Learn Me: Seized bolt in bushing

Not a huge fan of my 2006 530xi wagon having a -3.5* camber on the rear driver side because the bolt is seized in the bushing that it can't be adjusted or removed.

Since the bushing is in the swing arm, which is connected through the subframe, AND the bolt's head is sitting nearly flush...

What's gonna be the best way to remove this bolt? I have a new bushing, an eccentric bolt and even a new swing arm on the way just in case, but the least destructive way is the preferred.

Below is what I'm currently dealing with.

Thin cutting blade between the control arm and the subframe on each side to cut the bolt and remove the arm, then press out and replace the bushing, then put it all back together 

Sonic said:

Thin cutting blade between the control arm and the subframe on each side to cut the bolt and remove the arm, then press out and replace the bushing, then put it all back together 

yep.   sawzall as noted above.

Thanks, gents.

Looks like I'll be picking a sawzall up this weekend.

Get some anti seize too for when you put it all back together.  Living in the northeast most of my life I put that E36 M3 on everything. 

Have you tried an impact? If you have access to a big one I'd just hammer away at it until it lets go or snaps in half. Problem solved either way.

The real bugger is that you often have to cut the bolt on both sides of the bushing. This really sucks if the bolt threads into a captive nut on the far side because then you have to drill/ez out it. 

Is it a regular nut on the back side? 

Can fire get the bushing out somewhat safely? Should make getting that pesky bolt out much easier.

A little fire and a lot of air hammer.

Do this every day at work, spent a nice cozy Sunday afternoon saving EvanB's latest acquisition's leaf spring bushings while driving the rusted-in shackle bolts out.  Apply JUST enough heat to get things warm.  If you go too much, then beating on the end will mushroom the bolt instead of ramming it through.

Angle grinder to the head of that bolt, all the way through until the washer. Hammer and punch after that.

Keep in mind that that's an aluminum subframe, which I'm given to understand does not react well to showers of sparks or lots of heat. The swing arm is aluminum too. Given how snug everything tends to be in these, I'd be a little afraid of messing up the subframe with a sawzall or a grinder.

I still say a big impact is the least destructive method, but failing that, how's the access on the other side? If you have to start grinding, I'd go after the nut side first - you may not have to grind it away completely, just enough to get it hot enough that whatever's left will break loose.

Oh, and save yourself the pain of having to press out the old bushing immediately after you finish fighting with the bolt. Since you've got all the new parts, just put the new bushing in the new swing arm now so once it's out you can just slap in the new parts and go. You can always fight with the old bushing later.

02Pilot said:

Have you tried an impact? If you have access to a big one I'd just hammer away at it until it lets go or snaps in half. Problem solved either way

I have not. I only have a Milwaukee electric impact and assumed it wouldn't do much.

 

mazdeuce - Seth said:

The real bugger is that you often have to cut the bolt on both sides of the bushing. This really sucks if the bolt threads into a captive nut on the far side because then you have to drill/ez out it. 

Is it a regular nut on the back side? 

It's just an eccentric flat washer and a self-locking collar nut on the back. I was able to get those two off, but the bolt itself just wouldn't budge. I'd be using a breaker bar and it'd move maybe a MM, but the bushing sleeve would move with it.

Here's an image with the bolt and nut highlighted:

I'm not too worried about saving the bushing as the deeper I delve in to the suspension on this wagon, everything is original and ~164k miles old and likely needs replaced anyways.

I have seen a couple videos of people using air hammers on seized bolts and they look to be pretty cheap at HF, so that might be an option if I can't sneak a sawzall in there.

So the nut is off? OK, I didn't get that initially. I still say throw the impact at it and see if the bolt will move. Put a jack under it to put some pressure on the bushing to keep it from spinning. If not, the air hammer sounds like the next best step.

The fact that it is aluminum is all the MORE reason you need to heat the bolt.  (The BOLT, not the arm or subframe)

And use an air hammer to drive it out, not a BFH. BFH will large-scale bend things, air hammer will only work on whatever it is you are hitting with it.