Upper Control Arm Replacement
Upper Control Arm Replacement I know I have to remove the strut to remove the control arm and plate above it but do I need spring compressors to remove the strut or will it come out by hand if the lower control arm is extended all the way down?
TECH Fanatic
Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 1,745
Likes: 18
From: Lansing, MI via Bowling Green, KY, Dalton GA, Nashville, TN & Atlanta, GA
Based upon my very recent experience installing shocks and springs on my 1994 Camaro, and assuming the design is the same on your car, it should not be necessary to compress the spring in order to remove the shock assembly from the car.
TECH Apprentice
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 392
Likes: 0
If you are just replacing the upper control arms, you do not need spring compressors. The shock/spring assembly comes out as a whole. Now if you needed to replace the shock mounts, then you would need to compress the spring to be able to remove the nut on the shock in order to remove the mount. But the upper control arms just slide off the studs of the shock mount after removing the whole assembly from the wheel well.
If you are just replacing the upper control arms, you do not need spring compressors. The shock/spring assembly comes out as a whole. Now if you needed to replace the shock mounts, then you would need to compress the spring to be able to remove the nut on the shock in order to remove the mount. But the upper control arms just slide off the studs of the shock mount after removing the whole assembly from the wheel well.
Is an alignment required after swapping the upper control arm?
Trending Topics
I changed the passenger side on Sunday. Oddly the upper shock mount looked great. However the Control Arm support looked like crap. I scraped and wire wheeled it then used rust converted and painted it. It took longer than I wanted but looked way better and I couldn't put it back in like it was.
LS1 Tech Stories
The Best V8 Stories One Small Block at Time
6 Common C5 Corvette Failures and What's Involved In Repairing Them
Pouria Savadkouei
Retro Modern Bandit Pontiac Trans AM Comes With Burt Reynolds' Autograph
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Greatest Cadillac V Series Performance Models Ever, Ranked
Pouria Savadkouei
Top 10 Most Powerful Chevy Trucks Ever Made!
Hennessey's New Supercharged Silverado ZR2 Has 700 HP
Verdad Gallardo
Coachbuilt N2A Anteros Is an LS2-Powered C6 Corvette In Italian Clothes
Verdad Gallardo
Awesome K5 Blazer Restomod Comes With C7 Corvette Power
Verdad Gallardo
10 Camaros You Should Never Buy
10 LS Engine Myths That Refuse to Die
Verdad Gallardo TECH Fanatic
Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 1,745
Likes: 18
From: Lansing, MI via Bowling Green, KY, Dalton GA, Nashville, TN & Atlanta, GA
I would have probably replaced my control arms when I did my shocks and springs had I known what kind of shape they would have been in. I just took a wire brush to them, painted them, sprayed them with lithium grease and put them back on the car. I did replace the shock mounts and their associated isolators/insulators.