Ok heres a how to of how to remove 3rd gen control arms, this comes in handy if you bend one and need to replace it, want to put control arm bushings in, wanting to put front sway bar on, ect..

Step 1. Set the parking brake, the front wheels will be off the ground so puting it in park WILL NOT keep the car form rolling away. Jack the car off the ground, use proper jack stands, never work under a car surported by a jack.


Step 2. Remove the wheel. And aim the sterring oposite direction of the side your working on.


Step 3. Unplug the ABS sensor (if so equipt) and remove the the wiring from the clips on the control arms. Also not the nut on the ball joint.


Step 4. Remove the cotter pin from the ball joint nut.


Step 5. Remove the castle nut from the ball joint.


Step 6. Take a metal hammer and hit the spindle right on the side where the ball joint goes through, the vibrations will break the corrosion loose and it will come lose.


Step 7. Remove the sway bar end links.


This is the ball joint poped out.




****** Step 7.5 ****** While doing the drivers side, remove the brace that goes form the subframe to the front radator core surport. While doing the passenger side remove the little plastic cover so you can get to the lower motor mount bolts and remove the lower motor mount.


Step 8. Remove the bolt going through the front of the subframe going through the front bushing of the control arm.


Step 9. Remove the bolt going through the backof the subframe going through the rear subframe bushing of the control arm.


Step 10. Remove the arm, it will take some tough love to wrestle it out, pivot the front of the arm outwards till that bushings pops out then slide the rear one out.



Step 11. Repeat on the other side

Step 12. Reinstall in oposite order, remeber to replace the cotter pin in the ball joint castle nut.




**********Side notes**********

If your replacing a control arm just install the new one.

If your doing front sway bar, once you get to this point you remove the 2 bolts that hold the rack to the subframe, unclip the 3 spots the brake line attaches to the subframe along the top rear edge, then there is 3 bolts on each side holding the subframe to the body. Remove that stuff and the subframe will come loose. Drop it straight down. Then there are 2 bolts holding down the shackles for the D-bushings that mount the sway bar onto the subframe. Remove those bolts and remove the shackles and pullthe old bar off, lay it down in front of the subframe exactly how it came off. Line up the new bar with the old bar to make sure your installing it the right way, make sure the bends on the ends are facing the correct dirrection. Lube the new bushings, clip them on the sway bar lay the sway bar in place reinstall the shackles and bolts and put the subframe back in. Going it its gonna fight like mad, its a bitch but it will go in. Then reinstall the arms and put the new end links in, get both end links on and just start the nut a tiny bit till both sides are started. When you tighten the end links the bushings will distort outwards, do not overtighten them, when the bushing expands outwards to be as thick as the metal wahsers its good.

If your doing the control arm bushings remove the old bushings, the big bushing remeber you have to remove the metal sleeve on the ouside of the bushing, the poly bushings will not fit untill that sleeve is removed. Once you get the rubber out you can take a hacksaw blade and slit the sleeve in 2 spots and hammer it out with a screwdriver and a hammer. Also there is a top and bottom to the big bushing so pay attention to the dirrections with the kit. The smaller bushing you press out and pop in the new ones, new ones are 2 piece, top and bottom.. Always lube suspension bushings or they fight you going in and squeek like crazzy while in use.

Nice write up, now come do mine ha ha. Oh and STICKY for those doing your own control arm bushings. Good job on that.

Nice impact guns.

I wish I had my impact guns when I did my control arm bushings.

that black one pouts out 1,000 ft/lbs of torque in reverse

I've yet to find a bolt that thing hasn't been able to remove hahahah

Yeah, I have the same gun. But I found a bolt that it can't remove. lol. Caliper bracket bolts on a new 93. They have blue thread lock on the bolts too. Takes a breaker bar.

Nice write up, extremely helpful too.

Nice write up. I wish I would have taken pictures of my control arm bushing install yesterday to add to this.