Siezed (and welded!) rear camber adjustment bolt

[happy diver]

Do you have access to a decent C clamp that you can tighten with a big crescent wrench
shifter thing and attempt to push the bolt through using bits of wood and metal and stuff
so you can set the clamp up right????

[00dacousin]

Pierre McAlpine, I'd love to know if you managed this in the end and if so how you did it? I can't get the camber bolt out at all and can't see how to grind it with out damaging the mount itself that joins the lower control arm on to the body? Any advise would be much appreciated.

[pierremcalpine]

Originally Posted by 00dacousin

Pierre McAlpine, I'd love to know if you managed this in the end and if so how you did it? I can't get the camber bolt out at all and can't see how to grind it with out damaging the mount itself that joins the lower control arm on to the body? Any advise would be much appreciated.

I did finally manage BUT I ended up using new sway arms because the outside bolt was also siezed and I had to insert my angle grinder verically upwards between the arm and the rear hub assy (I think) which ended up destroying the outside bushing and arm).

The trick to getting the camber bolts out is to jack the car up nice and high and slide right underneath so that you can hold the angle grider up at an angle against the nut/bolt. What you will find is that once you have grinded the nut/end of bolt off, the washer should pop off withing having to grind any deeper and potentially damaging the mount. The second trick is that the mount can actually be pried appart slighty without damaging it. This will allow you to move the arm fore and aft and eventually down and out. I believe that I also had to grind the bolt head off in the same fashion (ie take he head off but go no further). I had a 4.5" grinder on hand which I think helped (vs a 5" which would have left very little room for error). If you are using 5" just make just you use a well-worn disc.

Take your time, get comfortable, and be safe. The @+-# bolts will eventually come out. Do the next guy a favour though and grease the non-threaded portion of the new bolt axles. Also, make sure you mark the camber bolt position before removing. They affect the alignment.

[pierremcalpine]

I should also add that I took a fellow forum member's advice and employed a c-clamp to push the shock bolt out - I was originally able to get the nut off but bolt was stuck. By fastening the c-clamp with some drifts I was able to press the bolt right out. That worked well but only for that one bolt. The one connecting the lower arm to the hub assy was in there tight and required cutting.

[bobthecabbage]

I was going to add here, if you can get a C or G clamp on it. Oversized socket on the bolt head so its free to move. Nut on the thread end to protect it/stabilise the clamp. Wind it up tight and then tap away on the winder with a hammer (winder on the threaded end). This method will only really work if you can get oil to soak into the gap between the bolt and the steel tube in the bush. See if you can jam a plastic bag around it so that you can really flood the joint with oil.
This method requires patience and you may have to spend 10 or 15 minutes tapping it (or even longer). Every now an then check you are still wound up tight (I would be at this stage).
If you can reliably flood the joint and leave it to soak overnight that will definitely help.
It will also help to change tack every now and then and try the impact gun again and bashing it from the bolt head end.
I don't know how badly corroded these get but apparently a few layers of paint can defeat a 100 tonne jack so not much rust is easily going to seize something solid!

[skyship007]

Originally Posted by bobthecabbage

I was going to add here, if you can get a C or G clamp on it. Oversized socket on the bolt head so its free to move. Nut on the thread end to protect it/stabilise the clamp. Wind it up tight and then tap away on the winder with a hammer (winder on the threaded end). This method will only really work if you can get oil to soak into the gap between the bolt and the steel tube in the bush. See if you can jam a plastic bag around it so that you can really flood the joint with oil.
This method requires patience and you may have to spend 10 or 15 minutes tapping it (or even longer). Every now an then check you are still wound up tight (I would be at this stage).
If you can reliably flood the joint and leave it to soak overnight that will definitely help.
It will also help to change tack every now and then and try the impact gun again and bashing it from the bolt head end.
I don't know how badly corroded these get but apparently a few layers of paint can defeat a 100 tonne jack so not much rust is easily going to seize something solid!

Salt water corrosion around the stern section will weld a nut and bolt together. Same with bolts into a steel panel, it's drill them out, spot erode or cut them off after about 10 years of salt spray. Grease and expensive epoxy paints both work, but the real failure is not using a threadlocker, as some will stop corrosion by preventing water from creeping along the thread.

Mud guards, backing plates and Waxoil help!

[MPE]

Great advise, thanks to everyone. Any suggestions as how to get the old bush out? Mine is in a sorry state. What is the 'official name' for that pressed steel arm?