Misaligned rear LCA bolt to hub assembly.

[MrAnalogRobot]

About a week ago I set about installing lowering springs on my '23 MkV. Everything seemed to go fine doing both fronts, got to the rear and ran into an issue buttoning things back up. Everything seemed to go fine (removing the bolt was under a little tension but no issues), but when replacing the E20 bolt back into the lower control arm to attach to the hub assembly, the holes of the LCA and bushing didn't line up. I was on Reddit and folks said it takes some effort to realign. Well, I went back at it again yesterday and for 6 hours I could not find any way to finesse, force, or maneuver the bolt through both sides.

I can adjust the bushing to get one side through it then the opposite side is severely misaligned with the LCA hole. I posted this on Reddit and once I had pics they said it seems wrong and to try here. Any advice is greatly appreciated. I've tried everything I can think of, including force, and only managed to scrape up my suspension, tools, and hands.

Had a friend who is more experienced and worked in a garage for a bit, but he also was baffled by how this came apart so easy but is so far off to reassemble.

Any ideas or advice? Short of that, any idea how to prepare the car for a tow to a shop with a disconnected LCA?

Thank you for taking the time to help!

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[Evolution]

Yep, that bolt sucks to put in. My passengers side went super smooth but I had to fight my drivers side for a bit to get it back in. If you can get a screw driver in the other side, you may be get the hole to line up while threading in the bolt. Prybars help too.

 

[Thraxbert]

Pretty standard on LCAs. You need pry bars or beefy-ass screwdrivers to align the bushing for bolt insertion.

 

[MrAnalogRobot]

Yep, that bolt sucks to put in. My passengers side went super smooth but I had to fight my drivers side for a bit to get it back in. If you can get a screw driver in the other side, you may be get the hole to line up while threading in the bolt. Prybars help too.

I spent 6 hours using this method, and with all my might, couldn't line up the back side once the bolt was in the front. I am wondering if my car is out of alignment spec; read on an old post that loosening the inner LCA bolt from the sub frame might make it easier to pull the hub assembly outward. That will be my next attempt.

 

[MrAnalogRobot]

Pretty standard on LCAs. You need pry bars or beefy-ass screwdrivers to align the bushing for bolt insertion.

Tried both, literally for hours. Can get a screwdriver through, but can only adjust the hub out far enough for 1/2 the back side hole to be aligned if the front is aligned enough to take the bolt. I'm a fairly strong guy, buddy helping me is more experienced and even stronger, but I don't think force alone is going to solve this for me. It definitely seems mine is not normal, after seeing videos and hearing other people's accounts of getting it through.

An old thread suggested loosening inside LCA bolt to subframe, so I'll try that next. I only get to where the car is 1 day each week, so hoping for as much advice and new ideas as I can get.

 

[Evolution]

What city are you in? If close enough, I will swing by and assist.

 

[MrAnalogRobot]

What city are you in? If close enough, I will swing by and assist.

Car is in Elk Grove, I'm in the bay.

 

[Evolution]

Car is in Elk Grove, I'm in the bay.

Only 8 hours north of me.... Scratch that idea.

 

[MrAnalogRobot]

Only 8 hours north of me.... Scratch that idea.

It's my car and I have trouble getting there myself, lol. Really kind of you to offer, though.

I really only need about 1/3 of an inch more to get the bolt through. Going to try loosening the inner LCA bolt next time and see if that gives me the additional wiggle room I need.

 

[i3igpete]

do you have a rubber jack pad for your floor jack? once the arm and hub is jacked up a bit, shove the jack itself to torque the arm in a "yaw" rotation w.r.t the vehicle. The goal is to torque the inner bushing enough to align hub bushing, but you need the friction provided by the rubber pad. This will fix the angular misalignment. The jack itself should have enough load where it won't roll back to where it was as you play with it.

If you need an "inward" or "outward" force on the arm, you need to place the jack at a 45 degree angle and use the same procedure. This will apply torque to the inner bushing AND cause it to either pull outward or push inward. You will eventually find a jack axis (w.r.t. LCA axis) that gets the radial displacement AND the angular displacement close enough to drive the bolt home with an impact.

 

[MrAnalogRobot]

do you have a rubber jack pad for your floor jack? once the arm and hub is jacked up a bit, shove the jack itself to torque the arm in a "yaw" rotation w.r.t the vehicle. The goal is to torque the inner bushing enough to align hub bushing, but you need the friction provided by the rubber pad. This will fix the angular misalignment. The jack itself should have enough load where it won't roll back to where it was as you play with it.

If you need an "inward" or "outward" force on the arm, you need to place the jack at a 45 degree angle and use the same procedure. This will apply torque to the inner bushing AND cause it to either pull outward or push inward. You will eventually find a jack angle that gets the radial displacement AND the angular displacement just right.

Jack has a rubber pad but not a great one. I've tried jacking it different ways but never trying to push/pull the jack to change the angle of the LCA/hub. I'll get a grippy jack pads and give it a try. Thank you.

 

[i3igpete]

if all you need is radial motion on the LCA inner bushing, then the jack axis should be aligned with the lower control arm. This is another way to get some leverage on the arm or the Hub without damaging the shock.

 

[AZ Zupra]

I believe I had the same issue. I took off the toe arm and the bolt went in fine after. Mark eccentric bolts and be sure to have aligned after.

 

[racebuild]

You might be fighting the sway bar, disconnect the sway bar endlink on one side then try to align it.

 

[dn00]

Use a jack to align the nut side first and then poke a metal spike through to align the other side. Adjust as needed.

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