Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Troubleshooting Control arm / alignment problem

I've been having an alignment problem for the past year on my '96 SE, where the car consistently pulls to the left. I've had 2 different alignment shops do 4 wheel alignments on the car, and it has come back still pulling slightly to the left. This last time, I brought the car back and told them the alignment wasn't done right as it still pulls. They put the car back on the alignment machine, and found it was out of spec again (after just 1 day and 100 miles). They asked if I hit any potholes, and I told them no, as I hadn't. Puzzled, they took the car for a test drive again after re-aligning it. They said it drove straight for the first few miles, then later it started pulling to the left again. They figured something must be loose in the front suspension to do this, so they put it on the lift and looked for problems. They found the lower control arm bushings on both sides were very worn, especially the left side, which was nearly shot. He showed me the play in the control arm bushing by yanking on a pry bar, which I felt for myself - it was easy to move the control arm. I could also see the bushing was missing chunks in some spots and just looked worn out and in poor condition. He said that this was the problem with the alignment.

However, I'm trying to make sure that this is in fact the cause of the problem, as replacing the control arms (you can't buy just the bushings) is an expensive and labor intensive proposition. He's working on an estimate now, but I figure it will cost at least $400 in parts, plus probably another $300 in labor.

So my questions are:

1) Could a bad control arm bushing throw off the alignment? It's not like it jumps back and forth - it consistently always pulls to the left slightly. Also, it handles and steers fine - no play at all. No noises, no clunks.

2) If I choose not to replace the control arms and just leave everything alone, is there any safety hazard with bad control arm bushings?

Thanks for any help / advice.

I agree,sounds like the bushes are shot and will never hold the alignment.Safe? not if the bushes are breaking up !!!

My dealer quoted me $750 to replace right lower control arm due to bad bushing. Stumbled on it when trying to debug my stupid spring guard knock. Haynes says one side can be done w/o dropping subframe, the other can't. Left is the really bad one to do it yourself, but I imagine that the dealer was planning on dropping my subframe anyway (scam artits). Since they have to drop everything to do the left, and you apparently need both, you might need to bite the bullet and get them done.

BTW, the right lower control arm only runs about $50-$60 for my 98, so you are looking at about $700 in labor. And your control arms will run about $300. Sorry for the bad news.

You guys need to change your garages. I just paid $80 for each arm and $200 for labour. Its not too bad a job. Was done in 2 hours

Thanks for the info. I guess I'll have to replace them.

The garage never got back to me with an estimate yet, but I did some research on my own. www.fordpartsonline.com has my control arms for $137.25 for the right one, and $112.24 for the left one, which is less than I though they would cost. I read my Haynes manual about removing the control arms, and like you guys said the right side is easy, the left is a nightmare. I may tackle it myself though. I'm good mechanically and usually fix most things on my car anyway. Doesn't look like I need any special tools. The only thing I'm nervous about is dropping the subframe - never done that before.

Also, if I replace the control arms, do I need to get new ball joints too? I think the factory ball joints are riveted to the control arm. Stupid Ford - like ball joints never need to be replaced. :rolleyes:

Which control arms are bent? I know that the rear suspension has 2 control arms (front and rear). The rear rear control arms are significantly cheaper than the rear front.

After being towed on a flatbed, my suspension was WAY off. Turned out that the tow company had ratcheted down my car using my rear rear control arms, and bent them significantly. I had them replaced at no charge, and a free alignment done, but I just thought I'd mention this to see if you may have the same problem.

At first my mechanic wasn't sure if that was the problem because both were bent at the same angle, and it was tough to tell.

I had to go to a dealer that had the part in stock and look at it to verify that it was bent.

Good luck with it!

- Zack

The control arms aren't bent- it's just the rubber bushings inside where it connects to the subframe are worn out. Apparently Ford thought it was a great idea to make the bushings impossible to replace, requiring the replacement of the entire control arm with the bushings installed as an assembly.

I got the feeling when I bought the car new that it wasn't meant to be worked on. Its like it was designed to be a disposable transportation module. Once it goes past 120k - that's it - throw it out and don't work on it. Stuff like these control arm bushings (rubber bushings are a normal wear & tear item and should be replaced from time to time), ball joints riveted into place, radiator drain plugs that are almost impossible to get at, an alternator that need to have driveshafts removed just to replace it, the list goes on and on... It's quite clear to me Ford engineers who designed this car never intended anyone to ever repair it. Even changing the oil filter is a hassle on this car.

I have bought both of the lowers for my car...they were about $110 each from Ford (thats at cost). I've had everything out on the right side. It's only 5 bolts and it drops out but I didn't have the car jacked up correctly so I stopped and put everything back. The left side is a nightmare I started looking at it and it's very intimidating. I've had it quoted by two different shops and it was over 300.00 in labor at both.

First, stop crying about the ball joints being riveted on. MANY cars have this. My buddy's 78 Mustang has this, as do many non-Ford vehicles. You can actually drill the rivet heads off and replace the ball joint without removing the arm (the new joint will bolt to the arm).

You might try checking with the aftermarket to see if the bushings are available seperately. It is possible that they are, just like the ball joints are on many cars.