[V8] Front axle removal ?????

[cobram at juno.com]

"Buchholz, Steven" <Steven.Buchholz at kla-tencor.com> writes:

> ... to add insult to injury, IME the bar is under some non-torsional 

You don't have to unbolt the stabilizer bar to pull the axle.  When I've
had to remove the stabilizer bar nut (to do bushings or change an A-arm),
I've found that if you put the wheel back on and lower the car till the
tire touches, that you can slip the end of the bar through the A arm very
easily by moving the strut back and forth at the right height.  The bar
will go right in and you can catch the threads by hand.  I found this out
after I had done it a few times the "hard" way, used a come along too (we
call'em Coffin Hoists in my circles) when no victims...err...friends were
around to help.  One day I had the V8Q up on a borrowed rack lift
(alignment rack) for a bushing change and because of the limited access
compared to a regular lift, a friend told me to try in with the wheel on.
 It was one of those "doh" Homer moments.  You can also use a floor jack
and a piece of 2X4 on bottom of the control arm if you're doing this
without a lift, you can jack up the A arm and maneuver the stabilizer end
into position, not as easy as with the tire on, but it works.

> around the bar to apply the proper tension to get the correct 
> geometry to start the nut.  

> I need to do this job on #344 myself ... I attempted the task once 
> before, but stopped because I couldn't seem to get the clip to shear by

> re-inserting the axle clamp bolt ...  

If you mean the clip that holds the outer axle on, it's a PITA to remove
while still in the car.  I did the boot a few times in the car with vice
grips, an air chisel (brass blunt tip), a brass hammer and lots of
swearing.  Came to the conclusion that on the V8Q and the 200TQA, it's
alot easier to pull the whole axle out and do the job on a bench vice.  

BCNU,
http://www.geocities.com/cobramsri/