front suspension write up

[awdblazer]

does anyone have a write up on what to do first when rebuilding your front suspension?
I have lower control arm bushings, speedway upper control arms, inner and outter tie rods, tie rod sleeves, upper and lower ball joints, sway bar end links, sway bar bushings, centre link, idler arm, and the jeep steering shaft
thanks!!!

 

[pontiacgp]

first you take it all apart...

Before you take it apart measure the the tie rod lengths on each side so when you put it back together you're close. I would do the uppers first, then the lowers and then I would assemble the inner and outer tie rods with the sleeves and adjust them to the recorded lengths, then install the inner tie rods on the drag link, then install the drag link and then your sway bay and links

 

[clean8485]

Be very careful when handling the front springs, especially if they're compressed at all. You'll need to either try to release the tension from them as much as possible, or use a spring compressor to handle them safely if they're compressed. If you don't handle them correctly, and they're compressed, they can do some damage.

 

[awdblazer]

so for taking everything apart
remove sway bar end links
remove outer tie rod
remove shock
put jack under lower control arm
loosen upper and lower ball joints
lower jack till spring has no tension on it
remove control arms
and then replace parts?>

 

[marcar1993]

Remove all those items, but just loosen the lower ball joint. Keep the jack 1/2" under the control arm and the nut still loosely on the lower ball joint. When you separate them, you want something to catch that spring tension. Then once its "free" jack it up a bit, remove the nut and SLOWLY and CAREFULLY relieve tension on the spring with the jack. I suggest a spring compressor too. Be careful, it is dangerous and it can hurt you bad if that spring comes out under load.

 

[307 Regal]

I'm in the middle of my rebuild right now. I probably shouldn't share how I did my springs because it's not very professional. Lets just say it involved a really big chain. One thing I will very readily recommend is bushing removal. If you're going to rebuild the lowers yourself, don't try to cut through the rubber with power cutting tools because it makes a hot gooey mess. Get yourself a drill and drill out as much of that rubber as you can. Then spray some WD-40 in there, grab the inner sleeve with some pliers and work it out. (Those inner sleeves are tough. I have dulled many many sawzall blades trying to cut through them.) Once you've pried that out, pick the rest of the rubber out, then all you have left is the thin outer sleeve of the bushing. The way I did that is: I took the sawzall and cut out the center sections of the bushings, leaving just the ends stuck in the A-arm. Then stick the saw inside the remaining bushing ends and make at least one cut on each piece. (Be careful not to cut into the lower itself. Maybe use a hacksaw blade instead?) The inner section is now ready to be removed by way of hammer/chisel or screwdriver. The outer section still has that outer flare keeping the ring rigid. You can easily solve that by making a cut with a die grinder. Once again, be careful not to cut the lower itself. The old ball joints were pressed out at a shop, free of charge, probably because they were glad that's all they had to do to them.

I have ideas (more like tested methods) for putting in new bushings, but I should wait until I've actually done that step just to be sure. What bushings did you get? I got mine from PST. The longer bushings have a larger inner diameter than the shorter ones. I called them but their guy in tech claims it's an OE spec. The extra clearance on the mounting bolt just doesn't seem right to me so I'm calling Moog today to see if they'll tell me the measurements on theirs.

One more thing: Use a "pickle fork" to separate your ball joints from the spindles. Makes things pretty easy. Just remember to have a jack on the lower a-arm before you start banging away. (the spring)

 

[81v8gp]

What about the Musclecar episode where they show how to reinstall the lower arms using a 5/8" threaded rod? I am wondering if this would work to take it apart too.

http://www.powerblocktv.com/episode/MC2 ... suspension

 

[307 Regal]

What about the Musclecar episode where they show how to reinstall the lower arms using a 5/8" threaded rod? I am wondering if this would work to take it apart too.

http://www.powerblocktv.com/episode/MC2 ... suspension

That's actually my method of installation for bushings, and it does work for the uppers as far as removal once you cut out the cross shaft. I didn't try it for the lowers because my rod didn't fit, but then again, there isn't much to push on for the lowers. I can explain what I mean later when I have more time to put a post together.

I'll be back with photos later I guess. 1/2" threaded rod for the uppers, 7/16" threaded rod for the lowers. Fine thread. Might be able to just use 7/16" for both. idk. The tool was originally made for my rear end job. (housing bushings)

EDIT: I didn't realize you were talking about putting just the springs back in at first, so sorry if this reply makes little sense.

 

[81v8gp]

Yeah what I am talking about is the removal and installation of the coil springs. I think it's the most dangerous part of the front suspension. I am hopefully going to be doing my front suspesion this winter. I was going to take the control arms off and have a machine shop install the bushings.

 

[FE3X CLONE]

Wrap a chain or heavy steel cable around the frame and through the coil spring. Place the hydraulic jack under the control arm and remove the spindle as mentioned above by using the springs force to help separate the ball joint.
Make sure jack is in place, remove lower ball joint castle nut and slowly begin to lower the jack and release tension on the spring.
The chain or cable is there purely as a safety measure so that if the spring does slip and tries to fly out it won't take your head off.