Trailing arm bolts stuck in arm

[Emit]

Anyone got any tips on how to get trailing arm bolts that are seized out of the arm? I've tried hammering, impact guns and fire. I suspect that it's bent in the arm itself.

[82DMC12]

Anyone got any tips on how to get trailing arm bolts that are seized out of the arm? I've tried hammering, impact guns and fire. I suspect that it's bent in the arm itself.

Just take it to a machine shop and let them take care of it.

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[Deloking]

I’m going to assume that the trailing arm is still installed on the car. That said, I had the same problem and used a reciprocating saw and cut the bolt in half. I placed the blade of the saw between the large m12 washer and the trailing arm bushing. In my case I was replacing all parts associated with the trailing arm so I didn’t care if those parts were damaged. It also kept the blade in place while cutting the bolt. After that I removed the the tire, disconnected the brake line that runs along the trailing arm (cap the brake lines you’ll have less mess and bleeding the brakes will be much easier). I then removed the 4 bolts that connect the arm to the rear hub carrier. After the arm is removed from the car I drilled out the bolt. I started with a small drill bit and gradually increased the size until I got all remaining parts of the bolt removed. Care should be taken so as not to damage the trailing arm while drilling. Or you can take the arms to a machine shop and have them remove the bolts. I also recommend that you read the knowledge base article on DMCH website. Hope this helped. Good luck.

[Emit]

Thanks for the input

I've got the frame off the car and am replacing all the trailing arm hardware, so I'll take it off (by cutting off the bolt) and drill through it carefully. If the bolt is putting up much of a fight I will take it to a machine shop, but that's a bit of a pain for me to to do, so Id rather give it a try myself first.

[David T]

Thanks for the input

I've got the frame off the car and am replacing all the trailing arm hardware, so I'll take it off (by cutting off the bolt) and drill through it carefully. If the bolt is putting up much of a fight I will take it to a machine shop, but that's a bit of a pain for me to to do, so Id rather give it a try myself first.

When you overtorque the TAB's you collapse the metal sleeve inside the rubber bushing for the trailing arm. The usual fix is to cut the bolt up to get the trailing arm out of the car but with the body off you may be able to get the T/A out by unfastening the hardware on the frame. In any case you usually need to get a press to push the TAB out.

[Emit]

Just take it to a machine shop and let them take care of it.

I took your advice in the end and got a machinist to drill them out, he said they were practically welded in and that pressing them out failed.

[82DMC12]

I took your advice in the end and got a machinist to drill them out, he said they were practically welded in and that pressing them out failed.

A common malady! Now reassemble with antiseize and all new hardware, and make loosening the joint and rotating the trailing arm bolt before re-torquing part of your annual maintenance.

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[David T]

A common malady! Now reassemble with antiseize and all new hardware, and make loosening the joint and rotating the trailing arm bolt before re-torquing part of your annual maintenance.

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It is a good idea to turn the bolt, that way if you see the T/A moving up and down you know the bolt is bent. I don't like the idea of undoing and re torquing the bolt every year. Once torqued it should be left alone unless you need to re-align the rear wheels or you suspect the bolt is bent. Once torqued you should put a paint marker on it to see if it moves. Don't final torque till you have had a 4 wheel alignment, you may have to add or remove some shims. Write the number of shims on the frame next to the bolt on each side. Final torque with the weight of the car on the joint so it is not twisting the rubber bushing at ride height. Double-nut it too and NEVER over-torque it. Once you crush the inner sleeve it will never hold proper torque, that's why you could not remove the old one. The TAB's are special, do not get any old bolts to stick in there, they are a critical piece of the rear suspension. Get a shim kit too.