Rear lower control arms

[ssbrewskyaz]

Those bolts look like an unanticipated right or left turn on launch waiting to happen depending on what side breaks. ...

 

[ck80]

Thanks everyone for the good info. Looks like it will be a pretty easy job since I won’t necessarily need to change the arms. I’ll just swap the parts over. Hopefully when I pull the bar off the Monte arms, those inner support spacers will be good enough for continued use. If they are, I’ll treat them to POR15 before putting them in.

By the way, the front has already been treated with a GN sway bar and Bilstein shocks

There's nothing special about the 'spacer' you can't reproduce if they are rusty. You just need some steel pipe with an ID big enough for the bolt to pass through, and, an OD small enough that the flanged surface of the bolt heads and nuts extend wider than the pipe.

 

[69hurstolds]

11517996 is the latest GM p/n for the crimp nuts you need for the rear sway bar. 10.9 property class, M10 x 1.50, 15mm socket.

11508039 is the bolt you need. M10 x 1.50 x 65mm long. 10.9 property class, aka high strength.

10000097 are the reinforcements/spacers.

10000099 is the sway bar shims needed. As required. Theoretically, any appropriate sized shims would likely work, but they are double bolt openings on the long shim stock so it can slide right in from the top and be equal shimming for both bolts using one shim.

10000063 are the lower control arms for rear axle, comes with the bushings pre-installed. These are also the same part number for the NON-FE2 and NON-1LE 3rd gen F-body LCAs as well. So yeah, some of the F-bodies did use the same LCAs as a G-body. Watch out for the ones that have "waffle" bushings in them. Those things flex way too much.

Here's some pricey NOS arms with the latest p/n, 10081635.

1987 MONTE CARLO SS REAR LOWER CONTROL ARMS NOS GRAND NATIONAL 442 10081635 | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for 1987 MONTE CARLO SS REAR LOWER CONTROL ARMS NOS GRAND NATIONAL 442 10081635 at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

 

[JD1964]

I have not cleaned them up yet but all the parts look reusable.

 

[ck80]

I have not cleaned them up yet but all the parts look reusable.

View attachment 219377View attachment 219378

I'd probably change the bolts because they're cheap and at least one has visibly narrowed in thickness, but, the spacers look like they'll clean up good

 

[JD1964]

I'd probably change the bolts because they're cheap and at least one has visibly narrowed in thickness, but, the spacers look like they'll clean up good

I’ll make a final judgment on the bolts after wire wheelin’ ‘em. If they have only slight wear I’m the type that would use them. But not until after slathering them up with anti seize compound. That will prevent any further degradation.

 

[SS_Malibu]

If those inserts are not in good shape, your local hardware store will sell you some sleeves to put in the lower control arms in place of those sleeves.

 

[JD1964]

It’s interesting though if you think about it. Why didn’t the factory just use sleeves instead of the insert piece like they did? I think the insert also plays a role to stiffen up the control arm along the area that the bar is secured against.

Note that in the earlier A body cars, the cars that came factory with rear stabilizer had gussets welded across the control arms in that area. So I think the inserts in the G body cars are designed to perform the same basic function of the welded gussets on the A body cars.

 

[ck80]

It’s interesting though if you think about it. Why didn’t the factory just use sleeves instead of the insert piece like they did? I think the insert also plays a role to stiffen up the control arm along the area that the bar is secured against.

Note that in the earlier A body cars, the cars that came factory with rear stabilizer had gussets welded across the control arms in that area. So I think the inserts in the G body cars are designed to perform the same basic function of the welded gussets on the A body cars.

I think you're giving too much credit, at least for the reason you speculate.

The factory control arms are made of pretty flimsy metal. They flex a good deal, which, in its way does prevent binding and allows thing to move just like the choice of big soft rubber bushings. The spacers spread the load of the control arm tugging on that thin metal over a larger area to prevent cracking in the steel.

 

[JD1964]

Why don’t the G body cars have the welded gussets like the A body did?