cameraman123

Anyone know how much work it is to change out the lower front control arm bushings? Indy wants over $400, parts are just around $100.

Thanks

my06clk

Indy price might not be too bad if it includes alignment which you have to get anywayz if you DIY.

cameraman123

Alignment is another $80 on top of that

my06clk

Well I'd tell you that if you don't have any mechanical skills, ( no offense ) Let someone else do it for you before you end up getting into a jam and have evebody and their cousin trying to bail you out on here using pictures.

The short of it is, the lower control arm bushing is connected to the spindle assembly and there are a lot of things that have to be disconnected including the strut. Then the old bushing has to be pressed from the control arm. This may require removing the entire control arm in which case because of the year of your car it may be wise just to go ahead and replace the inner bushings as well.

Like I said if you are not a mechanic, this job could absorb a lot of your time so,my advice is to evaluate your skills and do the math. If you lived in or could come to Austin, I'd be willing to help you but this is the wrong week.

fkong777

why the bushing? the ball joint usually fails before the bushing. You should just replace the control arm with a good quality replacement. BMW and MB practically have disposable control arms.

Go find my post on ball joint replacement or my link to the blogspot.
http://mercedes-w220-ball-joint-diy.blogspot.com/

This will show you what you are up against.

cameraman123

I have already replaced ball joints, and now its time for the bushings.

I'm pretty mechanically inclined and so is my dad, I'll have to do some more thinking about this... Sounds like I may let the indy tackle it though.

Thanks for all the replies.

ALEV8

You're in HOU right? My guys here are cheap, and do amazing work if you can hit Dallas. I don't think this would be that tough to do if you have the time and proper tools.

ALEV8

Fkong777's writeup is bad to the bone.....makes me wanna do mine and keep the car. I have all the air tools and then some.

brenner

I've asked this question before (in old Thread), but didn't get an answer (from fkong777), but what are the various Torque Values for ball joints, etc...
Thanks.
brenner

Supergenius40

Thanks fkong777 for the DIY pictures. This gives me hope that I can do it. Looks easier then other stuff I've done. Can this be done without air tools? How critical are the torque values?

Das Geld 2

You do know those Ebay control arms are trash right

Supergenius40

My Control Arm bushings are torn on both sides (left and right wheel). All other bushings look good. We are having a dry couple of months, no rain and now my car is giving me a piece of its mind every time it moves. I packed some heavy grease in the bushing to buy time.

The Ball Joint and Steering bushings are good. From my research it appears you will run into problems when changing the Ball Joint (pressing in/out), Tire rod bushing will require alignment. I looked at the DIY but it includes the Ball Joint as apart of the job.

It appears the Control Arm has one bolt at the bushing end and one at the sub frame end. If I remove the two bolts it should come off without any issues...but that's a Big Assumption.

Questions; Has anyone changed just the Control Arm? Can I change the lower control arms only with little fuss? Will it require a Ball Joint separator?

Supergenius40

Bump
Sorry to do this but I want to buy the hardware today

canus_lupus

I'm interested too.

Do you need the ball joint separator to remove the lower control arm?

I have a 2003 C230 with worn bushings, and I don't want to buy a bushing press, so I figured new control arms would be easier.

I was quoted between $500-$600 for either new lower control arms or new bushings, parts and labor.

02S430

yes you will need the ball joint separator, when I installed my AMG calipers I had to replaced the spindle, and to get the lower control arm off of it I had to use it the parts wouldnt come apart, during that install I replaced the upper control arm, and lateral arm. you probably will need to remove the top of the spindle from the upper control arm to gain some space to get to the ball joint of the lower control arm which is in the middle of the spindle and sorta covered by a piece of metal. you will not be able to use a socket wrench on the ball joint cause of the piece of metal slightly covering it, i believe its a 22 mm bolt. if you have any questions PM me