Rear subframe removal and bushing replacement
 

Dear All,

I thought I'd add some photographs of my most recent fun - Sub-frame removal and bushing replacement on my 1981 W123 300D.

If you are searching this forum BEFORE starting the job then the I'd say you are better off trying to remove the bushings by using the car's weight to push the bushings out of the sub frame.

However, if (like me) you've either

1) Already removed the sub frame and are now thinking "right how do I get the bushings out"...

or

2) The center pin in the bushing has corroded itself on to the pin-like bolt and has ripped itself out of the bushing

Then this information might be of use to you.

I'll start first with a picture of the pin-like bolt removal:-

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/...pictureid=2264

When I tried to get the pin-like bolt out it was very very stiff. I used a 3/4" drive bar and put loads of weight behind it. This was probably a mistake - although as you can see the pin-like bolt is corroded fast to the middle part of the bushing (this is the powdery conical thing) - so may be a stupid amount of force was necessary...

...Anyway I found out that the amount of force necessary (in removing this pin-like bolt) is drastically reduced if you take the weight off of the sub frame by lifting the trailing arm with a jack - you can see this too in the picture. I'm definitely going to do this if I ever have to do the job again.

Next step
 

Before I actually removed the sub frame I had already disconnected the calipers and removed the axles. I couldn't get enough access for removing the differential - well I didn't fancy scraping knuckles on the underside of the car to reach the four bolts that are attached to the sub frame so I finally managed to get the prop shaft out and pulled the diff and sub frame out together from under the car.

After easily removing the diff - and taking off the trailing arms I was able to fling the sub frame about with the greatest of ease for the next bit - bushing removal

Here is a picture of an attempt at removing the bushing by hammering it out with a bit punch

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/...pictureid=2265

As you can see it didn't work. The rubber in the bushings was not strong enough to take the punishment. So I turned the sub frame over so that it was upside down from the position that it is fitted on the car.

Easy does it!
 

Levering under the lip of the bushing at its surface mounting point with a screw driver might work if the bushings are not rusted... but for me they were pretty stuck fast.

I used bolt cutters to snip the sides of the metal casing in the bushing and simultaneously trying to lever them out.

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/...pictureid=2266

A sort of snip and twist motion got me enough space between the lip of the bushing and the sub-frame to get in screwdrivers and eventually a claw hammer.

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/...pictureid=2267

With a claw hammer in place I could pull the bushing out just that little bit further to fit in the thicker claw of my crow bar.

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/...pictureid=2268

The bushing popped out. Nice and easy eh?

Has anyone got a better way of doing this?

I'll post some pictures of the finished product when the parts get here...

Isn`t that the most fun you ever had? :D

I just finished up doing this same project last week. I droped the whole assembly down and out. I removed the differential and the axles first. I have the Annular axles, so didn`t have to remove the diff cover. I did this to remove some of the weight first.

I used a small pry bar and worked around the sub bushing and they came right out. I didn`t have any rust issues, and the sub frame bolts came right out. the FSM shows to pry them out. but what ever works.

I made a bushing press out of some steel I had, cut and welded it. drilled a 5/8 hole in the center for a piece of all thread. a cross plate on the back side of the frame, with a 5/8 hole also. then uses Syl-Glide on the bushing and the inner hole in the frame. then cranked down on the nuts, and she went right in. I tried the KY-Jelly, and the bushing wouldn`t seat all the way in. removed it and used the Syl-glide, and went all the way in.

I made a bushing press similar to the one Whiskydan made.
www.peachparts.com/shopforum/showthread.php?t=266324 I had trouble with using the washer he uses to push the bushing out. I replaced it with a large nut they use on Gard Rails. it pushed them right out. the washer just wanted to bend.

I also painted the arms and sub frame.

when I replaced the assembly, I installed the Diff , then used 3 floor jacks. one under each arm, and one under the Diff. then just rolled it under the car and raised it.
Note: Make sure the Differential mount isn`t on backwards. :o

I put 2 bolts in the diff mount, but the sub frame bolts were off. finally removed the diff bolts, screwed in the sub frame bolts. then the diff mount was off. :huh2: then the light finally came on, :idea: DUHHHHHH
Amazing how easy things go together when things are facing the right way.

with the new bushing and diff mount, it is a different car.

Charlie

It is good fun - honest - everyone should do it!
 

I can honestly report that it was indeed fun - I find it very satisfying to see a big change in the car for the time you put into it - I think there is nothing worse than doing electrics:- hardly any change when you've finished.

The link for whiskydan's home made tool is indeed a good one. I'm planning on posting some more pictures of that and my trailing arm bushings in another thread.

I'll take your advice for installing the new subframe bushings - thanks. Only I can't get slyglide over here. I have found an alternative made by Kroon oil (for those of you in Europe who might be reading this)... Kroon oil make a water based / food industry Silicone grease called "Silicon Compound".

Syl-Glide
 

I believe Syl-Glide is the lubricant recomended to use for the sun roof. close to what is the official MB stuff.

When I used the KY, the bushing didn`t seat all the way, had 1/4 inch gap.
used the Syl-Glide, and it went in with less effort. I coated the bushing and the hole.

Charlie

Good job man. When I did these three weekends ago it was pretty easy. Nothing like the pain you had to go through. I used the car's weight to push the bushings out of the subframe and that was that. I couldn't imagine taking the subframe out of the car to do this job.

But your right, the car did handle a lot better with the subframe bushings in, and the differential mount replaced.

An update
 

Here is an update (for those who are interested)

I got the bushings in with a little help of some KY jelly, a spring compressor (basically used as a thread), two bits of wood (to protect the bushing), and some aluminum strips to transfer the force from the center metal section of the bushing to the outer cage.

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/...pictureid=2279

And here is is waiting for the trailing arms...

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/...pictureid=2280

Nice job. that sure is a pretty sub frame :D.
You will be amazed at the difference in the handling of the car. the rear end sure tightened up a bunch with new rubber.

It never ends, now you have to get the front tightened up to keep up with the rear.

Charlie

Update #1
 

Here are a few pictures of the sub frame before going on

Repositioning axle stands
 

I'm a one man band so I had to find a way of getting everything back on in a way that I won't kill my self.

I reckon the best way to get the sub frame under the car is to take it down one side of the car and drag it under...

In order to do this you need to stick axle stands on the rear chassis rails close to where the rear brake line go from solids to flexible. I had previously positioned my axle stands under the jacking points - but they get in the way there - when you are fitting the sub frame.

Method of raising subframe to fit main bolts
 

My method of getting the sub frame bolts into position was to slowly lift the three corners of the triangle of the sub frame so that it more or less reaches the mount positions.

I did this by lifting each corner and placing bricks or bits of wood underneath.

(I know bricks and wood are not ideal under cars but these components are not heavy enough to crush these bits - if you follow this method please make sure they don't slip as a differential falling on you is going to hurt!)

I managed to get the sub frame level enough to just lift the two corners with the mounts and calmly insert the main pins! (OK you need to push up a bit like you are trying to lift the car...)

When to fit the differential?
 

I've also worked out that it is better to fit the differential before sliding the sub frame under the car. I thought it might go on with the sub frame under the car - but I didn't really have enough space to get it to fit. May be it would be better if I had taller axle stands - but I don't...

Question
 

All has gone well so far (as you can see from the posts above) but I have a question.

The supporting plates that fit over the sub frame mounts (on a W123) fit snugly on top of the sub frame mount. However they do not align nicely with the holes on the under side of the car.

I guess I need to twist these steel plates into position and then fit the retaining M10 bolts.

When should I do this?

Should I twist the plates - and the mount - before or after tightening the main pins?

(Oh and does anyone know what ht e torque is for these bolts?)

I can't find the answer to these questions on older threads.

Picture of the plates I mean...
 

Here is a picture of the steel plates I mean... just in case there is any doubt

FSM Says....
 

Tightening torque for hex bolt attaching front rubber bearing to frame floor 120 nm.

Tightening torque for hex screws attaching supporting plate to frame floor 40 nm.

It says to tighten the screws and the hex bolts (pins) in the same sentence, so it doesn't seem too insistent that there is a correct sequence.

Brilliant thanks for your response
 

Thanks for your response - one of these days I'll buy a FSM... 'got to get one in the US though as the ones over here cost nearly 5 times as much.

When I mounted the plates, I inserted the large bolts, but left them loose, attached the 4 13mm differential bolts, left them loose, then screwed in the 2 bolts for the plates.

By leaving the bolts loose you should have some wiggle room to get it lined up.

I used 3 floor jacks to raise the whole assembly up into position.

Charlie

Thanks for the torque specs - I did need them.

Some how or other I had convinced myself that the left hand steel plate fits on the right hand side but that they go on upside down... doh! I received some information that showed me the errors of my ways - thanks a lot Yak.

(I should have looked more closely at my own photographs that I took when I took tha bits apart)

Army,

Truly impressive job.

I am inspired to remove the whole subframe now to de-rust and rust proof the whole thing with POR-15.

How long would you say this whole project took you?

I did the '85s front end and now would love to do this complete of a job on the rear. I fear this a long long project....Or it may be one of those things that doing the entire thing is not that much harder than doing it one bit at a time under the car.

How long did it take you to re-align the subframe?

dd

I really took my time doing the subframe as well as the front suspension, power steering pump rebuild, new brake lines + rebuilt the calipers (one of which has failed - the bugger), cleaned out and removed the fuel tank, new fuel lines all the way to the injectors + new injectors, fitted an electric cooling fan, and I've been slowly stripping off that horrible plastic undercoating and assessing the condition of the chassis. So it is a bit difficult to give you an accurate assessment.

HOWEVER if I'm being positive and nothing goes wrong I'd say it is possible in a weekend so long as you've got the parts. If you need to go shopping you've probably blown it!

The surprising thing about the subframe job is just how light it is - remove the diff and it is quite easy to fling it about like Mr Schwarzenegger might do his car mechanics. The only real problem is getting it out from under the car - which for my case was only on axle stands. I found it best to lower the subframe and diff onto chunky bits of wood and bricks until I could drag it sideways out from under the car. I positioned the axle stands under the rear jacking points to start off with but found it better to have them positioned behind the rear wheels on the "chassis rail" close to the bracket for the joint between the flexible brake line and the hard one.

Once you've got the subframe out and you've cleaned it up and painted it get some cavity wax for the inside - there is access via a little rubber bung in the middle upper surface of the subframe.

Don't be too upset about scratching your new paint - it is quite likely to happen. (I'm sorry to report) I spent some time with more POR 15 underneath the car once it was re-assembled.

Fitting the subframe on to the car is best done with the diff on. I tried to fit the diff to the subframe once it was in place but when working under a car on axle stands - well shall I say a waste of time? My method of re-aligning the subframe was to raise it slowly on to more bricks and wood until I got the height right:-

Charmalu says to use 3 jacks. I guess this is best - I've only got one jack - so I used what was to hand. Be careful with such methods - jacks are likely to be way way safer.

Even so once you've got the subframe at the correct height you'll find it possible to lift the two front points (that have the bushings) by hand. The bullet like pins are sometimes a bit stubborn at this point - tap them into place with a hammer - and I mean tap NOT hammer! Once you've got one of these pins in place you can do them up hand tight and then do the other one.
Watch the height of the diff and make sure that is in line with the mounting holes - if it is nearly there it helps with the pin alignment.

I hope this helps and isn't another case of too much information...

Oh yes and for checking the alignment of the subframe and indeed the front wheels I'm in the middle of perfecting a time involved but accurate DIY way of setting up the suspension... once I get the data I want I'll publish...

Oh yes and another thing dd, I'm not sure if you've seen this - but here's something to do with the trailing arms!

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/diesel-discussion/277341-w123-rear-wheel-bearing-removal-help-needed.html

Dieseldan, when I replaced my subframe, I just raised it up and bolted it in. there isn`t any adjustments.
one large bolt through the sub bushings, and the 2 that hold the plate on for each side. then the 4 that hold the Diff mount to the body.
mount the shocks, torque things down and your good to go.

If all you are going to do is replace the trailing arm and sub frame bushings, it`s a days work.
if you want to get all detailitis, then longer.

I called Whunter to ask him how do I jack up the rear of the car and mount the jack stands, when removing everything out from under the car. Its just sheetmetal, and nothing solid to have the car sit on.

His reply, was to make some rods to insert into the jack holes for the jack stands to sit on. with this bit of info, and have seen somthing like this on E-bay before, I went to a welding shop to have something made.

we used a piece of 3/4 in steel rod. inserted it into the hole, and left 3 inches sticking out. then the guy made a 15 degree bend to each one so they would be level when sitting on the stands. welded a little plate on the ends, large washer could also be used.

make sure your jack hole aren`t rusted to the point they can`t take the cars weight.

Charlie

Thanks guys....nothing like talking to those who've done it.

Rust treatment and prevention is the inspiration for detailitis.

Did you guys disconnect the driveshaft at the rear and just leave it supported when you removed everything else?

If I go in to just replace subframe and trailing arm bushings and paint what is exposed' will I need to mess with the driveshaft?

Nice write up, great pictures. I am curious what your parts bill totaled(?).

I am searching for DIY info to do this to a W124 wagon. I have to replace differential bushings at a minimum.

I disconnected the DS at the Diff and let it hang
.
Disconnect the calipers, I used a short bungee cord and hung them over the sway bar with the hooks in the bolt holes.

Disconnect the parking brake cables. I loosened the adjuster, pulled the cotter and pin, spring and "V" rod. then the rear cables can be disconnected. there is a clip on each side to remove and a clamp with 2 screws that fastens the left cable to the floor.

Remove the shocks.

three floor jacks really help.
place one under the Diff, and one for each trailing arm.

Remove the 4 13mm bolts on the Diff mount.
Remove the (two on ea side) 17mm bolts and the large one in the sub frame bushing,

with come coaxing the assy should lower down.

You might want to remove your axles first, as it will make it easier to remove the trailing arms to replace the bushings.

I replaced my arms with a set from PNP that were lower milage, rather than mess with the rear bearings. and replaced the Diff with a lower milage one.
I steam cleaned the parts, scurbed them down with Marine Clean, sanded them and painted with POR, then top coated with their chassis black.

cost wise for the bushings is around $150, including the Diff mount.

Iam doing this from memory, so I might have missed a step.
Whiskydan was a great help with his thread for me, I linked to in post #5.

Charlie

I did the lot...
 

Errrm I did the lot because I also re-booted the axles and painted them up with POR 15 and then of course I replaced the prop shaft centre mount, and so painted that up too. And then because of an incident of sand blowing into the diff I stripped that too and painted it up after replacing the seals on the axle outputs...

Oh by the way my method of de-rusting is to go for gold with an angle grinder with a wire brush attachment. I then de-grease with KBS aqua clean / (POR 15 version) marine clean and then sometimes I use KBS rust blast and then I finish off with POR 15.

You don't need to get as anal about your daily driver as me though... just do what Charlie says!

The Whiskey Dan Method is indeed a great inspiration to me too.

Hi Renntag,

I was planning to publish a comparison of part prices once I've done the rest of the work I need / want to do on the car. But for the sub frame job the following applies:-

2 new steel plates that connect between the sub frame and chassis - 35 euros each (Dealer only part)

2 sub frame bushings (Febi) about 30 euros each I think - sorry I'll check this one

1 diff mount 78 euros (Febi)

2 repair kits trailing arm bushings (4 bushings in total) 20 euros each (Febi)

2 new sub frame bullet shaped pins (dealer only) about 20 euros each - sorry also have to check this too.

Untold amounts of POR 15 and cavity spray!

Sorry all prices are in euros - it is where I live! As a rule of thumb at the moment one USD feels like one Euro even if exchange rates differ.

Wow! Nice work! I'm inspired! And terrified!

Army - Did you have bolt snapping issues with the diff from rust? I am looking at my diff-to-subframe bolts and am a little scared of them. (charmalu youre in CA and i envy you)

I had always thought taking off the subframe was too difficult to be attempted by mere mortals without special tools to re-align.

Do i need to get an alignment after doing this? Is there even anything to adjust?

dd

I had no problems with the rear diff mount. But if you get into trouble there is a great fix for stripped captive nuts here:-

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/...d.php?t=269207

Adjustment - short answer:- not really so long as your ride height is correct.

Adjustment - long answer:-

Well I've read that there is a way of spinning the trailing arm bushings around to get a different camber and castor - but having looked at mine I'm not sure that that is correct as my Febi replacements were as round as round could be - no oval adjustment there. I think this information has gotten confused with the front LCA bushings that do seem to come with some sort of off set and also rubber protrusions / markings on their outer surfaces. I think if you can't get the castor or camber you want on the FRONT then you can fiddle with these...

If you take a look in your FSM you'll see a whole chapter on checking the sub frame integrity on a special surface plate - so if your alignment on the back is out then I guess you'd have to go and find one of those bits of kit:- I bet you couldn't find a dealer near you that could do it!

As for ride height I've worked out a neat way of checking it as per the FSM - I'll post this soon honest! I'm just getting my data confirmed and then I'm ready...

...using the string down the side of the car method it is easy to check toe in / out. (I'll be including this as well - with pictures too)

As for the mortals comment - just remember a little bit of the "well it must be easy because <ENTER PROFESSION HERE> can do it" attitude can go a long way! (It can also send you up **** creek with out a paddle - but how else will you learn?)

Don't be scared we'll talk you through it - trust me I'm a vegetarian... (Whopper with cheese anyone?)

Alright, I think I may take the plunge and just do it. If I do everything at once, it will save a lot of time over doing things one at a time.

I am thinking it will take me 30 hours of work over 6 works days. That includes at least a couple snapped bolts and unexpected hardships.

Question - can I take both subframe mounts out using the cars weight if I am ultimately removing the whole subframe? I know I can get the first one out, but what about the second one?

I'm not sure as I ended up using bolt cutter etc (see the first posts) but I expect so - if not getting them out otherwise is still possible! Don't worry it actually is an easy job... after all the thought and checking you've put into it I'm sure you'll be surprised.

OK, im almost there.

how did you guys disconnect the parking brake cable from the hub?

Im going to post my procedure a little later and make sure it makes sense to you guys.

I really really need this project to go smoothly :-)

You do not need to remove the parking brake cable from the hubs.

In post# 28 I described how to remove the cables fron under the center of the car. once you have the vehicle jacked and secure. release the parking brake so there is slack. then disconnect spring, lever adjuster from under the car. one clamp bolted to the floor on the drivers side. there are the 2 clips that hold the cables to a bracket on ea side pull them down and out.

Once you are under there, it will seem clear.

I sort of screwed up at PNP when I removed the trailing arms that I used in my R&R. I cut them off behind the hubs, then had to figure out how to release them from from the hub and install my old cables.
I also replaced the parking brake pads, which was another challenging job. so when I had the old shoes and springs removed, I used the old arms as something to go by along with my Haynes and MB FSM for guidance.

Posr#25 I described how I jacked up the car as per Whunter suggestion.

Yeah, living in Calif has some bennifits to living in Boston, as far as the corrosion goes. It all came apart like it was new, and this after 25 yrs. at least mine is an original Ca car and not imported from Boston. I have seen some at PNP that are totally gone underneith.

Charlie

Thank you charmalu.

How did you guys get the trailing arm bushings out? I see the threaded rod thing whiskeydan did for installation, but i don't see how that gets the bushing pieces out.

Pushing out bushings in the northeast is horrible. I want to have a plan going in....


and...

On reinstall, when did you put the springs back in? Align and thread all the bolts then put the springs in with a compressor (which I have)? Or some other method?

Some more pictures to spur you on
 

Here are some more pictures to encourage the brave.

Two are of the trailing arms and the sub frame just before I put them back on - I quite like the one of the sub frame and trailing arms upright against the back of the car - this shows you how light it all is with out the diff fitted. Just in case you didn't believe me...


And in case you're now worried about the parking brake that you may or may not replace here's a solution to those irritating retaining springs:-

Get an old flat blade screw driver and slice a notch in it with an angle grinder and cutting disc. You can then use your new (butchered) tool to twist the little buggers round with ease.

I lost my patience with the old ones (which were going to be replaced anyway) and cut 'em out with bolt cutters. Oh yes I love my bolt cutters and my angle grinder - 2 really honoured bits of kit in my tool box.

Sorry I'm having an attachment nightmare - It keeps telling me I've already added the picture I want to show... and guess what the computer doesn't lie: IT IS IN POST #11 doh...

I've searched and searched for a photograph of taking the bushings out of the trailing arms but I can't find one yet (I'm sure I took one...).

Anyway here is one of putting in a new bushing. I'll use it to explain what I did to get 'em in and out.

Trailing arm bushing removal
 

Take a look in the photograph in post #42

You can see that there is a bit of threaded bar that is threaded through the trailing arm structure.

To get bushings out you need something that has a diameter slightly larger than the trailing arm bushing but not so large that it will not squarely butt up against the trailing arm structure. The plan is to push the bushing out of the hole into the trailing arm and into this "thing" that you just found.

Whiskey Dan recommended plumbing connectors for this and this is indeed what I used. They are long enough to hold the bushing.

It is best to cut away the rubber part of the bushing that sticks out on one side of the bushing. This makes the next stage easier!

Place your plumbing connector (or what ever you use) on one side of the trailing arm. Thread your threaded bar through the bushing and attach some washers that are small enough to be drawn through the trailing arm's bushing hole. MAKE sure these washers don't scrape the internals of the trailing arm whilst they go through.

Place a really large washer (OR A BIT OF WOOD - WOOD IS GOOD!) over the larger diameter end of the plumbing connector that isn't up against the trailing arm...

And that's it - you just wind up two nuts on either end of the threaded bar until the little chap pops out. EDIT little chap = bushing

Thanks Army. You guys are awesome....really lowering the risk of downtime associated with this job for me.

I'll have all my tools made before taking it apart. Hopefully on day #1 I can have everything removed and the bushings out. Thats going to be where all the risk is for me. After that, it'll just be that final line-up.

I am going to go to Harbor Freight and get myself a third floor jack. Ill get the nice racing one this time :-)

To put the new bushing in
 

Again look at the photograph attached to post # 42

To put the new bushing in:-

Make sure the inside of the trailing arm bushing hole is clean / rust free.

Make sure you put the bushing in the correct way round - see photo.

Lubricate the outer surface of your new bushing with a WATER based lubricant such as KY Jelly... I understand in America you guys can get a product call slyglide. This is widely appreciated here on this forum. I can't get it here so I used KY. The point is that you shouldn't use an oil based lubricant because it can knacker your rubber. It is best not to use silicone sprays as they are usually oil based.

Thread your threaded bar through your new bushing, the trailing arm, and something that can react against the trailing arm. Again I recommend wood. Wood is really good especially if you are heavy handed. Wood will generally crack and grown before you are likely to do any serious damage to a metal structure.

Again use two nuts to tighten this configuration until the bushing goes in.

WATCH OUT though that you don't over do it as the metal sleeve in the centre of the bushing will want to go with the tension in the threaded bar (as you're most likely to be winding up against it) and the outer surface of the rubber bushing will tend to oppose this movement. So sort of shear the new bushing into place. This is OK but not if you actually manage to permanently distort it - hence the recommendation of wood again so you don't over do it by accident.

Final answer!
 

Spend all of your time getting the sub frame and trailing arms in place first.

Like I said I think you are better off fitting the diff first to the sub frame unless you're super strong or can lift the car higher than the height of standard axle stands. May be 4X4 axle stands would be better? (I don't know for sure though)

Once you've got the trailing arms, diff, and sub frame in place, then it is time to fit the springs.

If you try and some how fit the springs at the same time you are going to spend most of your time fighting the reactive force they produce. You don't need that!

Oooooo! Has that got the "one pump to meet the thing you're going to lift" feature? I want that next.

I used Whiskeydan`s bushing design almost to a "T". I had problems with using the washer to push the bushing through into the pipe coupler. the washer just wanted to bend, even with 2 washers back to back.
well since I use to work for the State of Calif. with the old Division of Highways. then later changed to Caltrans, I had access to guard rail nuts and bolts.
I used a guard rail bolt on the 5/8 12" piece of all thread. when I tightens the nuts down, the guard rail nut bit into the rubber and just pushed the bushing into the pipe coupler. you will have to cut off the rubber flange of the bushing to be able to shove it into the coupler.
Now I don`t recommend you to go down to the corner gardrail and remove a couple nuts, but they are 1 1/4" wide :rolleyes:.

The springs are a piece of cake. I just replaced my rear springs Tues with a set of Progressives.

Remove the nuts off the shocks at the top, behind the rear seat, with the vehicle still on the ground.

Loosen lug nuts on rear wheels.

Jack up vehicle securely and safely.

Remove rear wheels.

Remove the rear calipers, I hung them on the rear sway bar with a short bunjee, hook in each bolt hole. 19mm bolts.

Remove the rear links, sway bar end. 16mm and 17mm back up. then tip sway bar up so bungee/caliper dont slide off.

Remove the lower shock bolts, 17mm. If car is raised high enough, the shock will slide out.

Place floor jack under Diff. and keep tight under the diff., remove the 4 13mm bolts that attach the diff to body.

Slowley lower the floor jack, and the springs will just about fall out.

I removed the 4 exhaust donuts and lowered the muffler to the ground. but for your project of removing the whole rear suspension. remove the whole exhaust pipe. 4 donuts, and the 2 long bolts at the connection, then slide the pipe out of the way.

Charlie

Check Costco, they have a good 3 1/2 ton floor jack for $89.99. I have 2 of them. they work great. I have one HF jack, and it bleeds off a little, from the start.
The Costco isn`t the racing jack, but is low profile and a steel body, and well made.

Charlie

Thanks again charmalu....forgot about the exhaust. When you are reinstalling the suspension, how do you put the springs back in? Id guess you'd want to line it up first, then bolt the 2 subframe bolts, then put the springs in? I am a little confused as to how to put it all back together.

Hey Army, where did you get the wax spray for inside the subframe and what is it called?

And where do you get SylGlide or equivalent?