Front suspension guide arm bushing (or did I get the wrong part?)

[kday]

I've been changing both lower control arms on the left side. I previously did the track arm on the right side, but this is the first guide arm I've done. I thought I was nearly done when I ran into a problem: the nut on the guide arm at the wheel bearing housing won't tighten. It just spins in the ball joint. I tried holding it with an allen key and stripped out the socket. Finally I looked at the part I removed, and compared it to the guide arm for the other side:


http://blog.ultrameta.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/bushing.jpg

(lesson: always compare new parts to old parts before installing them...)

As you can see there is a bushing on the old stud that isn't on the new one. Was this supposed to stay in the wheel bearing housing? I tried pounding it off the old arm with a drift but it's really stuck on there.

Before I realized this I tried holding the stud with vice grips to keep it from spinning, and of course that messed up the threads... not sure if the new arm is going to be salvageable even if it's the right part.

(I hate suspension work...)

[Bigglezworth]

The metal 'sleeve' is what people commonly refer to pressing apart from the body of the aluminum spindle what the wheel bearing assembly is mounted in when they try to split apart the bottom joint. You need to remove the sleeve from the old ball joint and press it back in to the lower housing on the aluminum arm. Unsure on how you actually got the lower control arm detached from the arm assembly as the lower control arm with the sleeve still attached as most people find there to be clearance issues when the sleeve backs itself out.

[Mr. Rictus]

When the sleeve comes out like that you have to blast it with a torch for a bit to loosen it up from the old arm, then smack it until it pops off.

[kday]

Ok, thanks guys... time to find the torch.

I really hope I can salvage the munged threads -- dropping the subframe to get to that rear bolt really sucks in a 9.5' wide garage.

[kday]

Is a replacement bushing available somewhere? Can't find it in ETKA.

[kevin]

No, it's part of the control arm.

[Bigglezworth]

Is a replacement bushing available somewhere? Can't find it in ETKA.I just pressed out both inner and outer bushings on my lower control arms with Meyle units, but don't know the #. I just sourced them both on ePay. Was getting quotes of $175 and up to replace the entire control arm, and since my ball joints were still in decent condition elected instead to change just the bushings and save $300 skins. :hahahehe:

[kday]

Sorry, by "bushing" I meant the sleeve that the ball joint stud fits into, that apparently was supposed to stay in the wheel bearing housing. Mine looks worse for wear already, and I haven't even gotten it off the ball joint stud yet. This part is common to all C5s with aluminum suspensions, i.e. S6 and RS6 only? The B chassis cars don't use these parts, right? (Thinking about salvage yards etc.)

Incidentally I paid $110 each for the curved arms and $120 each for the straight arms.

[Mr. Rictus]

As far as I know, the sleeves are only on the S6 and RS6.

[SteveKen]

B5 cars with aluminum uprights (all early model year S4 cars) have them but I'm not sure if they are dimensionally the same.

I would assume they would work but don't hold me to it.

[kday]

Here is a solution to this problem if anyone else has the issue: sawzall + torch + hammer. (Always an entertaining combo.)

http://blog.ultrameta.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/balljoint1_sm.jpg

http://blog.ultrameta.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/balljoint2_sm.jpg

That's a 27mm deep socket which fits over the ball while hammering. The damage to the bushing flange happened when it was on the car -- I think from the ball joint separator tool.