installation of front upper arm bushings.

[Geoffreybusuttilmalta]

dear all.

after completing the engine. i am refurbishing the complete front end..

1 question: i am installing the upper arms bushing.. you know.. where it has that small shaft which is the secured by 2 bolts.

i am placing 1 bush .. then slide the shaft in .. and when i try to put the other bush .. it cannot arrive enough close to the upper arm.. like to be pressed.. and eventually the rubber is moving oout... i bought the kit from ebay. and all measurments are matching with the old ones i had on the car itself..

is there anybody which maybe encountered the same problem?

much regards

[Geoffreybusuttilmalta]

This is thepicture showing the left bush still not in place 100%

[simplyconnected]

Bushings do not go in as far as the collar. There is a step in the outer shell. This step is a stop:



Compare this with the pictures you took before you started. Your bushings look ok. Don't tighten the bolts until the car is on its wheels and level. - Dave

[pbf777]

Often suspension components, such as control arms, are positioned within it's receiver mount by the relative press location/positioning of the bushings within the subject component; meaning the arms, in this case, are somewhat "floating", within the press-fit of the bushing shells, allowing correction for inaccurate metal stampings.

The manufacturer has tooling or a "jig" to fixture the, in this case control arm, to properly/reasonably locate the arm relative to it's three point attachment. Best practice when replacing these bushings is to observe the position (dept of press into control arm) of the original bushings and mimic such with the replacement units, unless one wishes to intentionally attempt to change the geometry.

Scott

[simplyconnected]

Holy cow. All sheet steel is inaccurate. The same die stamping different coils of steel will produce different parts because of spring-back, different steel thickness (even in the same coil of steel), and of course different alloy strengths. Sheet metal comes in a wide variety of grades and not all of them are always available in the width and thickness for each blanking die. Yes, we order specific heats for the cheapest price for that alloy but sometimes it's necessary to pick better coils from our stock between orders.

At Ford, we know this. Our dies are set, a piece is stamped then submitted to QC. Quality Control puts the finished stamping on a gauge, then declares the part as a 'standard' or they reject and production does not run until a good part is approved by QC. The gauge shows acceptable location tolerances including go/no-go pins for hole diameters, etc. QC owns and houses the gauges and checking fixtures, not the die room.

If QC accepts the part as a 'standard', that part is hung on the first press with a QC tag, as an approval to run production. Each hour a new stamping is re-checked on the same gauge and the tag is initialed by QC inspectors.

Control arms are 'delta parts' (vehicle safety items) so closer attention is paid for metal splits and other deformities like metal lamination, etc.

Ford's Dearborn Frame Plant made your control arms. They are designed to float on urethane in the bushings. Any deviation or fluctuation in assembly is compensated for by adjustment shims, by design. That means, any front end alignment shop can accurately set your front end alignment by adjusting the placement and thickness of shims that hold the individual upper arm to its frame member. Different shim thickness on each side of a pivot rod is common because this is how caster and camber are set. This is approved by Ford. Toe-in is adjusted at the tie rods. - Dave

[Geoffreybusuttilmalta]

Hey thanks a lot for thedetailed info.. We realised that that step is a stop infact i went to a shop where they told me that ..

Sure we didnt presss without considering the frame of the upper arm..so we didnt press it or anything else were it would close or warp. .

MUCH APPRECIATED GUYS THANKS VERY VERY MUCH

[simplyconnected]

...Sure we didnt presss without considering the frame of the upper arm..so we didnt press it or anything else were it would close or warp...

I hope you didn't misunderstand me, the upper arm's pivot shaft bolts to the sub-frame of your unibody car. Control arms don't have a frame as they are one piece of stamped steel.

So far I have never used my press on 'A' arm bushings. I use a hammer and pipe nipple because I can feel the controlled motion as the bushing seats. But even with a press, it's awfully hard to deform a control arm.