[xj40] Front suspension help needed

I need some advice on my front suspension. The driver’s side upper control
arm bushings are shot. I purchased replacements for my 89 xj40. They are
the split type, so I hoped the replacement would be relatively easy.
The nut came off easy, but the bolt will not move. The Haynes manual seems
to show that the bolt should slide out easy.
Is there some trick here? I sprayed some PB Blaster to try to free the
bolt. I tryed heating it with a torch, but nothing seems to work. What am
I doing wrong? Any suggestions?
Thanks,
Don

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Don
My trick was a torch, hammer etc. Really was a bugger to get the driver
side bolt out the passenger one was not as bad though.

Jay 90 Majestic

Don Czapski wrote:

I need some advice on my front suspension. The driver’s side upper control
arm bushings are shot. I purchased replacements for my 89 xj40. They are
the split type, so I hoped the replacement would be relatively easy.
The nut came off easy, but the bolt will not move. The Haynes manual seems
to show that the bolt should slide out easy.
Is there some trick here? I sprayed some PB Blaster to try to free the
bolt. I tryed heating it with a torch, but nothing seems to work. What am
I doing wrong? Any suggestions?
Thanks,
Don

Visit the Jag Lovers homepage at http://www.jag-lovers.org for exciting services and resources including Photo Albums, Event Diary / Calendar, On Line Books and more !

Visit the Jag Lovers homepage at http://www.jag-lovers.org for exciting services and resources including Photo Albums, Event Diary / Calendar, On Line Books and more !

In reply to a message from Don Czapski sent Tue 13 Apr 2004:

You can try to get a ratchet on the head of the nut and a pipe on
the ratchet. Then I would simply try to move it back and forth, or
coax it with a hammer in either direction. Sometimes it seems that
a really stuck bolt will tighten up a bit when it won’t turn in
reverse to loosen. Usually that breaks the crud around it free and
allows it to turn. The same technique with a torch, and/or your
favorite penetrating oil will help too at times. I’ve had the most
luck with stuck Jag bolts using the penetrating oil / hammer /
tighten and loosen approach.

Good luck with it. It’s frustrating I know…–
The original message included these comments:

The nut came off easy, but the bolt will not move. The Haynes manual seems
to show that the bolt should slide out easy.
Is there some trick here? I sprayed some PB Blaster to try to free the
bolt. I tryed heating it with a torch, but nothing seems to work. What am
I doing wrong? Any suggestions?
Thanks,
Don


David Elsberry 91 VDP
Wake Forest, NC, United States
–Posted using Jag-lovers JagFORUM [forums.jag-lovers.org]–

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Don,

You may not be doing anything wrong. I came across this on my 89 XJ40 after
I’d had it a couple of years and done both sides upper control bushes
previously.

The pivot bolts had been well covered with “coppaslip” on rebuilding so I
was very suprised to find one was locked in. The passenger side slid out as
before but the driver’s side (UK) was solid. This was because it was very
slightly bent which allowed it to rotate (just) but prevented it from
sliding out the tube in the crossmember.

Same as you’ve done, I started off spraying with WD40, then heating, but
without success. Next I split the upper control arm at the ball joint. The
side on the pivot nut end lifted off but the side at the hexagon end
couldn’t pass over the chrome dome washer. As the bush was totally shot, I
didn’t have the option to put it all back together and ignore it so cut it
away so I could get the control arm off. This gave an extra 30mm or so
working space on the hexagon end of the pivot bolt to give it some serious
persuasion. If the bolt is slightly bent, rotating as you try to knock it
through is the technique if it is going to come out. If it appears to be
able to move by knocking the hexagon towards the crossmember, you could cut
the bolt head off and knock it through the “wrong” way.

Bad news was it still wouldn’t move and I ended up dropping the crossmember
to be able to get some real heat and a very large hammer to it. A
replacement pivot bole went in and I had no more trouble, changing the
bushes once more whilst I had the XJ40.

Hope you don’t have to go this far.

Graham Gardner
1996 X300 3.2 Sport

Date: Mon, 12 Apr 2004 23:15:00 -0400
From: “Don Czapski” czapski@sprynet.com
Subject: [xj40] Front suspension help needed

I need some advice on my front suspension. The driver’s side upper control
arm bushings are shot. I purchased replacements for my 89 xj40. They are
the split type, so I hoped the replacement would be relatively easy.
The nut came off easy, but the bolt will not move. The Haynes manual seems
to show that the bolt should slide out easy.
Is there some trick here? I sprayed some PB Blaster to try to free the
bolt. I tryed heating it with a torch, but nothing seems to work. What am
I doing wrong? Any suggestions?

Visit the Jag Lovers homepage at http://www.jag-lovers.org for exciting services and resources including Photo Albums, Event Diary / Calendar, On Line Books and more !

In reply to a message from Graham Gardner sent Wed 14 Apr 2004:

Graham, you’re scaring me. I’m going to do this on my car and
don’t want problems like that. Sure, I COULD do it, but I would
prefer not to have to go to such great lengths!

Brett
89 XJ40–
wylde8
–Posted using Jag-lovers JagFORUM [forums.jag-lovers.org]–

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Brett,

I can only recall two others reporting problems with the pivot bolt - one
was dropping the front crossmember anyway for other reasons and the other
managed to free the bolt with a US penetrating oil product used in the
aircraft industry. This is out of the hundreds of list subscribers who have
done the job and had nothing more troublesome than weighing up whether to
stay with the early slipflex bushes or change to the later pattern
metalastik type.

Almost certain to be straightforward on your car but now you know the worst
case scenario!

Graham Gardner

Date: Wed, 14 Apr 2004 19:36:20 +0200
From: “wylde8” wylde8@hotmail.com
Subject: re: [xj40] Front suspension help needed

In reply to a message from Graham Gardner sent Wed 14 Apr 2004:

Graham, you’re scaring me. I’m going to do this on my car and
don’t want problems like that. Sure, I COULD do it, but I would
prefer not to have to go to such great lengths!

Brett
89 XJ40

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