Rear Suspension: Stripped Pull Link Nut at Body - Tool Suggestions?

[bruce.g.cameron]

I've tried all the tricks I had in the book to prevent stripping the bolt head and nut on the driver's side rear pull link (forward upper), but I did it anyway! I heated it with propane beforehand (as much as I dared with the fuel lines right behind it).

So now it is stripped. I tried a set of needlenosed visegrips on the nut and a regular visegrip on the head, but couldn't get enough grip on the nut. Regular visegrips just barely fit the nut, but don't have space for rotation.

Short of dropping the whole subframe, any other angles on this job. The other links on the driver's side have been ok so far.

[bruce.g.cameron]

PS - I briefly considered cutting it out with a reciprocating saw (just inside the mounting bracket on subframe), but feel there's not enough clearance behind for the saw back and forth movement.

[crashone]

You might be able to use something like this:

FREE SHIPPING — Irwin Bolt-Grip Extractors/Expanders — 5-Pc. Set | Multi-Drive Specialty Sets| Northern Tool + Equipment

Not sure if this link will work but it is a tool made by Erwin for removing striped nuts.

[JamesDean]

You should post some pics, might help give us some ideas.

I'm not picturing which link you are talking about exactly, I've replaced all the links on both my 124 and 201.

Could you get an angle grinder in there?

[bruce.g.cameron]

Here's a shot. You can see it sits on top of the subframe (in the middle of the picture). There is room to get a vicegrip on the nut (left side), but not to turn it with vicegrips.

I've bought a bolt extractor from Irwin to try on the head (right side), will see how that does.

[Stretch]

Some of the bolts on my W201 rear suspension were stubborn to come free because the aluminium alloy innards of some of the bushings had corroded themselves solid - I removed the sub frame.

Can you get a nut splitter on the nut?

[bruce.g.cameron]

Tried the bolt extractor today, no dice, just rounded some more. I haven't tried a nut splitter, but could see that being tough to fit in there.

I'm sort of at a decision point:
- I've heated the nut enough that the exterior rubber on both side has split, which can't be good for the link. That said, it doesn't twist by hand, so can't be that bad?

- I could try to get a reciprocating saw in there, but that's truly a point of no return. Presuming I can saw through the bushing, what are the odds that I'll be able to break both the nut and the head out of the mount bracket?

I figure the torque required scales with the length of the bolt (i.e. the whole inside of the bolt is fused to the bushing sleeve), so cutting will dramatically reduce torque required. However, it will still be fused on the lower face of the nut to the wall.

There is really no room to get even a 90deg drill in there, so if I saw out, I could be left with dropping the subframe.

Right now, I'm tempted just to leave this link in there as is.

[Maxbumpo]

You need to find the right tool (saw, die grinder, dremel tool) to cut the bolt, maybe have to cut in two places. This is what REALLY stinks when working on rusty suspension. Saw-z-all is pretty much indispensable.

[crashone]

Last week I found that someone had buggered up the nut on top of my transmission mount and left it for me to find. I tried everything I could come up with to get it loose but nothing worked.
AND then I had an idea, a whatthehellyagottaloose idea. I have a palm impact nailer for carpentry work and found a punch small enough to fit in the end, lined it up with the nut and pushed, the impact loosened the nut enough to break it free, I hit it a few more times and then was able to use a wrench to get it off.
Don't know if you have something like that or not, maybe you could borrow one.

[crashone]

Dropping the subfame was a lot easier than I thought and way more easier to work on when it was out from under the car. 4 bolts and it's down. Then you could replace the mounts that are worn out "while you are there"....

[Suped.]

Bigger vise grips.

[OM603]

Dropping the sub-frame in addition to the four sub-frame bushing mounting points would require the removal of at least the rearmost section of the exhaust, it would also require the disconnection of the driveshaft, the rear sway bar and the electrical connection to the differential ABS sensor, the parking brake operating cables and the unbolting and hanging of the rear calipers(with the sub-frame out there isn't much to hang them from). A decent rolling floor jack is needed unless one is jacking the entire rear of the car high enough to leave the wheels in place and to allow the entire sub-frame to be rolled out from underneath the car.

One method to effect the disconnection of that end of the link might be to get hold of a pneumatic or electric "body panel saw" available from Harbor Freight. It's a sort of mini sawzall with a shorter stroke but higher speed, its blades are about 4 inches long and pretty thin. You could cut through the bolt by placing the cut between the link's bushing end and the chassis mounting point. If you're careful you should be able to cut through the bolt and avoid cutting the mounting point. Might take a $8 pack of blades but you'd be past the obstacle you're stuck at now. In a worse case situation where the bushing has corroded and "fused" to the bolt you could cut of both the head and the nut sides of the mounting bolt.

Electric Body Saw

[Maxbumpo]

I like the "drop the entire sub-frame" idea.

Why not cut off the link as close as you can to the bushing, and then just basically get medieval on that bushing/bolt. Cut/drill/beat until you've got it out, be careful to avoid damaging the mounting tabs on the sub-frame.

[JamesDean]

Originally Posted by Maxbumpo

I like the "drop the entire sub-frame" idea.

Why not cut off the link as close as you can to the bushing, and then just basically get medieval on that bushing/bolt. Cut/drill/beat until you've got it out, be careful to avoid damaging the mounting tabs on the sub-frame.

I second this. Cut the link off, make room and just go at the thing with whatever you can.