96 Volvo wagon control arm replacement

Post by **rspi** » 28 Dec 2012, 03:09

One of the most important steps in the entire process is loading the arm to the ride height before you torque the frame bolts. If you fail to do that you will destroy the frame bushings and they will wear out very fast.

2forty · Post by **2forty** » 28 Dec 2012, 21:38

I used a floor jack and lifted the wheel hub so the center would be in the middle of the bottom of the door and the bottom of the door frame as stated above so hopefully I got it pretty close.

Post by **BobbyC777** » 31 Dec 2012, 21:20

Great write-up, Lee and good tips from others.

What symptoms are exhibited that would tell one that new control arms are in order?

Thanks.

Bob

Post by **rspi** » 01 Jan 2013, 07:08

Best to jack the car and check the wheel for movement, 3 to 9 and 6 to 12. My first indication was a slight pull to one side when I braked to stop occasionally. You should have NO wiggle movement in the bushings.

Post by **erikv11** » 01 Jan 2013, 09:58

Worn bushings usually manifests as a click in the suspension when starting or stopping the car. As the car lurches one direction or the other, the control arm shifts in the bushing and clicks.

It is much more common, and more worrisome, for control arms to fail at the ball joint. While failing bushings are annoying, a failing ball joint can be dangerous. Car wanders or jumps around on the highway, loose steering. Front tires may show uneven wear. If it fails completely the wheel will fold out. But complete failure is extreme and rare, you'd have to ignore a lot of signs.

Checking the wheel for movement as rspi stated is a good way to investigate. The key is to look at the suspension linkage while you wiggle the wheel, you need to see where any motion is coming from. Like the bushings (in fact like every joint in the suspension linkage), the ball joint should have zero movement.

Volvich · Post by **Volvich** » 22 Apr 2013, 19:16

I have the four bolt type arms on my '98 c70 coupe. How different is the procedure?

hot9000 · Post by **hot9000** » 23 Dec 2014, 10:53

Thanks for the information. Very useful!

BTW, my mechanic told me to add "wheel alignment" after the control arm replacement. Is it necessary or am I being taken advantage? Thanks again.

Post by **Ozark Lee** » 23 Dec 2014, 14:31

hot9000 wrote:Thanks for the information. Very useful!

BTW, my mechanic told me to add "wheel alignment" after the control arm replacement. Is it necessary or am I being taken advantage? Thanks again.

The alignment may or may not change much, it depends on how good things were when the last alignment was done. It will be slightly different no matter what but it may or may not be significant. An alignment is advisable but not absolutely necessary. The mechanics suggestion is prudent and he isn't just trying to rip you off. You can always decline.

...Lee

hot9000 · Post by **hot9000** » 23 Dec 2014, 21:45

Thanks again Lee for the reply. I am just curious. I do find my mechanic pretty trustworthy. Finally found one. Thank God.

Cheers.

akwon · Post by **akwon** » 11 May 2015, 08:07

Another small tip I came across after replacing my control arms: sand the inside of the subframe brackets where the control arm bushings fit in. Mine had a lot of gunk and rust built up so I could barely get the control arms fitted and positioned at first.