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OT for home repair -- Urgent -- How to remove rear lower control arm, Toyota?

that is what a breaker bar is for, with or without the cheater bar as needed.

Reply to
Pico Rico
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That makes me feel better. (I love a bargain.)

Reply to
micky

I get it now.

I was thinking about that, and I'm glad to hear that I figured right. I hope that is the case for me.

Reply to
micky

Please note important question marked by ####### below. Thanks in advance. Since one answer means I'm done, I've taken the liberty of emailing you too. I hope you don't mind.

I bumped into a neighbor tonight who lives about 250 feet away and who I think was inside at the time, who said he could hear me pounding on the car. He also said someone on the next block could hear me.

I kept imagining it was getting straighter, so I'd rest and start hitting it again, but it didn't unbend at all.

I once, using a sledge hammer, largely straightened out a chain link fence that had been bent by a falling tree, and that I figured was harder, because the chain links would move back when I hit them. But the metal was a lot softer.

####### It really is? You're not just going by the picture? You know that?

Because if it's that long and I can't cut a hole in the floor, which I probably can't, I should quit now.

I forgot to look at the car today and see if I really could cut a hole in the floor to reach the bolt. I strongly doubt it.

ONe time when my mother's heater was leaking, I driled a hole in the floor where the passenger front seat carpet was the wettest, and put what I thought would be a wick through it. The wick probably got wind-blown and fell off, but I don't think it worked even when it was still there.

Reply to
micky

The bolt goes through the front lateral bar, through the crossmember, and through the rear lateral bar, to the anchored nut. A few inches in front of the bolt head is the gas tank, with an exhaust heat sheild also in the way, and just behind the nut is the spare tire well. The cross member WILL have to come down. I used to be a mechanic and service manager at a Toyota dealer for 10 years, but it's been over 2 decades since I left the trade. The Solara suspension is basically the same as a Camry. Pounding on the link will not straigten it because it is too springy, and mounted in rubber bushings. Which way did it bend? Up. down, forward, or back? Sometimes it is possible to jack or push the arm back into shape. If the car is getting close to the "end of the line" cutting the arm in 2 places where it is straight and fitting a piece of DOM tubing over the ends, welding to exactly the right length, CAN be an option. You will want it electric welded to reduce the amount of heat absorbed

- and you will need to protect the gas tank. Either way, it is a shop job - on the hoist with someone who knows what they are doing "at the controls"

Reply to
clare

It's not that hard. I'd just drive it into the middle service bay, put it up on the hoist, get out the air-powered impact wrenches, giant box-end wrenches, "hot" wrenches (acetylene and inductive), the 6-foot jack stands, 4-foot pry bars, etc,etc... and have at it.

Did I mention I work in a shop? And yes, we would "do all that", at least on one side. :-)

You can try, but I usually find it faster just to undo things and get them out of the way, rather than fighting with parts that are blocking other parts, or are trying to push them out of alignment while I'm putting that stupid bolt back in the stupid hole that keeps moving around, dammit!!!! :-)

Reply to
Sanity Clause

Why the middle bay?

No. I thought you delivered presents to mental hospitals.

I can see that too. I'd need two other people to hold the center plate so its holes line up with the other holes. And doing this on my back would be even harder.

If today weren't Sunday, I'd be out checking shops.

Reply to
micky

I hadn't thought about the rubber bushings. Now that you remind me, that's one big factor why it didn't bend back.

Mostly so that the bend is in the front, and slightly pointing down. Perfect for swinging the mini-sledge from the front.

Mayb 2/3rds of the way from the wheel end to the suspension member end. It's angle is about 25 degrees.

Thanks. I will suggest that.

the bar and its bolt are someplace behind the rear seat. I haven't taken the seat out, or even looked at the drawings in the manual yet.

Reply to
micky

I'd use the end bay myself. My middle bay currently has a DOA Ford 150 with a Triton in it... (owner decided to do his own plug swap, 1 out of

8 came out in one piece)
Reply to
Steve W.

If I had more and better tools, that would help. Hard to put a hoist in a shared parking lot, Although I couldn't afford it even if I had my own garage. .

No.

Thanks. Maybe I shouldnt have, but AHR moves quickly so I started a new thread called

Folloow--up on car t hat needs right rear lower control arm that says what happened next. You're right. I can't spell.

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Reply to
micky

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