M42club.com - Home of the BMW E30/E36 318i/iS

DISCUSSION => Suspension => Topic started by: Birdman16 on June 08, 2008, 02:21:52 PM

Title: Control Arm Help
Post by: Birdman16 on June 08, 2008, 02:21:52 PM

I went to do my control arms on my 91 318is today in order to get it on the road this week, but ran into a problem.  There is not enough room to fit a rachet to loosen the self-locking nut on the arm.  One of my ball joints is ruined an i'm trying to do both fronts.  The driver;s side has the steering column in the way and the passenger's side has the hedder in the way.  Any decent ideas??

Title: Control Arm Help
Post by: Frankie on June 09, 2008, 01:21:06 PM

Long extension bar (atleast 2 feet) with swiwel joint do it

Title: Control Arm Help
Post by: KenC on June 09, 2008, 05:56:58 PM

That's the best way.^^^^

Or get under there with a box wrench and a hammer.

Title: Control Arm Help
Post by: Cristian G in Oz on June 09, 2008, 09:31:20 PM

I just did this on teh weekend and the extra long extension is teh way to go.

I used 3 extensions to about 2ft in length.

Worked a treat.

Regards

Cristian

Title: Control Arm Help
Post by: BMWManiac on June 22, 2008, 10:10:30 AM

Can anyone give specifics on the setup for the 2ft of extensions?  I'm guessing, 22 in socket, swivel joint, 2x10" extensions?

Title: Control Arm Help
Post by: szed03 on June 23, 2008, 10:57:32 AM

If this is for the inner balljoint, I find it easier to get a 22mm flex-head  ratcheting wrench (Gear Wrench is nice) although a box wrench will do.  It's just much slower :p.  Place a jack under the inner balljoint so it doesn't spin around and BAM, done.

Title: Control Arm Help
Post by: n2motorsports on June 23, 2008, 12:09:20 PM

I found it easier to just jack up the engine, make sure to loosen the fan shroud, unbolt the engine mounts and jack up at oil pan with a block of wood to distribute the weight.

Title: Control Arm Help
Post by: BMWManiac on June 29, 2008, 09:02:55 PM

Ok guys, need some assistance/advice.....

Driver side, no problem, control arm is off.....passenger side, I fought all day with....

I manage to access the nut from top,bottom, top, bottom...back and forth....well, I got the nut moving, but now it just seems to spin and not get any better.  I got a ratchet in there and still nothing....my new control arms come with new bolts so, here are my thoughts....

I don't have access to a propane tank or anything, but I can get one of those nut splitter.  Should I try and tighten the nut, and then try again to remove it?  I had a jack underneath the ball joint, but I don't think that helped....

Title: Control Arm Help
Post by: ClodKing on June 30, 2008, 12:30:30 PM

What about penetrating fliud? Have you tried that yet??

Spray the nut a few times the day before. Like once in the morning, once after work, and once before bed. Then again before you go at it again.

WD40 is not a penetrant. It may say it is, but it blows large chunks. That stuff is a usless. Buy something good that works.

If you can get your hands on some LPS penetrating fluid, you should be good to go. It worked wonders for me.

Title: Control Arm Help
Post by: n2motorsports on June 30, 2008, 03:02:47 PM

is the car jacked up?  if so, you'll need to lower it to put weight on the control arm, otherwise, it'll just spin in the joint.

Title: Control Arm Help
Post by: BMWManiac on June 30, 2008, 08:24:37 PM

That nut OWNED me!  I sprayed it with PB blaster, let it sit overnight, and it just kept spinning....even with a jack underneath the ball joint.

In the end, I ended up getting a nut splitter on it and spent over 5 hours getting at it....what I found that worked is removing the 17mm nut underneath the engine mount, jack up the engine, and then there was plenty of room to get at it...highly recommend going this route from the start so you don't strip it as well.....finally done....damn that was a tough one!