How to: Fit lower arms and/or drop links

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ScubaSteve

Active member
Joined
May 8, 2010
Messages
3,749
You will need,

17mm spanner,
18mm spanner,
Various sockets ranging from 15mm to 17mm
T50 Torx Bit

Remove the wheels and place on axle stands.

Locate the first front bush bolt as pictured, use a 15mm socket and an 18mm spanner rested on the otherside.

P1050545.JPG


Remove bolt, may need a wiggle

P1050547.JPG


Locate the rear bush bolt as pictured, again rest an 18mm spanner on the top and undo from below

P1050551.JPG


P1050552.JPG


P1050553.JPG


Pull out bolt

P1050554.JPG


Use the torx bit and 17mm spanner on the ball joint pinch bolt

P1050548.JPG


Remove bolt

P1050549.JPG


Use something to lever the ball joint out the hub

P1050555.JPG


Give the lower arm a wiggle and it should come free

P1050556.JPG


Refit is reverse of removal, tighten the front bush bolt and rear bush bolt to 82nm and the ball joint pinch nut to 52nm

Now removal of droplinks

Undo top bolt with 15mm socket and 17mm spanner on the back of the droplink thread to stop it spinning, you can also use an allen key in the center of the thread but the spanner is stronger

P1050559.JPG


Same at the bottom

P1050560.JPG


Remove droplink

P1050561.JPG


Prise off the ABS wire retaining clip and fit to new droplink

P1050562.JPG


Refit it reverse of removal
 
Top work :thumbs:

(Moved to the "how to" section.)
 
How stupid or dangerous it would be to replace just one lower arm with one which has Powerflex front and FRP uprated rear bush installed?

My driver´s side (left side here) lower arm´s rear bush is in very bad shape (rubber is separated from the casing) and I think it would be a good idea to replace it soon. The other arm is not ready yet for installing and the standard lower arm on passenger´s side is still in good shape.

How unbalanced the result would be with different kind of bushes?

(This is my first first post on this forum. Other Puma forum is still down...)
 
Welcome to the site.

I don't think it would be dangerous to replace one side if the other is still in good shape. As far as I'm aware it's not a recommendation to change them in pairs although I have been wrong before.

I'd say get the perished ones swapped and then do the other when it needs it.

You may well notice the difference of having a poly bush on one side and a rubber bush on the other but no more so than having a completely broken one one side and a good one the other.
 
Perfect timing for this thread being bumped and thus noticed..... I need to do the arms and the drop links on mine. Was going to buy the parts and get my friendly mechanic to do it but now may have a crack at it myself... I do other simple/service type work myself, may as well expand my repertoire.

That said... the drive-shaft/ball joint also needs some attention, diagnosis so may let the other bod do it all together.

Decisions, decisions.....
 
In theory replacing an lower arm is an easy one man job. In real life it took about 6 hours... :wall:

Everything else went quite nicely (bolts were stuck and rusty but that was expected), but for some reason the rear bush bolt holes were not aligned correctly. I was not able to do two things at the same time (force the bush with a big screwdriver to correct angle and hammer the bolt thru) so I needed some extra hands. Waiting these extra hands to arrive took few hours.

The job itself is quite simple, but if something goes wrong it can take lots of time and patience.I think someone else replaces the other side´s lower arm of my Puma...
 
ha ha, yeah, I thought it 'might' be tricky so got 2 fella's to do the work for me. Both wishbones/bushes, along with 4 new bearings, new rear shoes, new drop links, new clutch etc, new rad fan. They had a very busy day, then a few weeks later back to get them to do my cam & aux belts etc which was done by one man. Best £300 on labour I paid imo.
 
should have fitted the rear bolt 1st then you can move the arm for the front bolt .
but im just mere delivery driver and plumber who isnt a mechanic tho :wink:
 
It was not too easy to put the front Powerflex bush where it belongs either because it was bit fat compared to original bush. After I managed to get bolt thru it I decided not to remove it.

I think main reason for these difficulties was that the FRP uprated rear bush is so stiff and it´s center tube cannot be easily bent to correct angle. Now after one not so well slept night I think that with standard parts the whole thing would have taken about one hour.
 
Great guide, thanks. Just want to add that if you find the front bush bolt has become rusted into the centre of the bush (so the rubber is turning with the bolt) you may not have much luck with WD40, blowtorch, hammer, etc. Only way I found, although it's hard work, is to get a hacksaw in there and cut the bolt just inside the subframe, i.e. on the outer edges of the bush each side. Voila, remove the whole thing with the remains of the bolt still in there. Tiring but effective.
 
Great guide, looked this up before I did my font drop links yesterday, complete doddle to do.

just wanted to add this for the benefit of anyone who hasn't done it before, I struggled at first getting the 17mm spanner on the back of the threads, the reason for which is clear once you get the beggar off!



there are just two small flat sections for you to get your spanner onto, these are also shouldered so there's not much to grip.
luckily I had in the bottom of my toolbox a very thin throwaway 17mm from some flat-pack jobbie which has no doubt fallen apart by now - but I digress...

Cheers, Steve
 
Nice simple to understand guide, I will be replacing my lower arms today.

I have read somewhere that the car should be on the ground before the bolts are fully torqued up but I would have thought there wouldn't be room to get at them unless the car was lowered onto a block to give some clearance. :)
 
Ran into a problem changing the lower arms, the drivers side went on no problem but the passenger side front bolt rounded off it was so tight. :x I don't have access to a welder or blowtorch so can anyone advise me how I can remove the rounded off bolt? :?

I will be replacing all the bolts anyway because they are too rusted.
 
Nut Splitter?
http://www.toolstation.com/shop/p80007?utm_source=feed&utm_medium=googleshopping&utm_campaign=googleshopping&mkwid=ibNy8o1F&pcrid=46335353543&gclid=CjwKEAjwwJmhBRC56KOelNOXhxUSJAB_" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Wheel Locking Nut removal Tool?
 
Thanks RJ and Yog I will try your suggestions when the new bolts arrive. The arms aren't in a dangerous condition but they were an MOT advisory on Friday. :)
 

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