Lower control arm rear bush ????

[surfer]

How do you remove the rear bush for the control arm that is attached to the axle?
I see in the manual you need 3 different tools but can they be removed with out the special tools?
Attached a copy of section in manual as its pretty bloody hard to work it out from the diagram
thanks

[greenacc]

that diagram is pretty dicey, but it looks like they are using a ratchet and a spanner with a bolt through the middle to pull or push the bush into place ? The middle tool looks like a spacer to prevent bending the plates on the diff. Is there a flange on one end of the bush ? if there is then the bush has to come out that way. tool -4 looks like a piece of pipe that would fit over the bush.
Someone on here posted a pic of a home made bush removing tool. good luck finding it.

[maldotcom2]

I'm facing the same dilemma, none of my books show me how to do it. I'm thinking i'll have to take it to a mechanic.

[maldotcom2]

Ok, just got a quote from a suspension place (no, not pedders) and they wanted nearly $300 just for labour. **** that. Can anyone give a detailed explaination of how to do it with a threaded rod and nuts and washers?

[Calaber]

Hi Maldotcom

First off, where are you located - I have the remnants of a kit I made up a few years back, when I replaced the entire set of front and rear suspension bushes in my VR, using home made pullers and spacers. Every bush put up a fight but the end result was amazing, especially as the car had nearly 300,000 on the original bushes!

I made the pullers from various diameter pieces of steel pipe, heavy steel plates and 15mm threaded rod with locknuts on each side.

The spacers needed to prevent the control arms from compressing were simply pieces of pine, with large slots cut into them to fit around the bush, and fitted tightly into the arms.

This job would have saved me hundreds of dollars in labour and cost only about $10 in materials. The important thing is to ensure that the threaded bolt you use is big enough to take the stress involved in trying to pull and replace the bushes.

I still have the steel parts of the kit, but think I tossed the timber spacers some time ago.

My rear suspension was worst so I started there first.

The upper arms were the first to go. Remove both arms and place them in a vice, with a socket large enough to push the bushes out. On the other side of the arm, you will need a piece of pipe large enough to allow the bush to push into it without jamming. These bushes will be bloody tight. Once their grip breaks, they will slide out pretty easily.

The lower arms can be removed one at a time, after the upper arms have been replaced. Here is where you need the timber spacer to prevent the arm from compressing. Insert the spacer and push it in firmly as far as it can go, with the slot going around the bush. Then put a large piece of water pipe on the flanged side of the bush (again, has to be large enough to just fit snugly around outside diameter of flange). Put threaded rod through and put a plate on the small end of the bush, that will allow the bush to "pop" through the arm once the tension has been released. Steadily tighten the bolts on the rod, giving the bush a bit of a hit with a steel rod to help break the tension. (You hit the bush on the small steel plate - don't hit the threaded rod).
Keep tightening and hitting the end plate until the bush pops. A bit of WD40 on the bush will help. Installation is the reverse process.

The bush in the lower control arm mounting on the diff housing will be awkward because you have to work under the car to remove it. The process is the same as the bush at the front end of the arm, but the spacer is thicker because that bush is longer than the front bush. It is also likely to be stubborn - use the same process to shock it loose as you used on the front bush.

If you need any further help, let me know. It took me a day to do the rear end but the result was very rewarding. It is wise to do all bushes, not just some of them.

I won't go into the front end at this stage - it's more involved. It also ttook me a day, but was more difficult because of the suspension dismantling that was required.

[hako]

I know this may sound rough but we always burnt old rubber bushes from components and then collapsed the bearing shell with a centre punch. Next we would polish the surface where the new bush goes with wet and dry plus oil and finally put the bush in the freezer for half an hour (to shrink it) and put the component in a bowl of boiling water to expand it. It works.

[greenacc]

The diffs a bit too close to the fuel tank for that aint it lol. but you can drill the rubber out enough until you can crush the shell and knock the whole thing out.

[maldotcom2]

Thanks heaps calaber, im in the hawkesbury area nsw. I am concerned about the bushes mounted on the diff because of having to be under the car. I should have replaced them before i fitted that diff! The upper trailing arms are fine, the rubber looks quite new. I'll give myself a weekend to do both the lower ones though.

[maldotcom2]

Well i've got all four bushes out in the lower rear control arm, using the threaded rod and pipe technique. Is re-installation any easier? Any tips?

[DannyboyDS]

use hakos idea to get it back in, use the slightly larger pipe over the bush as a guide so it doesnt go askew.