Replacing E30 control arms and bushings

You don't even need that, an arbor press will do. First time I ever did it, I was helping a friend of mine and we didn't even have a bench press. We took a drill press, put a large-diameter bit in the chuck backwards and cranked down.

It's a pain to get it out, it's a pain to get it back in. These days there's really no reason to do it unless you want to put in some goofy racing bushings or something.

Just replace the whole assembly. It hardly costs any more than the bushing and it'll save you a huge amount of time. Buy it from the dealer if you want, or Bavarian Autosport if you prefer.

--scott

I'm posting a follow-up for anyone who might come across this thread in the future. The only trick to this job was removing the nuts on the inner ball joints. They are up against the motor mounts and with other things in the way it is tough to get a good mechanical advantage and leverage with a swivel. All other nuts and bolts can be easily accessed with tools you would already have if you plan to do this yourself.

For the inner ball joint nut on the driver's side I used a 3/8 drive

22mm socket which I had ground down the top portion into a cone shape, a wobble extension, and several long extensions. While maybe not necessary I removed the air flow meter box so I could see what I was doing easier. For reinstalling I had to use an open end wrench on the inner ball joint nut from underneath the car. You can only swing it a bit, then have to flip the wrench, and repeat many times. Eventually I could get the socket back on the nut and finish that way.

The inner ball joint nut on the passenger side is readily visible but the exhaust system prevents you from getting a good angle with a swivel. I used a lot of PB Blaster, and heated the nut with a torch. Final touch was a 22mm crowfoot wrench with a wobble extension, several long extensions, breaker bar and pipe extension. You have to be really careful so as not to slip off the nut when initially breaking it loose. Once it loosens it is possible to use the modified socket and swivel.

About the bushings, they were the least of my troubles. I ordered the ones with the holders already installed from Bavarian Autosport. I installed these on my new control arms before attaching the control arms to the car. Dishwashing liquid was used as a lubricant. By pressing and twisting by hand I got the bushings started. Then I took a large socket, might have been 1", set this on the bushing and drove it on with a rubber mallet. The socket puts all the force on the inner ring of the bushing so it won't be damaged. Note that it still took some force to drive these on.

That being said, if I were only replacing those bushings and leaving the control arms on the car, here is what I would do: Drive the front of the car up onto some ramps, then jack up the back end and put some blocks under the rear wheels. That would some room to lay on the ground beside the car and swing a mallet to get the new bushings on. If you had access to a lift, it would be really easy.

Christopher

Yes, that would be *very* convenient, at times. I wonder what one of them costs. 8)

Good post.