DIY - Front Lower Control Arm Removal and Installation

[DavePro]

I started with the obvious, chocking the rear tires and jacking the front of the car. I placed my flat-top AC Hydraulics jackstands under the front jacking pucks in order that the jackstands would not be in the way. The car is very stable in this position.

1. The first thing I did was to mark the orientation of the cam bolts using a Sharpie in order to get them close to where they were upon reinstallation of the control arms. An alignment should be performed after the job is completed.
2. Support the lower control arm with a jackstand or jack. Disconnect the electrical connector from the wheel speed sensor.
3. I placed my AC Hydraulics DK13HLQ floor jack, with its rubber pad under the spring and released the spring tension. Be very careful to not scratch the spring. THERE IS ABSOLUTELY NO NEED TO REMOVE THE SPRING AND THE J33432-A SPRING REMOVER IS NOT REQUIRED.
4. Although only the anti-roll bar links need to be removed from the control arm, I removed the entire bar and links. I have T1 bars and Teflon lined links and it was due for cleaning an lubrication. I use GM part number 12345879 to lubricate the anti-roll bar bushings as this is what GM recommends. To remove the OEM links you can use an 18mm wrench and a 6mm Allen wrench to keep the stud from spinning. A better way, in my opinion, is to put an 18mm open end wrench on the flat at the link end of the stud and an 18mm socked on the nut end. This eliminates the possibility of stripping the end of the stud. The anti-roll bar brackets are removed with an 18mm socket.
5. Remove the two 13mm lower shock absorber bolts.
6. Using a 21mm open end wrench and a 6mm Allen wrench to prevent the stud from turning I loosened the the ball joint crush nut. I then separated the joint using the J42188 separator, although this tool is not absolutely necessary. I discarded the nut as the are single use nuts. DO NOT REUSE THEM.
7. I let the lower control arm swing down and removed the floor jack from the spring.
8. I then remoced the cam bolts and nuts using a 21mm socket on either end. I would recommend a breaker bar and a long ratchet as they can be tight. I then removed the control arm and replaced the bushings in the shop.
9. I reinstalled the control arm and aligned the cam bolts with my Sharpie marks. I tightened the nuts to the 125 ft lbs specification using my torque wrench and a long ratchet.
10. Once again, I relieved the spring tension with my floor jack in order to swing the control arm into position to attach the control arm to the knuckle (upright). This prevents damaging the pad a the bottom of the ride height adjustment bolt as well as allowing the control arm to be reattached.
11. I placed a NEW crush nut, PN 10282253, on the ball joint stud and tightened it to 15 ft lbs, using a 21mm crowfoot and a 6mm Allen wrench to keep the stud from spinning. Using my Snap-on Techangle torque wrench, I rotated the nut 210 degrees and checked to assure the the minumum torque specification of 41 ft lbs had been attained. You can probably estimate the angle and be fine.
12. I reinstalled the 13mm lower shock absorber nuts and torqued them to 21 ft lbs.
13. I reinstalled the anti-roll bar and tightened the bracket bolts to 43 ft lbs.
14. I reinstalled the anti-roll bar links and tightened the nuts to 53 ft lbs.
15. I removed the floor jack from the spring.
16. Connect the electrical connector to the wheel speed sensor.

That's it, the lower control arm is done. Note the the caliper and rotor DO NOT NEED TO BE REMOVED, NOR DOES THE SPRING NEED TO BE REMOVED. You can probably do this in an hour as it really isn't as difficult as it might appear.