Date: Sun, 24 May 2009 14:33:27 -0700
Reply-To: Scott Daniel - Turbovans <scottdaniel@TURBOVANS.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Scott Daniel - Turbovans <scottdaniel@TURBOVANS.COM>
Subject: Re: Front Suspension - Screws
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Those things sure get rusted together all right.
I ran into the exact same thing on a vanagon from the east coast.
Interestingly it was rusted more on the left side than the right side. More
salt in the middle of the road I imagine.
it didn't matter what I did to the really rusted left side - those three
bolts with nuts on the bottom were totally seized in place.
No amount of oxygen-acetylene torch heating helped........I put on gallons
of really good penetrating oil....
there was no way all three of those bolts would come out of there.
Even with a nut off........hammering with a punch wouldn't drive out the
bolt, just super stuck.
I finally had to use another good used left lower arm I had on another early
vanagon.
I was able to get the other side apart.......and still it was hard to get
apart. Things are under load or a bind some .......If the spring is not
installed there might be less tension and binding on the lower suspension
parts.........but, .bottom line, it's not something that unbolts cleanly and
simply .... even if things are not badly rusted.
the 3 bolts are not threaded into any parts........they are simple
through-bolts with nuts on the bottom, they just get desperately stuck.
Scott
www.turbovans.com
----- Original Message -----
From: "Alan Felder" <dieseldoofus@GMAIL.COM>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Sunday, May 24, 2009 1:04 PM
Subject: Front Suspension - Screws
>I am working on the front suspension of my 82 Diesel Westy, and have a
> question about some of the parts which I may not want to disassemble (to
> find out about).
>
> At the lower arm 251 407 153 B, there are three M10x80 Hex Head Screws N
> 010
> 480 2 on each side, which hold together the lower arm, the ball joint
> retainer 251 407 177 and the radius rod 251 407 059. It is obvious that
> the
> lower arm is not threaded for these bolts but are the other parts? Or,
> once
> the self-locking nuts are off and lots of penetrating oil later, will they
> slide (or punch) out the top or do they have to be un-screwed?
>
> So far, I have broken off the head off of one on the right side and the
> threaded extension with the nut on the other.
>
> --
> Not all those who wander are lost
