best way to install lower control arms(rear). I have a set of race ramps to put them up on. should i keep all the pressure on the rear tire when installing them or pressure off and have the side that im installing dangling.
Lower control arms
- Thread starter mrpork
- Start date
I had both rear wheels loaded (on ramps) when I did mine.
Just back it up on the ramps and keep both sides loaded during the install. Only unbolt one arm at a time and you won't have any problems.
so put the car up on race ramps and follow the directions. thanx snoopy49
Yup that's how I did mine, too.
any issues at all?
Nope, that install method has worked perfectly. I've even removed them to inspect them to make sure they looked ok after a couple thousand miles and to make sure the grease was getting everywhere it needed to, and everything looked good. Also like RBB said earlier do one side completely then do other side. If you remove LCAs at once the axle position can shift and make it more difficult to position it properly.
thank you sir
I jack the car up and put stands under the pinch welds, then place the jack under the pumpkin (and slightly raise it so there is a little load on it) so it doesn't shift as much when the bolts are removed from the arms. I've done this a ton of times and most of the time I don't have to mess around with the axle shifting.
Is everyone using new Ford bolts front and rear?
good question!!
No.
Are you using the Original Ford bolts?
Yes
Unless the bolts and nuts are a one time only use item, Ford is protecting their butts, liability wise. Since this hardware is associated with life and death and Ford has no idea of the history of the old parts, they would rather replace than litigate.
The instructions supplied with the Steeda arms I have specifically mention reinstalling the factory bolts.
For just a regular lower control arm swap I reused the stock bolts. I didn't think they were one time use fasteners. If you do the relocation brackets at the same they come with new bolts for the rear location because they need to be slightly longer.
If you decide to do the upper control arm at some point I would recommend getting a new bolt for the upper control arm to differential attachment point. The factory bolt has a metal piece welded on to the head of the bolt which hits against the factory upper control arm to prevent the bolt from turning while you tighten it. It works beautifully when installing a factory lower control arm, but it doesn't function to prevent the bolt from spinning with the BMR upper control arm in place. The welded piece makes it extremely difficult to use a wrench to prevent the bolt from turning while the nut on the end is torqued. The welded piece makes the wrench slip off the bolt head very easily if you aren't careful. The BMR upper control arms I believe are supposed to come with a new bolt for this location for that reason, but the new bolt was left out of my package and I did not want to wait for them to send me a new one so I was able to make the stock bolt work by being careful while tightening it.
If you decide to do the upper control arm at some point I would recommend getting a new bolt for the upper control arm to differential attachment point. The factory bolt has a metal piece welded on to the head of the bolt which hits against the factory upper control arm to prevent the bolt from turning while you tighten it. It works beautifully when installing a factory lower control arm, but it doesn't function to prevent the bolt from spinning with the BMR upper control arm in place. The welded piece makes it extremely difficult to use a wrench to prevent the bolt from turning while the nut on the end is torqued. The welded piece makes the wrench slip off the bolt head very easily if you aren't careful. The BMR upper control arms I believe are supposed to come with a new bolt for this location for that reason, but the new bolt was left out of my package and I did not want to wait for them to send me a new one so I was able to make the stock bolt work by being careful while tightening it.
I noticed the same thing on the panhard bar and brace. My guess is that Ford must assume that the suspension parts are being removed because of an accident and don't want to take responsibility for unseen damage on the hardware causing a future failure. Plus there is no way the mechanic can be sure that the fastener hasn't been over torqued in the past. Having said that, I reused the fasteners in my panhard bar and brace installation. I bought my car new, it's never been damaged and it has never been in the shop for service, so I am confident that the used parts were viable. This is were the known history comes into play. If I had bought my car used, I would have replaced the recommended hardware, but that's just the aircraft mechanic in me.
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