Discover the expert in you.
Discover the expert in you.
The Kawasaki Teryx is an amazing four-wheel drive off-road vehicle that has as many fun-filled uses. Designed with the avid outdoors-man in mind the Teryx has the ability and flexibility to travel over sand dunes, mud holes, trails and rough terrain. Unless you use your Teryx solely for hunting, the thought of modifying it in one way or another must have crossed your mind at some point. There are good and bad sides to removing the sway bar on your Teryx, so you will have to decide if removing it fits your specific needs.
Bushings help to isolate road noise and catch it before it works to the chassis, but they have two problems: they go bad, and they're a pain to get out of the control arm and back in. In fact, some DIY mechanics have even gone so far as to replace the entire control arm -- at about $250 -- rather than to go through the aggravation of removing and replacing the bushings. To be sure, bushing replacement in the Dakota or any other vehicle isn't for the faint of heart, but it's quite doable even without a specialized hydraulic press.
One thing you have to appreciate about the Germans: they usually make servicing and replacement procedures fairly easy. One thing that might drive you nuts about the Germans: They typically make those servicing procedures easy by designing components that require lots of very specialized tools to service them. Replacing the Jetta's strut mount is a fairly straight-forward procedure, even easy, compared to most cars. But you are going to need a few tools that you might not have on hand, so do your shopping and homework first before trying to crack that mount.
Being a fighter pilot isn't all barrel rolls, lining up the crosshairs and pulling 8G turns over the top; in fact, most of the job consists of paperwork and tedious waiting that you don't often see in the movies. This is one of those jobs. But repairing a sagging door on a GM car like the Cavalier carries its own rewards, in terms of making your car feel new and fresh. Just start early, put some good music on, pop a frosty beverage and enjoy the weather while you and your assistant attempt to juggle four cats in a three-foot-diameter…
"If it ain't broke, don't fix it." This aphorism has been Ford's guiding principle since day one, and it shows in the 90's F-150 suspension. The F-150's "leading arm" suspension uses a single, large radius arm -- technically different from a control arm -- to allow the truck's front axle to articulate in every direction without excess complexity. The leading arm arrangement saw use almost a century before the F-150, and, like its predecessors of yore, uses a single pivot bushing to allow for movement. Replacement is pretty straightforward, but there are a few pitfalls to watch out for.
The 1998 BMW 318i came with a 1.9-liter four-cylinder engine and a five-speed manual transmission. The lower control arm on your BMW provides the lower pivot points for the steering and suspension systems. Anytime you replace the lower control arm it will come with new bushings and ball joints pre-installed from the factory. Replacing either front control arm is an in-depth process, but is well within the realm of the home mechanic.
The 1988 Honda Prelude base model came with a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine and a five-speed manual transmission. The lower control arm on your prelude serves as the lower pivot points for the steering and suspension. The control arm is secured to the sub-frame with two bolts through bushings and to the steering knuckle with a ball joint. Replacing the lower control arm is an in-depth repair, but is well within the realm of the home mechanic.
The 1996 Chevy Cavalier came with a 2.2-liter engine and a five-speed manual or four-speed automatic transmission. The lower control arm on your Cavalier houses the lower ball joint and provides the lower pivot points for the front suspension. Replacement control arms for your cavalier can be found at most local parts stores and come with new bushings and a new ball joint pre-installed. Replacing the control arm will require special tools, but is well within the realm of a home mechanic.
The 2001 Dodge Neon base model came with a single over-head cam 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine and a five-speed manual transmission. Your front control arms provide the lower pivot points for the front suspension so the wheels can turn and flex with road conditions. Your control arm could have become damaged for a number of reasons, but once it has become bent, corroded or has sustained any other damage, you have to replace it. Most aftermarket suppliers sell replacement control arms with new pre-installed bushings and a ball joint.
The 2002 Dodge Neon base model came with a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine and a five-speed manual transmission. The lower control arm on your Neon serves as the connecting link between the sub-frame and the steering knuckle. In general, your control arms will only need to be replaced in the event of accidental damage or excessive corrosion. When replacing the lower control arm, the ball joint will also have to be replaced; however, all after market suppliers offer new control arms for your Neon with a new ball joint pre-installed. Once your lower control arm has been replaced, you will need…
The front suspension used on a 1965 Mustang has an adjustable caster, a term used in front-wheel alignment that refers to the forward or rearward tilt of the upper front suspension ball joint in relation to the lower ball joint. The caster must be set to the proper degree to attain the safest level of handling and to maximize the cornering capability of the car. Negative caster is attained when the upper ball joint is closer to the front of the car than the lower ball joint. Positive caster is when the upper ball joint is closer to the rear…
The 2007 Chevy Cobalt base model came with a 2.2-liter four-cylinder engine and a five-speed manual transmission. The front suspension on your cobalt contains a lower control arm for each wheel that is used to connect the lower end of the suspension to the sub-frame and also houses the lower ball joint. The lower control arm has a rubber bushing that allows the control arm to move against the frame while driving without causing noise or excessive wear of the control arm. The control arm bushing is pressed into the ends of the control arm and will require a special…
The 2001 Subaru Legacy GT came with a 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine and a five-speed manual or four-speed automatic transmission. The front suspension on your Legacy has two MacPherson type struts, one for each wheel. To replace either strut you will have to remove the strut and coil spring assembly from the vehicle and disassemble it. The coil springs are highly compressed and held under extreme pressure, so special tools are required safely perform this repair. It is recommended to replace both front struts at the same time for optimal ride quality.
The stabilizer bar is known by many names on both the left and right sides of The Pond; sway and anti-sway bar, roll and anti-roll bar, among others. But no matter what you call it, this vital suspension component acts as something of a counter-balance for your car's main springs. Over time, the bushings that connects it to the chassis can wear out and fail, reducing its effectiveness.
Back in 1989, Toyota established its upscale Lexus division in America with one sole purpose: to compete directly with the likes of Mercedes, Cadillac and Lincoln at a fraction of the price. Lexus went about leveling the playing field with its more established rivals by bringing to bear parent-company Toyota's world-renowned quality and engineering prowess -- particularly where the engine, suspension and powertrain were concerned.
If the lower arm bushing on a car needs replaced, you'll be able to tell from a few key signs. Learn to identify signs that a lower-arm bushing needs to be replaced with help from an expert in the automotive industry in this free video clip.
Spring clips serve a dual purpose on metal window frames. They provides tension that holds a sheet of glass firmly in place, but their slight give allows you to insert new glass without taking apart the entire window sash. Tension clips are also sometimes called spring clips, but these are used exclusively on window screens to hold them in place in the window frame.
Mini struts for cabinets are also called gas spring lid supports. This type of strut is used to hold open the door of an upward opening cabinet. Installing the strut inside the cabinet is easy. The strut comes with directions for framed or frameless cabinet styles so you can adjust the installation to your particular door style with minimal difficulty. Look for a strut designed to hold up the full weight of your door, since some cabinets are small and lightweight while others are much larger and heavier.
The use of leaf springs as suspension dates to the horse-and-buggy period in which carriages employed leaf springs as damping material to cushion rides over hard, rough roads and trails. Virtually all early automobiles used leaf springs, which were common in passenger cars and trucks until the 1970s. Leaf springs in contemporary vehicles are most often used in pickup trucks, commercial trucks and other heavy-duty vehicles to better spread the weight distribution of cargo.
The 2001 Toyota Sienna came with a 3.0-liter six-cylinder engine and a four-speed automatic transmission. The front suspension on your Sienna uses a coil or strut setup, where the coil spring and strut are assembled as one unit. To replace the struts you will have to compress and remove the coil spring so that it can be used with the new strut. Replacing the front struts on your Sienna is a straightforward task, but you will need a special tool and a workbench with a vise to complete it.
The independent front suspension on all vehicles has adjustable settings to keep the front wheels aligned for optimum handling and minimal tire wear. The ride and handling may be affected negatively on vehicles with out-of-line front suspensions, as well as those exhibiting uneven tire wear. Prior the to 1980s, most suspension alignment jobs consisted of checking and adjusting the front wheels. As of 2012 most automobiles have independent rear suspension that may be adjustable, but most trucks still use a solid rear axle that is not adjustable. Make sure your vehicle is getting the proper alignment and that you are…
The Mustang was first introduced to the public in the spring of 1964. By 1968, Ford had made several improvements, but the front suspension still used strut rods like the first pony cars. The strut rods connect the lower suspension control arms to the structural part of the underside of the car. The strut rods keep the caster angle of the suspension in check. Mounted in rubber bushings, the strut rod may move back and forth excessively when the bushings are worn, causing play in the suspension.
Installing the front struts on a 1997 Chrysler LHS is a moderately challenging operation. The spring needs to be compressed to remove it from the strut. The spring is under extreme pressure and must be handled properly. Struts have no particular life span. Struts, like shocks, just dampen up and down movement of the springs. The simplest way to determine whether or not struts are needed is to bounce the front or rear of the vehicle up and down and stand back. The vehicle should bounce once and stop. If the vehicle continues to bounce, the struts need to be…
Your 1993 Lincoln Town Car came in one of three different trim levels is equipped with a 4.6-liter V-8 and a four-speed automatic transmission. The front and rear suspension make use of a stabilizer bar to help limit the amount of unequal movement between the wheels. Both stabilizer bars are secured to the frame by two bushings, clamps and a sway bar link at each end. You should also replace the sway bar bushings and sway bar links, when you replace either sway bar.
The 1999 Honda CR-V base model was equipped with a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine and a five-speed manual or automatic transmission. The suspension on your CR-V includes both an upper and a lower ball joint, but the process to replace either is the same. Because the steering knuckle has to be removed to complete this process, it is a good idea to replace both ball joints at the same time. When this process is complete, you will need to have a front end alignment performed at a local repair shop.
In its stock configuration, the 1988 Toyota 4Runner has very little height adjustment possible; you safely may raise it no more than 1 1/2 inches without adverse effects. When it’s lifted, you loose control arm travel. Anything higher causes multiple problems. The bump stops easily bottom out, it increases the driveshaft universal angle, substantially increases tire wear, as well as produces a harsh ride. The way to raise a Toyota 4Runner is to purchase a lift kit, which includes ball joint spacers, different torsion bars and rear springs.
The 1998 Ford Ranger XLT does not have replaceable ball joints; the ball joints are an integral part of the control arm, which means the entire control arm must be replaced. This is a challenging two-part process inasmuch as you must remove the torsion bar in order to remove the lower control arm. Because of the amount of tension placed on the torsion bar, you should attempt this only if you have the special tool for safely relieving the tension.
If you have ruled out the common steering problems on your Cub Cadet mower, such as poor air pressure in the tires or misalignment, the steering bushing may be worn and in need of replacement. Some mechanical know-how and some basic shop tools and supplies are required to replace the bushing. Steering bushings on Cub Cadet mowers are located just below the gear linkage. It is necessary to remove the entire steering assembly from the bottom to replace the bushings.
The 1980 Ford F-150 1/2-ton pickup used a solid rear axle with semi-elliptical leaf springs and hydraulic shock absorbers. The springs are mounted on top of the axle in a spring-over-axle arrangement. The axle has pads – or “perches” – with indexing holes in them. The springs have a bolt that fits into the hole. U-bolts and spring plates hold the springs on the axle. The springs bolt to the frame at the front and rear.
The Ford Taurus began its production life beginning in 1986 as one of the most modern vehicles of its era. It continued unimpeded until Ford eliminated it from its retail sales after the 2006 model year, but there was still a Taurus available to large fleet companies in 2007. The Taurus returned as in 2008 and received a complete redesign and reclassification – as more of a sports sedan – in the 2010 model year. The 2001 Taurus had just two ball joints, which were on the lower part of the front suspension. These ball joints are an integral part…
The 2003 Ford F-150 was equipped with a 4.2-liter V-6, a 4.6-liter V-8 or a 5.4-liter V-8 and was available with two- or four-wheel-drive. The two-wheel-drive version had coil spring independent front suspension and a solid rear axle supported by leaf springs in a spring-over-axle design. This means that the leaf springs sat on top of the rear axle. The front and rear of each spring is bolted to the frame through rubber bushings.
The 1998 Volkswagen Passat 1.8T was equipped with a 1.8-liter in-line four-cylinder turbo engine. The 1998 Passat 1.8T was capable of producing 150 horsepower and 162 foot-pounds of torque. The stabilizer or sway bar on the 1998 Passat is responsible for maintaining the horizontal balance of the car during cornering and turning. The stabilizer bushings connect the sway bar to the frame of the Passat, and help absorb some of the shock of the road.
Metal coil spring risers are used on pickups or four-wheel drive vehicles to raise the frame higher off the ground, or for a stiffer suspension. Coil spring risers limit the up and down motion of the spring to prevent the vehicle from bottoming out and to give the spring more weight capacity. Risers are most often used by four-wheel drive enthusiasts but are also employed by racing enthusiasts for more positive traction in stock cars. They can also be used in almost any vehicle that needs stiffer suspension or more clearance.
If you own a gas powered Kenmore dryer, the gas line is connected to the back of the appliance and it runs through to the gas assembly behind the dryer's drum. When the dryer is not heating properly during a drying cycle, then you may have a broken part within the gas assembly, such as a broken coil valve. You can remove both coil valves from the burner assembly and inspect the parts to see if they are cracked or broken. You may order a new coil valve part from a Kenmore manufacturer or buy it from an online retailer.
The KitchenAid Superba is a microwave built into cabinetry. Some models are built in with a conventional oven. There is a control panel at the top, the microwave below that, and, if present, the oven on the bottom. The microwave door opens from the top like a conventional oven door. When open, the door’s weight is partly held up by two torsion springs inside the microwave housing at the bottom. If a spring breaks, a loud pop may occur and the door feels much heavier. Replace broken springs to restore the microwave door to its former springiness.
There's a lot more to coil springs than meets the eye. A lot of engineering goes into selecting a spring with just the right diameter, coil count, wire diameter and progressiveness, and all of those factors can make the difference between coming in first and being an also-ran.
Torsion bars are used to adjust the riding height of a car, or the front suspension. Essentially, a torsion bar is a type of spring that can be expanded or contracted. Like any other spring or coil, a common torsion bar issue is that, after awhile, they can begin to sag. This is particularly likely to happen if your do a lot of off-road driving, as you may be doing with a Chevrolet Blazer ZR2; a two-door, heavy-duty vehicle designed for off-terrain driving. For those that frequently drive off-road, you may want to consider replacing your torsion bars with heavy-duty…
The 2001 F-150’s standard configuration was a 4.2-liter V-6 engine that cranked out 205 horsepower that connected to a rear-wheel-drive drivetrain. Throughout the late 1990s through the 2000s, Ford engineers “ingeniously” fitted the front end with “permanently greased” ball joints. These ball joints ended up becoming a thorn in the sides of F-series owners, because some would develop a ball joint squeak in just a few years. Due to the fact that the ball joints require Ford proprietary tools to remove and replace, you must replace the entire lower control arm to swap out your 2001 F-150’s lower ball joint.
The MINI Cooper automobile has been manufactured and sold in the U.S. by BMW since 1999. A common problem with this car is wear in the top arm shafts or upper control arm. The top arm shafts are part of the suspension system that gives the MINI its smooth ride. They constantly bear a load, so they eventually need to be replaced. The bulk of the job is the removal of the old parts. Worn top arm shafts can even impact the MINI's steering.
The 1995 Toyota Avalon shares a platform with the Camry. The Avalon was equipped with a 3.0-liter V-6 engine and had fully independent front and rear suspension, using MacPherson struts at all four wheels. The MacPherson strut simplifies the suspension system by combining the shock absorber and coil spring into a unit and eliminates the need for an upper control arm. Struts should be replaced in pairs.
The 1998 Pontiac Grand Am is power by a 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine and an automatic transmission. The front suspension has the common coil over strut setup. The lower control arm is connected to the steering knuckle by a ball joint that allows the steering knuckle to rotate back and forth when the vehicle is turning. The rear of the lower control arm is connected to the suspension support by two bolts, one that is mounted horizontally and one that is mounted vertically.
The front stabilizer bar on the 2005 Chevrolet Cobalt creates a physical link between the left and right lower control arms. The stabilizer bar is bolted to each control arm and helps to limit movement in the suspension when cornering. The bar is connected in two places to the vehicle sub-frame by U-shaped clamps with bushings between the bar and the clamp. The stabilizer bar and bushings should be in good condition and properly mounted; otherwise, the car's handling will be affected.
The radius arm on a 1985 Ford F-150 is attached to the axle and runs back to a frame bracket. Its purpose is to locate the axle in the proper position and allow very little fore and aft movement. It is a hard attachment at the axle but a bushed attachment at the frame. This allows smooth, quiet vertical movement. When the bushings wear out, the result is excess fore and aft movement in the axle, causing a tendency for the truck to drift or pull to one side. It also causes a bumping that may be felt in the…
Replacing a lower control arm on a 1988 Chevy S-10 Blazer is a relatively simple procedure, however it requires removing the coil spring. Because of the compression pressure the spring is exerting on the lower control arm, a constant vigilance is necessary to avoid releasing the spring unintentionally. The spring will come out with a vengeance if proper precautions are not taken.
Repairing your sink faucet or replacing it with a new one, requires removing the mounting nuts from the faucet. Unfortunately, you'll have little room to work with when removing the mounting nuts. The back of the sink bowl is close to the rear wall of the cabinet, making getting a wrench around the securing nuts virtually impossible. It is necessary to remove the mounting nuts with a basin wrench. A basin wrench has a jaw head that pivots at the end of the handle enabling you to access and remove the faucet mounting nuts.
The 1995 Ford F-150 pickup uses a twin I-beam and coil spring front suspension rather than the conventional upper and lower control arm suspension on other trucks. A radius arm is attached to each I-beam near the wheels to fix the fore and aft position of the beam. The radius arm runs from the I-beam back to a bracket attached to the frame where it is held with rubber bushings. The bushings wear out over time and must be replaced.
The panhard rod and the sway bar, both components designed to enhance the operation of a vehicle’s suspension, are not necessarily included as standard equipment on all vehicles. The two have dissimilar functions. The panhard rod is the simplest of the two so it will be covered first.
Removing leaf springs from a truck or car is a major job and can be very dangerous. Unless the frame of the vehicle is securely jacked up, the whole vehicle can fall, potentially crushing anyone underneath. The process requires three jacks and you should use the heaviest jacks possible, particularly if you are working on a truck or SUV.
Kenmore washer and dryer combo appliances include a washing unit with a dryer on top, and there is a shock absorber part in the back of the washer that is used to prevent the washer from shaking or rocking back and forth during a cycle. If your washing unit rumbles loudly when you are running a load, you may need to replace the shock absorber. The shocks part can be manually removed from the back of the washer, and a new part can be ordered from the Kenmore manufacturer or purchased from an online retailer.
The Toro Power Clear snow blower cannot operate properly and move snow out of your yard's walkways and driveway unless a working coil is in place on the Toro engine. You can remove an old coil and replace it with a new, working part regardless of your experience with snow blower repair. Professional tools are not required for troubleshooting.
