I have an 85 XJ 2.5l auto. Just got it and going through as much as I can before putting it back on the road. Even with only 145K miles on it I figure it is due new control arm bushings. The arms themselves look in good shape, but I was wondering if it is easier to replace the whole thing instead of trying to get the old bushings out of the arms?

I have heard that the rear spring bushings are a major pain to get out, are the front control arm bushing that difficult also?

Not planning of lifting more than maybe 2" later on, so I don't think I need to go to adjustable arms unless that would be an upgrade that is of some benefit at near stock heights as well.

Thanks for any advice you can give.

 

Its really up to you, I was just going to replace my bushings, but ended up replacing the whole control arms since the stock arms were limiting my suspension so much offroad at only 1.5" of lift. Its a little easier to replace the entire control arms, but just the bushings are cheaper.

 

Get the Energy Suspension Hyperflex Master Kit. It has UCA and LCA bushings, Leaf Spring and Shackle bushings, and the track bar bushing. It's $125 on energysuspensionparts.com; for an extra $24, you can get your sway bar bushings. I've put on all but the track bar and UCA bushings and my Jeep handles far better than it did before. Less body roll and better steering/suspension response when driving on- and off-road. Combined with the Energy Supension motor mounts and the Daystar transmission mount, my Jeep feels more responsive and more aggressive than a new Jeep, even with a 2" lift and 31" tires.

To get the old bushings out, break out a propane torch or welding torch and turn it on a lower heat. The rubber bushings start to melt and will slide right out when you push them. Drilling them out is a pain, and a hole saw doesn't always work.

 

Thanks, I will look into the Energy Suspensions set.

After today I don't think even those bushings will seem difficult to remove. I spent all day changing my front shocks and still haven't finished. Driver's side was easy, had to work with them but got the nuts off and all went well. Passengers side was a different story, first the rear bold snapped at the top. I thought "no problem" just have to run to town and get some more bolts, should replace the ones on the driver's side anyhow. The front one, worked and worked, finally got it to turn and then the nut on the bottom rounded off. Tried wedging it to hold it, no go, tried cutting it with a hack saw, can't get enough room to make any headway, tried the bolt at the top with a cold chisel and hammer, pounded on it for an hour and I don't think I have even dented the threads, tried clamping a cheap pair of vise grips on the bolt and keeps spinning out. Going to go get a real pair of vise grips and try that again, but probably am going to need to get Dad's cutting torch, which is 120 miles away Glad I don't need it as a DD.

 

Dude, get some penetrating lube or pb blaster to help. You could always go buy a nut splitter if it will fit lol

 

Trust me, if you don't have a torch, they're a pain...

 

They were soaked with penetrating oil several times before attempting.

Got some heavy duty vise grips today, will try those once it stops raining. Someone else told me a trick I will try next that I had not thought of before. He said go buy a cheap socket that will fit, fill it with epoxy and put it on there and let it sit overnight, then remove I should be able to remove the nut, or at least twist the bolt off, then just throw it away when done.

 

I've never had to resort to that. Unfortunately, a cheap socket may not get you far (I've broken decent sockets on suspension components), but Craftsman may replace it.

 

I would hate to have to explain the nut glued in to the Sears salesman

I was able to get it off today using a set of real Irwin 10" Visegrips. Got them locked onto the nut and once they turned to wedge into the sides of the recess that the nut is in they held while I unscrewed the bolt from the top. If I had been thinking when I bought the new bolts I would have gotten them about 1/4" or more shorter so there wouldn't be so much thread sticking below the nut. Would make it easier next time I have to change them. Did get the grade 8 hardware with the self locking flanged nuts and bolt head just like what was on there. The black coated ones, and going to keep some grease on them so hopefully they don't rust up again.

Now I have to decide if I want to tackle new front bushings first or replace the rear springs that are sagging a little. Not yet inverted, but pretty much flat.

 

Leaf springs. Get them re-sprung or buy new ones/junkyard ones and put poly bushings in them. Do a 1"+ shackle drop for a bit of lift and get some extended bumpstops.

 

Anyone know what size the bolts are for the leaf springs? I imagine that 28 year old ones will have a low chance of being removed in one piece from what I have read here. Might as well get the bolts before even starting the process.

 

I only lost one bolt when I did mine. I forgot the size, but they took a 13/16" or 15/16" socket to remove. They're a decent size.

 

An oxy-acetylene torch is your friend when working on suspensions.

I took my Ohio-Michigan rust bucket apart last week and replaced the shocks, sway bar links, sway bar bushings, steering stabilizer and u-joints.

Heat up the nut with torch, take it off. Easy peasy.

I refuse to work on suspension parts without at least a MAPP gas torch anymore. Too many wasted hours of snapped bolts and broken tools.

 

If I were you, I would replace the whole arm. For two reasons, I didn't want to burn out the old bushings to replace them and then after market arms typically come with a notch to allow for more axle droop at the shock mount. Look up the WJ arm upgrade.

 

14x2.0x120mm