Tightening Control Arm Bolts

[Tony Hoffman]

I use a closed end wrench with an offset that I bought at Sears. BTW,
tighten those bolts with the control arm in it's normal resting
position, i.e. where they sit with the car on the ground. If you just
let them hang and tighten them, you will overstress them on
compression. You will then find yourself replacing them in the not too
distant future.

Tony Hoffman


On Thu, May 22, 2008 at 1:06 AM, Brian Pleet <bpleet at telusplanet.net> wrote:
>
>
> In a bout of "You may as well-itis" I purchased replacement control
> arms for the 215k km wear on the originals for my wife's (previously
> mine) 1990 90Q. Getting the 4 bolts off was OK, but holding the nut
> inside the subframe while turning the heads is proving impossible to
> reinstall, not to mention torque. What tool or technique can you use
> to hold the nut? I've tried every 17mm spanner, but the angle is too
> extreme and any grips or pliers are too big to fit through the access hole.
>
> Any suggestions welcome.
>