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DISCUSSION => Suspension => Topic started by: Interlocker on June 12, 2006, 08:43:53 PM

Title: Front Control Arm Bushing—Pics
Post by: Interlocker on June 12, 2006, 08:43:53 PM

Sorry for the rash of posts from me over the past couple of days, but what can I say... "new" car and I'm learning about it quickly.

Does anyone have a pic of what the front control arm bushings are supposed to look like?  The images on RealOEM don't really help.  I'm just curious to see how much void there is supposed to be, as mine appear to be very open.  I didn't have the car supported well enough to get all the way under it and look for cracking.

I originally thought the diff bushing needed replacement, but now I see it's actually in very good condition.  Again, it just has a rather large void in it that I wasn't expecting and my original view wasn't as well-lighted as today.

thanks!

Title: Front Control Arm Bushing—Pics
Post by: D. Clay on June 12, 2006, 09:49:43 PM

There's a good bit of open space there. If they're bad on the front the car will wander on grooves in the pavement and they will look cracked and split.

Title: Front Control Arm Bushing—Pics
Post by: Choking Hazard on June 12, 2006, 10:52:04 PM

You really should be able to notice if these are bad from the behavior of the car.  I thought mine were bad, but ended up needing a new ball-joint assembly (comes integrated with the suspension arm so you must buy it as a single unit of suspension arm with attached ball joint) when I got the car on a lift to see what went KLUNK turning left over the bump into my driveway.  My point is that I don't percieve any change from replacing those bushing "since I was in there", so unless you just gotta, I would leave it alone.

Title: Front Control Arm Bushing—Pics
Post by: enildeR on June 13, 2006, 12:14:47 AM

You can replace the ball joints themselves, rather than buying entire LCAs?

Thinking about it... You have to take the LCAs off so you can press the ball joints in/out, as well when you replace them entirely. Do you have to replace the LCA bushings? Or do the LCAs come out of the bushings without damaging them?

Title: Front Control Arm Bushing—Pics
Post by: johna on June 13, 2006, 02:00:14 AM

I don't believe you can reuse the stock control arm bushes if you remove the control arms. However some aftermarket bushes will allow you to do this.

Title: Front Control Arm Bushing—Pics
Post by: enildeR on June 13, 2006, 02:36:32 PM

So if I buy the offset M3 bushes, I'll have to make sure the ball joints are good/replaced before I put the LCAs into the bushes?

Title: Front Control Arm Bushing—Pics
Post by: Zoso on June 13, 2006, 03:45:58 PM

Removing the control arm bushings from the control arms is somewhat tough and it is possible to damage them.  I wouldn't trust or reuse control arm bushings.

If I were you (and this is what I did), I'd replace both control arms when putting on the new control arm bushings.

http://zoso.no-ip.org/318i-control-arm.html

Title: Front Control Arm Bushing—Pics
Post by: doigal on June 13, 2006, 06:48:23 PM

I've got a write up on replacing them here in the article section...