Ugh upper shackle bolts

So I bought another breaker bar, this time 1/2" drive, with an impact socket. Put cheater bar on, and with a lot of force the same thing happens as last time...it just snaps. No squeaks, no rust to break loose, just snaps. The bolt doesn't even really move. The socket is fine, the breaker bar I'm sure just has too much torque on it and slips off the socket. Is there any way to get these stupid bolts out other than that? Is there a welded nut that might have broken? Keep in mind that I have 4 extra bolts so I can just as easily cut the bolts out and put new ones in, however I'd like info on that because I don't want to turn this into a major project. Thanks.

heat! i never touch any bolts under my jeep without MAP gas anymore. i've broken too many. but if you het them till htey are smoking they will definately come out. I give you my word.

PB and lots of it. its better to do it a few days before you plan on workin on it but just soak the hell out of it and wait a few, if fthat dont work, like he said heat

There is a captured nut inside the "frame rail" that that upper shackle bolt screws into. It's not at all uncommon for those to strip out or break loose. Try heat and penetrating oils like PB Blaster, but if (more likely when) those don't work, you'll need to measure and locate the appropriate spot inside your cargo area and cut open a hole so you can reach in there and remove the offending nut and replace it. You then cover the holes with a simple sheetmetal patch you can rivet down or even just stick down with silicone adhesive.

Re-read this thread and his previous posts! OP,I still dont know how you can spin-out a breaker bar,but you might want to look into 3/4" drive tools,I have a full set up to 1-3/4" and I can break it loose/or break it!

Take it to a shop, have them pop them off for you...Couple of bucks later your done.

I have an impact and 3/4 drive sockets too, guys, but when those captured nuts break loose they're not coming out until you get in there and can get a wrench on them.

i have, in the past, broken a captured nut loose, then drilled a hole in the framrail right beside it(under the nut) and made a small weld between the rail and nut, then heated(welding usually heats it enough) the bolt and broken it loose.

Pull the rear bumper off so you can get to the bolts/captured nuts. Heat and PB Blaster will get it done.

Is this jeep always been here in CA.. If it has, use a impact on it...Mine did not come off till i did this...Spray it, then do something else, then hit it..

i had to use a breaker bar when i installed the shackle relocation brackets this weekend.
i dont thin the part behind the rear bumper will work, as i had that off due to spinning bolts on the hitch, and i never saw that one there....
be very carefull with heat, fuel tank and all:confused1
i have used heat in the past and it works, just be carefull!
maybe try to eat more mcdonalds before the next attempt?
i had to put some muscle into it, but with my breaker bar, it came loose. i had good access though, as the PO had cut holes behind the bumper caps that lined up perfectly with the bolts, making it a straight shot!
good luck

martin

It's been soaking in PB Blaster for a couple weeks now, and I've still sprayed it. I'm not sure how to get the rear bumper off. Seems to me that the bolts I'm trying to get off the bumper are impossible to get to with a wrench, socket, ratchet, or any combination.
I'm about ready to sawzall the bolts off and try to remember how I got the other studs out when I cut off the old leaf packs.
I'm not sure how an impact will fit because the quarter panel gets in the way, I'd have to drill a big hole in the quarter, which might not be a good idea. This Jeep believe it or not is still virgin to hacking up, I don't know why but I can't bring myself to do it.
After those bolts come out, I can rest assured that just about EVERY bolt in this Jeep has been replaced at one time or another.
However, to explain a little better about my theory on why I keep "snapping" the breaker bar: pretty much on the square drive, this is a HF breaker bar, so there is a huge bevel on the square drive, making for a lot of play for a socket. I'm guessing that when lots of torque is applied on the square drive, the drive "twists" in the socket, and when it twists too much, the bevel on the square drive makes it so that the socket has no more drive to grab onto, making it "slip". It's a crazy theory but it kinda makes sense, I'm sure if the drive actually had no bevel I would have snapped the drive clean off like I've done before.

I have bolts sound like there just popping and they are actually moving. Just one pop at a time. PB blast and id say keep at it you will work up a sweat but it should come out.

PB Blaster for a couple of weeks prior

The other trick that I have learned is using wax... The Gulf Canning Wax... Heat the bolt and then touch the wax to it. The melted wax wicks up in the crud and lubricates it. It is really odd to watch watch but the wax is sucked up into the crud.

The wax melts at a pretty low temp... like 115 degrees or so.

Once you get it hot enough and feel like you have some wax worked into it rock it back and fourth. If you can get a 1/8 turn off the tighten it and hopefully get 3/16 of a turn the next time... Keep rocking it back and fourth.

I just pulled the same bolts off my "new" project XJ today. They popped forever. They were almost out before the stopped popping. Just keep turning, it will come out. Mine has 267K on it and all I used was a 1/2 drive ratchet and short pipe for a breaker bar. BTW if the welded nut did come loose the easiest way to get at it is to take a 1 1/2 hole saw and drill from the inside of the frame rail directly opposite the bolt. There is already a hole to get to the nut in the outer side of the frame rail. You can now get a socket and extension on it to hold it. There is no way to get to it from the hole in the end of the frame rail behind the bumper. The only downside to doing it my way is you have to drop the gas tank.

easyst way to get to the nut is take the bumper off and use a sawzall to inlarge the holes in the back bigger and a breaker bar with a socket fit perfectly in the hole. to get the bumper off try a 15mm deep well socket i just did all this this saturday, i think it was a craftsman3/8 ratcher and same 15mm deepwell to get the bumper off and i think a 1/2 in drive and a 13/16? socket on the weld nut

Mine popped alot and eventually came out but I did have to rethread the nut in the sheetmetal pocket. If you have new bolts a good harware store can match a nut and then a tap to rethread.

I broke one of the "captured" nuts in the frame rail, and had to access it from a hole I cut in the bed of the jeep. It will just spin in place if you broke it loose, but the popping sound you hear could also be it torquing loose one grunt at a time. If you did break it though, you will need to put a wrench on it somehow, or it will never come loose. Use one of the methods mentioned to access it. I have a 97 w/200k+. I do have one question though that might help you in the future. When I replaced the hardware for the upper shackle to leaf spring connection, I did not weld the bolt to the frame rail. I just tighted to torque spec, cuz no welder available. Should I go back and have that nut welded to the frame rail? Has anyone else dealt with this issue?

TruffleXJ said:

Should I go back and have that nut welded to the frame rail? Has anyone else dealt with this issue?

Click to expand...

Mine is just torqued down and not welded. No need now that you have an access point.

Took your guys advice and ate some more McDonalds. I managed to take the bumper off with a great deal of thinking how I'll fit a ratchet in there, took about an hour or so to get the bumper off. Heated the crap out of the bolts that were sticking out in the inside of the unibody frame, and sure enough they loosened right up. Then I greased the crap out of some newer bolts I had and now they go all the way in by hand.
All in all it took about 3 hours or so to get everything unbolted (8 bumper bolts, 4 shackle bolts).
I really don't want to put that bumper back on.