Replacing UCA/LCA bushings

I have never replaced UCA or LCA bushings on anything, and my stupid Haynes manual just says to take it to a dealer, as special tools are needed. (Time to invest in a FSM, I think) How hard is it to replace the bushings, and what "special" tools are needed? I need to do all 8, and I prefer to know what I'm doing so this job will only take a weekend or less.

Thanks for the help.
Jeff

Are the bushings for the UCA and LCA different? And can the same bushings be used in the frame mounts for the control arms as the ones used on in the axle mounts? Sorry for the newbie questions, just trying to be prepared .

I replaced all upper and lower control arm bushings on my 1990. Getting the control arms off was ok, doing both lower arms then both upper arms. Getting them back into the jeep was a huge pain- the axle moved, and the arms wouldn't line up. This is with the jeep on axle stands behind the LCA body mount, wheels off, axle hanging, officially the right way to do it....... I ended up runnning a chain under the jeep and around a back wheel, second chain to the front axle, jackall in between to pull the axle back into line. Not fun. Some time later, I did the UCA bushings- this time it took a long (4 feet long) pipe wrench locked on the axletube, with a jack under the end of the pipe wrench. Of course, angles available are limited by lots of stuff in the way- took some finess.
That covers UCA and LCA removal and reinstall. The bushings are in a metal sleeve in the control arm. Since I was using polyurethane bushings, the metal sleeves stayed in the control arms and I heated the sleeves with a propane torch (OUTSIDE!!!nasty fumes), then pushed the old rubber bushings out. To get the new bushings back in, clean out the sleeves, then put the control arms in a warm place. Put the bushings in the freezer overnight, to shrink a bit. Lube the bushings with the supplied silicone grease, and hammer them into the sleeves. Poly bushings, properly lubed, make a rubbery sounding squeek every time I go through a dip or over a bump. I should have used OEM rubber, but then you have to remove the old sleeves, install the new bushings with sleeves, if I heard correctly.
The bushings were the same on each end of the control arms. Upper and lower take different bushings, so 2 sizes are needed.

You know, quadratec.com has complete UCA for 12.99, including both bushings. Complete LCAs are 19.99, including both bushings. You would save very little by keeping the old arm and replacing the bushings only. Just my $.02

Good luck ... I'll probably be doing the same soon.

I looked at Quadratec.com, and I think I will be just replacing the whole control arm instead of just bushings, the UCA for 12.99 only has 1 bushing though, the one with both costs 21.99, but I can get all 4 control arms + bushings for only slightly over $100 (thats AFTER shipping). But, to make it a little easier compared to 4xBob, I think I'll do them 1 at a time, instead of 2, just so the axle has less of a chance of shifting.

What part numbers did you order (or are you looking to order)?

I am in the same situation, worn bushings. What are the part #'s? And are these quality? I try to replace everything on my jeep (stock 91 sport) with top quality parts (for the money, of course). Is this an opportunity to upgrade at all? Any thoughts? thanks y'all... TJ

How can you tell if the UCA/LCA bushings are worn?

I've done a visual inspection of the bushings and they look "OK". Maybe one or two have a tiny crack at the sides, buts it hard to see the whole thing.

Is this something that commonly wears out on the XJ? I've got 201k Miles on mine.

Mine are cracked and the rubber is "squishing" out, and it squeeks a LOT going over bumps or dips.

The part #s at Quadratec.com are
Front Lower Control Arm (Need 2) = 56015 001 (19.99 each, all bushings included)
Front Upper Control Arm (Need 2) = 56015 005 (21.99 each, all bushings included)

Rick Anderson said:

How can you tell if the UCA/LCA bushings are worn?

I've done a visual inspection of the bushings and they look "OK". Maybe one or two have a tiny crack at the sides, buts it hard to see the whole thing.

Is this something that commonly wears out on the XJ? I've got 201k Miles on mine.

Click to expand...

I have 258,000 on the original control arms in my '88 XJ. On the other hand, I have an '87 MJ I bought used with just over 100,000 miles and I replaced the driver's side LCA two years ago. The sign they are going bad is when you start to get a CLUNK when you stop after going forward, and start to back up "smartly" (or the other way around).

To replace the stock ones you need a hydraulic shop press and a spacer to keep from crushing the arms. For the small difference in price, IMHO it's far better (not to mention easier) to buy the complete arms from Crown or Quadratec. (Quadratec's arms may, in fact, be Crown, or they might be Omix Ada these days. Dunno which.)

Years ago, I replaced the lower bushings- took off one arm, took it to a shop, bought the bushings-$10 a piece, they pressed them in for $5, so the whole adventure cost $60. But, the car was down for a week, between removing one at a time, driving to drop off, pick up next day,repeat,etc. Then while under it last year, I find that one of the bushing sleeves is loose in the arm! That's when I ordered the new ones from Q-tech. I also have a set of urethane bushed control arms- bought the whole set for like $120 from Q-tech, and went to Harry's U Pull It and got extra control arms and installed the urethanes. Wow- talk about stiff! I just took the arms and drilled out as much rubber as I could, and pushed out the rest with a hammer and a piece of wood. Be careful with the drill- I used a 3/8" bit- you don't want to damage the sleeve in the arm as you need to use it. I then cleaned out what was left- sandpaper is fine- then lubed up the new urethanes and tapped 'em in. The whole kit from Q-tech is great because as rubber parts wear, you have them in stock- stab. bushings, leaf spring bushings, etc. My vote is to order the kit, go to the yard and get extras, re- bush them and swap at your leisure. One at a time though!.....Ray

heyhar,

Is there a reason you cannot take one from each side of the vehicle and thus take them two at a time to the machine shop? Like a lower from the driver's side and an upper from the passenger's side?

As stated in another reply here, you do not want the axle to shift, otherwise it's a real bear to get lined up again. I've had mine out numerous times, and other than maybe a half-inch tweak, I've never had a problem. Just make sure that the vehicle is secure when it's up in the air, with the body on jackstands, and have a way to add or subtract lift at the axle- one or two floorjacks would be nice. Don't tighten the bolts until the car is resting at normal ride height so the bushings aren't fighting the wrong position. Honestly, you're better off getting new ones, as the new metal parts should last longer, and you can have them on hand to do the job all at once.....Ray

Absolute pain in the arse to do, especially if you are inexperienced and/or by yourself.

Do yourself a favor and just buy the NEW complete control arms from Quadratec and save that several hours of labor on the press.

Getting the arms swapped will be easier if you have a helping hand. Do one at a time! Remove one arm and immediately replace it with a new one. Do this three more times and you should be good to go.

The only other thing is that the upper arm bushings on the axle end, are mounted in the axle itself and are not part of the control arm assembly. These are kinda hard to get out and even harder to get in. However, these may not be as worn out as your upper bushings on the frame end.

I have done this as well...bear of a job. the best bet is to bite the bullet and buy new arms with bushings installed!! Then you only need wory about the two in the axle.
I used a BallJoint press. If you dont own one try a rental or buy a cheapie from Harbor Freight...about $20. It worked quite well, almost easy if there was more room. I have since done this on another axle sitting on a bench with NO PROBLEMS!





Good luck,
CW

hey HeyHar- was that bushing kit from Quadratec the 23mm KJ09006BK? I have a 91xj sport and need a lot of bushings replaced, probably will buy the control arms whole however. Does that make buying this kit a waste of $$? Thanks everyone. _TJ

Keep in mind everyone on here that has changed his control arms as part of a lift has a set of uppers and lowers that are worth nothing. In our club we have one guy who gets all the old/stock control arms. When someone needs a bushing, well you get a free bushing (with a stamped contol arm attached).
Just changed all the stock bushings in my lifted XJ last weekend, cost = $0.00.
Check your local club. Odds are there are a plethora of stock control arms floating around for free.

The UCA has the forward bushing pressing into the axle.

SO, if your swapping out bushings by getting new control arms (I just ordered them from Quadratec), you'll still have to press out the bushings at the axle.

Can this be done with big sockets and "C" Clamp? Or is a "TRUE" bearing press needed?

Did this two weeks ago. A true press is not needed, but I rigged up a puller, because my c-clamp wasn't up to the challenge.

From a hardware store got a pipe nipple that was 2.5" in diameter and 4" long. Took the new bushing with me and got a couple of large washers that were the same diameter of the small end of the bushing and also a few larger diameter than the pipe. I then got a long 3/8 bolt and nut.

I used the smaller diameter washers to pull the old bushing into the sleeve created by the pipe. to install I pulled the ushings into the axle by reversing the rig I created.

I did spray with PB blaster 2x daily for 3 days before starting the work. The right came out and went back in easier than the left one. On install I coated with never seize.

The two axle end bushings cost $84 for both at the dealer.

Tom

Wow, $84 at the dealer. My new arms ended up costing me $79 ($94 after shipping) for all 4 with all 8 bushings. They will be here tomorrow and I will be putting them in on Friday. Shouldn't be too hard now that I know what Im getting into. Will have nice weather and I have plenty of tools (most importantly the BFH). Hopefully they arent just cheap junk.