Guide Rod mount fun
 

I finally got my parts for this job. Now I'm trying to put the stupid things in the car.

I jacked under the rocker panel jack point with a floor jack and a block of wood. But I could not find where in the heck to put a jack stand without damaging anything.

So, I loosened the top of the shock mount on the drivers side, jacked the drivers side of the car, removed the wheel, removed the 3 Rear Guide Rod Mount bolts, connected a come-a-long to the LCA and hooked the other end to the heavy hitch on the Chevy. After a couple tugs the arm started to move and I got the Rear mount about 1/2" inch off the frame of the car. WHoaaa, then the whole car started to move. So, now I am back to square one.

How exactly are you guys doing this with the come-a-long?

Should I just get a spring compressor and break the LCA loose?

There has got to be an easier way without damaging the car or myself.

I'd go w/ a ratchet strap- better yet, two. wrap them up around the bumper mount. hook the lca, proceed. or use your come-a-long and maybe a short bit of chain? to get around the bumper mount.

It took quite a bit of force to even budge the thing forward. I thought it would move pretty easy, but it is very tight.

There is no way I can get the come-a-long into the fender well area it is just too big.

I may try the strap thing. I just can't imagine having enough leverage with that short handle? Maybe I'm making it harder than it really is?

I'm going to try it again in the morning.

Did you use Wheel Chocks (don't know how to spell it) to block the wheels so the car would not move?

Yes, I chocked it. It was still wanting to inch forward.

I was going to tie it to a tree. But, no real tree's to speak of around here. Just palm tree's and they are pretty soft. I don't want to risk that. They don't have much of a root system.

I'm still surprised at the amount of force required to move the LCA forward. Using the strap method.... Are you guys using a small ratcheting strap or a big one? I don't see how you can do that without bending some sheet metal around the bumper/shock mount.

It's raining out right now. First time in almost 2 months. Go figure... This job and the windshield gasket I was trying to get done before the rainy season starts next month.... I guess it is here early.:rolleyes:

Did you thread the guide rod mount all the way into the guide rod? If you don't do this I'm not sure you could get it all the way out.

I used a portable hydraulic jack shown here.
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/2006434-post10.html

79Mercy also tried it your way without any success. The car was moving too much also. I'm on the fence about that method, it takes a lot of force to move it.

You know...... I thought about that. I got kind of freaked out after the car moved a little while in the air.

So, if I thread it inwards it will drop down enough to remove it? Or am I still going to have to swing the control arm forward?

I saw the thread about using that Harbor Freight sideways jack kit. But I do not have anything like that. Just a big bottle jack and a 3 ton Craftsman floor jack.


Edit: Right now I am considering getting a spring compressor and removing the LCA to do the job. If I can do the job with out damaging the lower BJ's on the process. I did notice a few cracks in the LCA bushings. So, they are probably hard as a rock.

My Indy did mine for me. The previous noise was a PIA.

You will be happy with results.

I had to do an alignment afterwards but it wasn't that far off the fellow said.

Hang in there and good luck!

I just pulled it hard toward the bumper and threaded it on. The hard part is lining up the two bolts holding the guide rod mount bracket to the car (126)

I'm sure it will be better... When I was pulling on it with the come-a-long the rod pulled out of the mount about 3/4 of an inch before coming off the frame.:eek: They are completely shot and they look fairly new?

I'm going to try the bumper strap thing tomorrow as others have said. If that does not do it, then the LCA's are coming out.

When I did mine I threaded the mount all the way in and then had to move the lower arm forward a little but not very much. Are both sides of the front end off the ground, I did one side at a time so only one wheel off at a time?
Do you have the rears blocked tight? I remember pulling the lower arm forward with a wrecking bar but I think the best bet would be a strap around the arm and the other end around the bumper support so all action is on the car and not between the car and something else.

Another thought; when I did mine I used one jack stand under the lower arm and another under the car frame rail but if you do this use some wood between the stand a frame rail because it is just sheet metal and will bend easily.

I got one in!!:D It was not easy and took some finagling to get it to work.

I used a combination of threading the Rear Guide Rod Mount "out" and then using a big strap wrapped around the LCA and the bumper shock to inch the LCA forward. Once I got to the end of the threads, I got a couple more clicks on the strap (with a pry bar) and I had enough room to get it out. The mount was so worn out that it came off the car in 3 pieces!:eek:

I went for a quick test drive after replacing the mount and the steering is now almost as tight as the Volvo. Truly amazing! It was like a 1950's Chevy pick-up with "king pin" steering before. Literally all over the road. I will put the passengers side in tomorrow. It looks to be just as badly worn as the drivers side.

I'm still waiting for a reply from billybob or Brian Carlton about a spring compressor (the correct one) to rent. I need to replace the LCA bushings as they are a little cracked. If any one knows where I can get a spring compressor for a few days... I would greatly apprectiate it. I will need it in about 2 weeks.

Pictures of the project
 

Ok... Here are some pictures of this job. I have to say that it was a bit daunting at first. But, after doing the one side which took all of 3 hours trying to figure out how to do it. The other side only took one hour total.

I measured between the where the mount sits on the frame to the back of the guide rod before removing. I also counted the threads. As it turns out, counting the threads was enough. After installing the new parts and re-measuring there were the exact amount of threads as before. I just wanted to be sure.

Easily doable with regular tools as others have said.

Here are some pics of the job and the bad part:

Bad mount and new one, look closely.
http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...mountright.jpg

Bad mount still in car.
http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...derodmount.jpg

Remove upper shock mount.
http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...shockmount.jpg

Removed upper shock mount.
http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...shockmount.jpg

Strap side.
http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g.../Strapside.jpg

Strap forward around bumper mount.
http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...umpermount.jpg

Strap aft around outer LCA.
http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...ndouterLCA.jpg

Removing old mount.
http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...ngoldmount.jpg

Threading and bolting on new mount.
http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...dandbolton.jpg

New mount installed.
http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/g...tinstalled.jpg

Good job. Any time you can pull/push two items on the same car it is safer than trying to pull/push between that car and something else. By any chance did you try moving the lower arm around when the guide mount was off? IF you did it might tell you if you need new bushings on the lower arm. I did all my suspention work with out having to replace those. From what I can tell the only time you need a spring compressor is for the lower arm. Try checking, I think, in the DIY section because there are people willing to rent out the correct compressor and you only want to use the one made for these cars.