Upper control arm bushing

[brasil]

..was thinking about the bushings in the upper control arm. Need to replace those bushings. The bushing on on the axle side is available everywhere.. i.e RA .. but the bushing that sits towards the rear seats.. found nothing. Only a complete upper control arm.
Now I am thinking about the following - If I buy the "rubber bushing " (axle side ) and a poly bushing kit from energy suspension , I have the bushing for the "rear seat side " also.

The idea behind all of this... The "OEM Rubber " bushing gives a quiet ride..and the poly bushing is a little stiffer than stock..

Good or bad ?? ( the idea )

 

[GriffX]

Can't remember which year was youre car, they changed the style from 11+.

I have a OEM set for install in my basement for years now, found some technical hurdles which postponed the change to the future ...... Not sure if stiffer is a good idea at this place for any situation. What do you want to improve? Wheel hop or Landstrasse performance?

 

[brasil]

my car is a 2010 GT produced in JUNE 09...
The Idea behind is... that I can keep the OEM UCA ,can keep the portion that needs to be torqued extremly in place. So I only remove the part of the UCA that connects the Diff and the support under the rear seat. Diff Side = OEM rubber bushing.. and a polyurethane bushing on the other side.

That´s it

 

[Midlife Crises]

For the axle end of the upper control arm you can get the Ford bushing for a GT 500 that is a little bit stiffer than the one used on the standard Mustang. I like the poly bushing for the upper end but it requires occasional lubrication with silicone grease.

 

[86GT351]

How about upgrading to a performance adjustable upper arm and body support? I am a dealer for UPR products and can gladly help you out with a forum discount

 

[brasil]

...@86GT351. thank you for your offer... but unfortunately I am living in Germany. And the TUV will not go the car thru inspection with such a UCA.

I think I will use the poly bushing for the upper end ( in the OEM UCA ) and a "rubber bushing " at the diff side.

@ all.. found the 205- 509 OTC tool @ ebay.com. ordered it and now I am looking forward to receive the "bushing tool ".

 

[GriffX]

The M18 (?) bolt under the seat is one of my technical hurdles, don't want to buy a one-trick-pony torque wrench for it. Already bought a TP50 for the tank straps and no idea how to torque the bolts on curb high without a lift. To get the rubber bushing out of the diff housing is no fun too.

FYI, the TUV don't care about these control arms as long as they are black and look tubular Nobody ever ask me about my J&M LCAs. Color always screems "look at me"

 

[brasil]

@ GriffX
yesterday, I bought a tool for the removal of the bushing... the Bolt under the rear seat - according to my manual. 175 NM or 129 lb-ft is. the torque for 2005-2009 (10 ) S 197.. So any "normal " Torque Wrench is ok for this kind of work.

Torque for the rear lower control arms.. 175 Nm also.. I always put the car on my lift... and then I put jacks under the rear axle tubes close to the rear control arms.. and under the front wheels use ramps. Thereafter I lower the car /lift ...until the whole stuff sits on the jacks /ramps..
Then I crawl under the car , to torque the bolts /nuts. that´s it.

 

[86GT351]

@ GriffX
yesterday, I bought a tool for the removal of the bushing... the Bolt under the rear seat - according to my manual. 175 NM or 129 lb-ft is. the torque for 2005-2009 (10 ) S 197.. So any "normal " Torque Wrench is ok for this kind of work.

Torque for the rear lower control arms.. 175 Nm also.. I always put the car on my lift... and then I put jacks under the rear axle tubes close to the rear control arms.. and under the front wheels use ramps. Thereafter I lower the car /lift ...until the whole stuff sits on the jacks /ramps..
Then I crawl under the car , to torque the bolts /nuts. that´s it.

Correct. Sometimes it is hard to access however torque is under load.

 

[GriffX]

@ GriffX
yesterday, I bought a tool for the removal of the bushing... the Bolt under the rear seat - according to my manual. 175 NM or 129 lb-ft is. the torque for 2005-2009 (10 ) S 197.. So any "normal " Torque Wrench is ok for this kind of work.

Torque for the rear lower control arms.. 175 Nm also.. I always put the car on my lift... and then I put jacks under the rear axle tubes close to the rear control arms.. and under the front wheels use ramps. Thereafter I lower the car /lift ...until the whole stuff sits on the jacks /ramps..
Then I crawl under the car , to torque the bolts /nuts. that´s it.

Yea....No, the 11+ spec is 475 Nm.....yes really. The facelift UCA is longer and the whole car is much more stable during heavy brakeing. So you need a long 3/4 inch torque wrench for this job.

 

[brasil]

475 ??? NM crazy... Why do the Ford guys create such a nightmare ?
When I was in the Bundeswehr ( German Army ) we used such torque when we dealt with M48 Tanks... But a passenger car ?? Crazy

Thanks God I have a2010 ... so 175 Nm is for me..

 

[Autokyrios]

I'm usually strict on following torque specs...but that's asinine. Wheel hubs aren't even that bonkers. I'd accept gutentite spec on that one, sheesh. Not sure what they're on about...

As for UCA, ditto on replacing it with a new unit, no reason to keep the stock UCA alive unless you're hard about keeping it stock. My recommend is Steeda's adjustable UCA. Replacing the axle-housing bushing can be fun. Don't go double-spherical unless you like noise and spinal damage. Changing the length from stock means you'll have to do some other geometry adjustments, but if you're stock ride height, stock length is fine.

Torquing under load while lifted is only an issue of trying to get access to the bolts. Put jack stands under the axle and lower the rear down and that will load up the rear well enough. If you can make the end-result level when the vehicle is lowered on the axle stands, that's better, as the car weight will be balanced front/rear. It's not that big a deal for general road driving.

 

[brasil]

When I see the UCAs... most of them use the old / OEM frontend. In this case... I can leave the nut under the rear seat alone - correct ? Because the Bolt that connects the "rear /adjustable " part of the control arm ..is with reach on a lift... And for final torque, I will use a 4 pillar lift at my friends garage.. less crawling

 

[Autokyrios]

So there's a UCA bracket that mounts to the chassis frame, and has a fork that the actual UCA bolts into. If you don't want to mess with the bracket, then replacing the UCA is basically just unbolting the bushing bolt. Keep in mind the UCA holds the orientation of the axle assembly, so as soon as you unbolt it, it'll try to rotate forwards and it weighs a lot.

I will say that the stock bracket is just a stamped piece of metal and it is known to deflect a bunch (ride comfort and mass production over suspension stability). It's not hard to change, though you have to lower the gas tank at the back (unbolt the straps with a board and jack under the tank to lower it down just an inch). If you get an aftermarket UCA with a new bracket, you'll bolt to the specs they provide, not Ford's. Most UCA upgrades come-with or recommend a new bracket as theirs will be made of heavier-duty stuff and won't deflect (my Steeda bracket, for example, is a 3/16 fork plate on a 1/4 main plate).

I'm still twitching over the 300+ ft/lb torque spec for the bracket bolt. That's just insane. My '07 is 129-ft/lbs. Still not sure what Ford is up to there.

 

[brasil]

Thank you Autokyrios for your good infos about the UCA... so I think, if I change the UCA..I will go for a complete / adjustable one

 

[86GT351]

Thank you Autokyrios for your good infos about the UCA... so I think, if I change the UCA..I will go for a complete / adjustable one

Makes sense and I can gladly help yopu with that. I have been a UPR dealer for many years.

 

[GriffX]

I'm still twitching over the 300+ ft/lb torque spec for the bracket bolt. That's just insane. My '07 is 129-ft/lbs. Still not sure what Ford is up to there.

All I have seen that the 11+ arm is much longer, bushing bigger and the lever for the bracket too, so the force on the bolt much bigger. I guess that is the reason for the new M18 475 Nm bolt (and glue on it).

 

[MasterofDisaster]

I bought a non-adjustable upper control arm with a polyurethane bushing. Definitely made installation easier. I bought a polyurethane bushing for where it connects to the differential.

The bushing at the differential is a pain in the neck. Bring a hole saw about 1 1/2" or so and a good, big stiff cup brush. You'll need them to remove the old rubber bushing.

The polyurethane definitely transmits more sound.

 

[whitmanink]

To remove the inside of the old bushing .. I used a little wire wheel knot on a die grinder and a torch...
Had it cleaned out and ready to install the new one in about 15 min

 

[GriffX]

Found nice compare between 05, Roush and 11+ UCA. One must have in mind that these two UCA bushings are the only pivot points of the whole axle. Making them too stiff will have side effects on bumpy roads and transfer more force into the chassis.

https://www.fordgt500.com/threads/uca-comparision-oem-2005-2010-2011-2013-and-2011-up-roush.21241/