Why won't my control arm bushing bolt holes line up?
Replacement suspension components and struts often have mounting points that fail to match up with the vehicle frame during installation. Even though removing the old parts is easy, getting the bolt holes on the new bushing to align creates an unexpected struggle.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
- 1Using a little lubricant, applying force, using a punch to finish alignment, and prying the part into place.
- 2using a screwdriver to twist the lower shock hole into alignment
- 3using a jack and a 2x4 to compress the shock
- 4taking the assembly back to be re-indexed or re-clocked correctly
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“Taking them out was a breeze but I'm struggling now to align the bolt holes on the bushing that attaches to the frame.”source ↗
“Got the struts assembled at the mechanic today but the mounting points are not aligned. What are my options here?”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
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- 17Why am I paying for broken bolts during a car repair?