Replacing control arm

02V70 · Post by **02V70** » 09 Jul 2022, 16:31

I am replacing the right side control arm, and my Haynes manual says to raise the engine 25 mm in order to unscrew the two bolts that go to the control arm. How would I raise the engine?

Post by **cn90** » 09 Jul 2022, 19:48

With the right tool, no need to raise engine...

02V70 · Post by **02V70** » 09 Jul 2022, 20:08

The video shows the left side, the right side has less room. I think I may be able to get the bolts out with a wrench, but when I tighten them, the torque wrench won’t fit, and will require raising the engine. Is the torque wrench absolutely necessary?

Post by **cn90** » 09 Jul 2022, 21:31

You can take a photo of your car's R side and post it here so we can see...

Post by **abscate** » 10 Jul 2022, 04:42

02V70 wrote: ↑09 Jul 2022, 20:08 The video shows the left side, the right side has less room. I think I may be able to get the bolts out with a wrench, but when I tighten them, the torque wrench won’t fit, and will require raising the engine. Is the torque wrench absolutely necessary?

You can approximate torque on these bolts without ill effect.

Roughly, one a 12 inch bar

Wrist pull 25 ft lbs
Elbow pull 50 ftlbs
Shoulder pull 100 ft lbs
Body pull 200 ft lbs or more for porkers like me

Half these numbers for dense muscle people like my fragile little flower…

Post by **vtl** » 10 Jul 2022, 07:45

What abscate said: calibrate your body's torque

These two bolts I do by hand.

Post by **cn90** » 10 Jul 2022, 07:53

I do them by hand too.

But another way to handle this issue (if you have OCD)...

On the easy side (L side), snug the bolt down then mark with liquid paper white paint on the bolt's head
let's say at 12:00 o'clock.
Use a torque wrench and tighten to specified torque and notice the angle you have to turn to get there.
Check with the white paint to see where it is, let's say it is now at 1:00 o'clock position.
Now you know you need to turn the bolt about 30 degrees or so.

During tightening, every bolt goes through an angle to get to the correct torque.
Once the bolt is in a "snug" position, the angle to get to the correct torque is very consistent.

You can do your own experiment with the wheel bolts: loosen the bolt (on your driveway), snug it --->
mark it ---> torque it and see where it goes, for car lug bolts, this is about 45 degrees in my experience.

Anyway, in this video, it looks like 30 degrees or so (timing mark 14:40):

Post by **cn90** » 10 Jul 2022, 18:09

A tiny detail...

When the new CA is in, gently jack the ball joint area a bit.
This helps align the 2 bolts on the front part of the CA to avoid cross-threading...

Post by **erikv11** » 11 Jul 2022, 10:07

I also just replaced both CAs on a P2, did not use a torque wrench for tightening those and no need for jacking the engine.

Post by **matthew1** » 11 Jul 2022, 16:54

I never jacked the engine on my P2 for control arms. Remember to tighten the bolts when the wheel is loaded (on the ground or jacked up to its normal position). Otherwise those new bushings will twist and die in a few weeks.

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