Damaged Front Control Arm Mount

Djaniero

Member +
Hi guys,

I changed my front control arm bushes on my GT last year. When removing the front passenger side bushes, I noticed that the car had had a pretty nasty bump over something previously, which scored the control arm pretty badly as well as the front mounting point ( the thin-ish metal which hold the bush in place to the car and a 17mm bolt then goes through it )

As I uprated the bueshes, to polybushes, so I remove them after a few months to clean and re grease thhem. Its always a bit if a nightmare to try and get the passenger side control arm back into the damaged mounting point. I noticed when I removed the arm a few weeks ago, that the mounting point had cut into the bush and split it.

Has anyone got any ideas how I would got this repaired? I'm guessing it may have to be welded back up maybe?

Thanks
 

SWJ

Member
New tabs can be cut and welded back in place. But it's a "Precision Job!" A "Race Car shop or a Collision Repair shop" ... a good one! Could do it but I have no idea of the cost?? But going forward you might wanna consider doing this with the bushings. :
https://www.google.com/search?q=sto...me&ie=UTF-8#kpvalbx=_lg2BXdHDHMW10PEPxrK0UA21

No first hand experience with trying it yet. I only have poly end links and sway bar bushings and I have not noticed any squeaks on a couple of my cars. But it looks like a good idea. :)
 

Djaniero

Member +
New tabs can be cut and welded back in place. But it's a "Precision Job!" A "Race Car shop or a Collision Repair shop" ... a good one! Could do it but I have no idea of the cost?? But going forward you might wanna consider doing this with the bushings. :
https://www.google.com/search?q=sto...me&ie=UTF-8#kpvalbx=_lg2BXdHDHMW10PEPxrK0UA21

No first hand experience with trying it yet. I only have poly end links and sway bar bushings and I have not noticed any squeaks on a couple of my cars. But it looks like a good idea. :)

Thanks. Haha... I actually tried that teflon tape trick but it just kept slipping off when I tried to put the bush back in place :(.

Any pics of what you are describing?

The circled part of the pic where you attach the arm to the car.
 

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Jay

Admin
Would be a structural point of the car so get a body man to have a look at it. You might get lucky and only have to move the offending bit that hits the bush.

Haven't encountered the same thing myself (thankfully!)
 

Djaniero

Member +
Thanks Jay.
At the moment I have to tap the arm/bush back in place with a rubber mallet as the space it sits inside (on the car body) is too tight due to the damage.
I'll get it looked at and sorted hopefully :)
 

SWJ

Member
Yeah the tape! As I said (I think) no first hand experience here. But "they say" you have to wrap in the opposite direction to the twist to get it in as it were. And when I looked at a lot of the "Poly " You Tubes" lot's of guys took sand paper to to them and so even milled them down?? So I don't know ... but hey finding out for myself is a future project! :)

And the picture you posted ... why is that tab painted white?? What is going on there???
 
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