UCA bushing nightmare

Well, I think I met my match. I'm attempting my upper control arm bushings (axle end). After hours of fighting I finally got the driver's side bushing OUT. I tried a ball joint press... no luck or just not quite the right adapters. I tried making the tool with the threaded rod, washers, and nuts... bent up the rod and killed the threads. Eventually, I drilled out the rubber, burned out the rubber and finally air hammered the metal bushing out.

I have a nice clean bore on the axle mount. I have new bushings... but I have NO IDEA how to get the new ones pressed in. The ball joint press just isn't getting me where I want to be. The coil spring is a problem... it's in the way of every angle I try. I might shoot out and rental up a spring compressor and take it out. Still, with the adapters that came with my ball joint press (Advance Auto rental - it's a really big kit) I can't seem to get the right combo lined up. The bugger is that the axle pumpkin is really close to the bottom of the bushing housing... my adapters won't really line up because of the pumpkin.

I tried the bushings in the freezer trick. If that actually reduces the size of the bushing it is on the atomic level. Not even close to a "tap in" job.

I'm about to head out to Home Depot and rustle up some more threaded rod and nuts. Not too sure about the prospects though.

There is a local Jeep/4x4 shop near me. I put in a call there and the owner would be willing to give it a whack Saturday morning. He seemed a little confused about my situation but I might be limping across town on 3 control arms in the morning if I don't wring this out tonight! :repair:

I'm having regrets starting this project up - Hit me with the ideas!

do you have stock control arms. i got a set with good bushings if you want to just swap the whole thing. if you cant get that sucker out.

EDIT: wait a minute this is on the axle. sorry didnt read it well enoughh

i had a harder time getting them out, put in the rubber first then put in the metal sleeve. they should push right in with some lube.

streetpirate said:

i had a harder time getting them out, put in the rubber first then put in the metal sleeve. they should push right in with some lube.

Click to expand...

Hmm... on mine the new bushing is one piece (metal outer cylinder, rubber "meat" and the hardened sleeve that takes the bolt). Not sure I'm following.

maybe wrong part?

The ball joint press is the best way to go (that I've found) and it definitely helps to have another person there. With the standard adapters I had, it wasn't too much of a PITA, but wasn't necessarily a fun job either.

Just remember, you don't need to set up the adapters to do it all in one shot. You can set it up to get it started and then reposition them if the bushing starts to bottom out on them.

I wish I could explain myself better, but this is one of those things I kind of like to be there to show what I'm talking about.

You need to rent a wrenchable ball joint press from autozone or kragen. Lube everything up before you put back in. Worked like a charm for me.

Here it is.

http://www.autozone.com/autozone/ca...s&categoryDisplayName=Tools&_requestid=103078

I think i had to incorporate a socket some how when doing this but i forget.

MoparManiac said:

The ball joint press is the best way to go (that I've found) and it definitely helps to have another person there. With the standard adapters I had, it wasn't too much of a PITA, but wasn't necessarily a fun job either.

Just remember, you don't need to set up the adapters to do it all in one shot. You can set it up to get it started and then reposition them if the bushing starts to bottom out on them.

I wish I could explain myself better, but this is one of those things I kind of like to be there to show what I'm talking about.

Click to expand...

Right on. I have the press from AutoZone/Advanced. I'm going to pull the coil spring on that side to get better access and alignment.

Back to work...

party1:

Done. I think.



I used a coil spring compressor to let me jostle the coil around. It was really getting in the way of the ball joint press's screw. So, then I used a small adapter from the AutoZone supplemental ball joint adapter kit : that was for my "receiver" side. Then the "pusher" side is just one of the adapters from the Advance Auto kit (I think it is usually used as a base plate for recievers; not sure but it worked well enough to push the bushing in).

Finished product - I *THINK* I seated it all the way in. I posted a question a few weeks ago about how this bushing sits sort of uneven in the housing. It appears to be resting up against the champher of the axle housing.
.

It looks just a little cockeyed but then I had the pic from my old one:

And that looks about the same... slight angle or at least the illusion of one.



Thanks MoparManiac and everyone for your input!

Glad to see you got them in...I just did mine last Sunday. It took longer to figure out the spacer/driver combination than it did to actually press them out and in. Were you by chance using a Harbor Freight press tool at first? I used one of those to press in balljoints on my chevy pickup awhile back and made a huge mess of the job... I think the tool was bending and causing the joint to bind cockeyed. I couldn't have thrown that POS far enough to be happy. I have never had that kind of trouble with a rented one.

bdiamond said:

Glad to see you got them in...I just did mine last Sunday. It took longer to figure out the spacer/driver combination than it did to actually press them out and in. Were you by chance using a Harbor Freight press tool at first? I used one of those to press in balljoints on my chevy pickup awhile back and made a huge mess of the job... I think the tool was bending and causing the joint to bind cockeyed. I couldn't have thrown that POS far enough to be happy. I have never had that kind of trouble with a rented one.

Click to expand...

That was a pretty nice press I got from Advanced Auto. It's very stout. I think the brand is Powerforce or Power-something-or-other. Probably equivalent to a KD-Tool. I think it's over $250 to buy it at Advance. Last winter I used it to knock out the ball joints in an afternoon. Good rental.

Take a look at this
I am attempting to replace my upper control arm bushings
http://www.naxja.org/forum/showthread.php?t=991059
Bushing installation is a nightmare W-pick