• Welcome to the Contour Enthusiasts Group, the best resource for the Ford Contour and Mercury Mystique.

    You can register to join the community.

Quick LCA ?

M

mattsBLK99cSVT

Hard-core CEG'er
Joined
Oct 12, 2006
Messages
1,030
Location
Bartlett, IL
I'm about to replace both front lca's. I know alot of you recommend to also replace the subframe bolts because they are most likely going to snap. I tried searching for part numbers but to no avail. Anyone by chance know the part numbers I'm looking for? :shrug:
 
i have never heard of the subframe bolts snapping. yes the nut will tend to spin.


now if you are talking about the control arm bolts to the subframe then yes sometimes they can.

what control arms are you installing? 2 or 4 bolt?
 
mattsBLK99cSVT said:
I'm about to replace both front lca's. I know alot of you recommend to also replace the subframe bolts because they are most likely going to snap.
Click to expand...

I think you misunderstood something because I also dont recall anyone mentioning subframe bolts snapping. The bolts people talk about replacing are the control arm bolts on the drivers side because they're blocked and people break or cut them on purpose to move the install along.
 
on the four bolt control arms sometimes the smaller bolts can end up snapping as they degrade over time.

check the old forum for part numbers, they are out there somewhere. also iirc the large bolts on the 4 bolt arms are the same as the bolts for the 2 bolt arms.
 
mattsBLK99cSVT said:
I have the two bolt arms, and I was talking about the bolts that go through the subframe and arms.
Click to expand...

I assumed you were which is why I said those dont usually snap. The problem is when you do the drivers side and cant get them out because the engine is still in the car.
 
Dyoel182 said:
The problem is when you do the drivers side and cant get them out because the engine is still in the car.
Click to expand...

You can get them out with the engine in the car, it's just a bit more work. I removed the front and rear roll resistors and lowered the subframe on both cars. Took a bit longer, but I didn't have to replace the bolts, or put one in upside down.
 
I have access to a lift at my work and one of the techs would be giving me a hand so I'm sure dropping the subframe wont be too bad. So pretty much all you need to do is disconnect both roll restrictors and thats it? We also have access to a engine hoist that rests on top of the fenders to support the engine/trans
 
mattsBLK99cSVT said:
I have access to a lift at my work and one of the techs would be giving me a hand so I'm sure dropping the subframe wont be too bad. So pretty much all you need to do is disconnect both roll restrictors and thats it? We also have access to a engine hoist that rests on top of the fenders to support the engine/trans
Click to expand...

You don't really NEED to support the engine, since it still has the mounts on both passenger and driver sides. You disconnect the roll resistors and have to loosen all the subframe bolts. As long as none of them spin, it's pretty straight forward. If they do spin you will have to go in through the floor and put a wrench on the nut to keep it from turning while you loosen the subframe bolt. I can't remember if I had to take the y pipe or anything else out, but I think I did take out the lower radiator mounts so it wouldn't try coming down with the subframe.
 
You don't need to cut the interior. You can cut an access hole in the side of the subframe instead, and bend it outwards. Then afterwards you just bang it back in place, and weld it in if you want to.
 
That sounds like the better option to me actually. Would the odds of the bolt not spinning increase if you used an impact gun on it from the start?
 
Dyoel182 said:
That sounds like the better option to me actually. Would the odds of the bolt not spinning increase if you used an impact gun on it from the start?
Click to expand...

If you'd ever gone through the interior you wouldn't even worry about it after that :) It's real easy, there is an access panel that already has slots cut in it. After pulling the carpet out of the way, I just scraped off the coating over the access panel, bent a few of the slots enough to get a boxed wrench through it and on the nut (21mm IIRC), and cranked it out. Once you have the bolt back in and tight you can just bend those slots back to more or less where they were originally. You don't need to actually cut anything.

I had better luck on my Cougar using the impact gun. Not sure if it would always work that way though.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top