1. Home
  2. Jeep and Willys (new and old)
  3. Broken body mount bolts

Broken body mount bolts

I'm upgrading my crumbling factory mounts to Daystar polys and despite drilling 1/8" holes in the tub and shooting it with PB Blaster for a week I managed to still snap three of the bolts - the two between the front seats and the rollbar and the rearmost driver side.

My plan of attack on the rear mount was to cut an opening in the rear of the body large enough to grind off the ears that hold the nut and lift the thing out and replace with a standard washer/nut. My passenger side rear mount bolt fell out at some point before I got this Jeep so I had previously slotted that side and used just a regular washer and nut as the factory nut had no more thread and I couldn't really tap for the next size up.

I thought I may be able to get the rollbar mounts if I drill the bolt out from both the top and bottom but I ended up snapping off a drill bit in the top of one of them - darn! I still have about 2-3" of bolt in there so I can't really go at it from just one end. Should I just not bother and cut the opening large enough to grind out the ears holding in the nut and do the same as in the rear? The bolts seem pretty soft but now that I have a bit stuck in there it's going to be really rough drilling through that one.

Any comments from someone who's been through this? I'd rather not cut up the floor more than I have to but I'm afraid I don't have much choice at this point. Luckily I was able to get all the other bolts out relatively easily.

-jd

'94 YJ

Reply to
jdarg
Loading thread data ...

Reply to
L.W.(ßill) Hughes III

Reply to
Drink

I had a similar problem last winter installing a 1" MORE body lift on my 94 YJ. The rear left snapped lust like yours, I did the same thing with a bolt & washr. However, I couldn't get the old square captive nut for the mount out, so I just drove it up into the rear crossmember and stuck it inplace with some body sealer.

Even thougfh I'd done as you (without the extra holes) and soaked the bolts down with PB Blaster I had one of the main bolts come out with the threads. I insalled a helicoil and reinstalled all new factory hardware. So far, so good.

In your case I'd just bitethe bullet and cut in from the top with a hole saw which you can follow with a metal or rubber plug. This is a comon problem with SWB Jeeps that have spent time in road salted areas or along the coasts.

Reply to
Jerry McG

When doing what Jerry McG suggested remember to:

1) Mask the surrounding areas with painters tape or you will end up opening up scratches in the paint, which can lead to rust (tools being laid down, the spirals/metal fragments that will come off the hole-drill head, etc).

2) Use cutting oil/light engine oil and a speed-reducer adapter when cutting the holes or you will end up doing what I have to do: fiberglassing the oval/irregular shapped holes and recutting so that the plugs will fit.

3) Be ready for a trip to the auto/hardware store for some of that rust-to-primer spray, regular primer, auto paint, wire brush, 1" plastic putty knives, dust mask, and fiberglass to treat any rust holes that may have opened up. If the bolts were bad...

4) Plan on taking couple of days.

I always wondered why the local jeep dealership did such booming business--now, after living in a port city (Juneau, Alaska) sandwiched between 45 degree (or less) mountain ranges and seawater, I do: rust.

Good luck!

btw: we used stainless steel bolts, stainless steel nuts with the polyurthane insert, and anti-seize on the threads so that we never have to go through this again!

Reply to
Dustin Grimes

business--now, after living in a port city (Juneau, Alaska) sandwiched between 45 degree (or less) mountain ranges and seawater, I do: rust.>

Actually, in that environment YJs and other post AMC-era Jeeps rust far less than the older, beloved CJs. One of the first things Chrysler did after buying AMC was to install galvanized primer dip technology, which AMC couldn't afford. Some very early '87 YJs didn't get it and they rust just like the older CJs. Regardless, there's not much that can be done with body mounts, etc., that get a good brine soaking every year. Eventually they rust solid. My YJ only spent a few winters in the NYC area before I moved West. The body mount hardware was in pretty sad shape last year when I installed the body lift. I swapped it out with new stock bits, probably no better than some of the aftermarket stuff. Since most everything else underneath has been swapped out by now (springs, axles, shackles, u-bolts & spring plates, etc.) not much is left to haunt me from the YJs days in Yankee-land.

Reply to
Jerry McG

MotorsForum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.