Front Suspension, Words of Wisdom??

[tikibus]

Hi All,

Getting close to Hibernate the 84 and start repairs on the Van. Attacking the Front Suspension among other things is in top order. All the rubber bushing, ball joints, you name it are to be replaced. Looking at the Bentley there is alot of pressing out and in of parts (including the tack weld on the Upper Control Arm).

Is there a good Arbor Press or a homemade (Cheap,please) device to do the various jobs?

Upper ball joints are crappd out and the bushings are showing cracks, slumping and age. The time is now to do the whole kit n' caboodle .

Any thoughts,advice, devices ( pic's or diagrams of homemade items) will be very welcome since running on a limited buget.

All the Best and Thanks!
Mark
_______
1984 Westy
1997 Honda Civic
Do Not Taunt Happy Fun Van.

[Christopher Schimke]

The lower ball joints takes a special tool to support the ball joint while pressing. The upper control arm bushings are a piece of cake other than the tack welds. Just grind the tack down and press the bushings out. I used my vice for this. Upper ball joints are easy, front control rod bushings are easy. The lower control arm bushings are a whole nother animal.

I broke the press at our shop trying to press the lowers out. So I took it next door to the repair shop who has an 80,000lb press and still could not get them out. I resorted to using a torch to carefully cut the bushing out. Fun, fun, fun.

When you put everything back together, use anti seize on all of the bolts that pass through the bushings.
_________________
"Sometimes you have to build a box to think outside of." - Bruce (not Springsteen)

*Custom wheel hardware for Audi/VW, Porsche and Mercedes wheels - Urethane Suspension Bushings*
T3Technique.com or contact me at [email protected]

[mr_vanagon]

I agree with Loogy with a few notes. I did this job about 18 months ago. The lower ball joints can be driven out with a big hammer if you plan to replace them (they get wrecked in the removal). For re-installing the lower ball joints, I dragged the entire steering knuckle to the shop after I found the DIY kits from China don't fit around the curve in the knucle. For the lower control arm bushings I took the lower arms and my new bushings to the local VW dealer and had to show them the bentley pic of the madrels to use. The shape of the thing makes it a bit hard to deal with also. One note, conventional wisdom says put it all back together loose and lower the van before torquing everything to avoid pre-loaring the bushings. Also, an alignment will be a must after you are done.
_________________
'68 Autostick Bug Mom bought new
'89 Tintop Vanagon Dad bought new

[tikibus]

Thanks Loogy!

I am going to do the shocks and flex lines as well. Yup, the whole smackin' job.

The tool is VW276a or equivalent for the lower ball jont. Got the Haynes in front of me, they say to use a hammer and a iron block? I'd love to use the VW tool or a similar devise, but has any one used the Haynes Method or a similar tool as the VW276a ( hate to purchase a tool for a job that will be done in the next 100K!)

All the Best.
Mark
__________
1984 Westy - looking for interior curved metal skin over sink/stove cabinet that holds window, rusting out and leaking! W P #30! It never ends!
1997 Honda Civic
Do Not Taunt Happy Fun Van

[mellow cat]

Just an Idea. go to a wrecking yard and buy used steering knuckles from an 86 and later. They bolt stright to the older control arms, In addition you get to use the newer brake system as a bonus. I have done it before, it worked great! Also, if you get the steering knuckles and have new ball joints already installed before you do the repair, your job will go much faster.

\Cheers
Scott

[jeremysmithatshawdotca]

I tried to do my lower control rod bushings recently, and they were so rusted none of the nuts would budge. I wound up having them done at a local shop, and even they had trouble with them. They had to put some heat into the nuts with a torch, and have two guys work on it. You might want to start giving all the nuts a good spray with penetrating oil.

Good luck,
Jeremy

[tikibus]

Hey Mellow Cat,

Yeah, I'd love to go to a junker yard and pluck stuff off, but where I live, Westy's and Vanagon's on the whole are rarer than Hens teeth.

PA is the closest state that would have Vans, but this is a part of the Country where deer lick your car in Winter for their daily shock of Salt.

You become one with the Rust and your ride becomes a experiment in Salt crystal forms

Hence some of us tuck away our rigs against Salt Season.
_________________
Happy Trails!
Mark
______________
Founding member of the Empire State VW Camping Club.
http://www.empirevwcamping.org/
1984 Westy - Tiki
1997 Honda Civic -The Green Hornet
1971 Volvo P-1800E- needs TLC