Took me an hour tops to do all four of mine after I had my stock control arms boxed. Super easy.