Changing my front lower shock bushes, does any one have a trick to remove the old bush ? It’s an absolute pig to budge.

 

I did my left side twice now, you will need a long bolt with some thrust bearings and couple 1/2 sockets(can't remember size), if not for removing then for pressing the new one in. They are a pig to remove, but doable. Removing is easy if you drill it out, by the time you get to 10mm drill the outer sleeve should split in two and you simply hammer it out with a chisel.

Pressing it in can only be done from one end and you might have to grind down a 1mm of the wishbone in one of the corners to get a socket straight onto the bush, you'll understand when you get to it, without it, socket just gets stuck on the wishbone.

It is absolutely crucial to press it all the way in, on my first attempt I've pressed new bush from the wrong side, got stuck and left maybe 1mm or 2 to do and the bush got completely destroyed in a couple of months so had to do it all again.

Not fun!

 

Drilling it out sounds interesting, so I Drill between the bush and frame that the bush fits into ?
i have left the new bush in freezer today, hopefully it contracts a bit and pushes in a bit easier?

 

You drill in the rubber between inner and outer sleeve with progressively bigger drills. At 10mm drill it should split the outer sleeve in two and then hammers out fairly easy. You press the bush from the rear only. Do it from front and you wont be able to press it in fully and you'll end up wit this:



Only way to press it while on the car is to use bolt/socket method. If you try to hammer it in you'll damage it as I did as you can see in the pic.

 

I might have a problem with your removal system. Rubber and inner sleeve are gone ! Just got outer sleeve stuck fast.
I think hacksaw might be only option?

 

Hacksaw or bolt and sockets method then.

 

Hacksaw and chisel worked well, probably only took 5 mins once I got started. Will try drilling the other side tomorrow.

 

Found couple of pics from my recent work on this

Actually you have to push the bush from the front as there is no space at the front for a large socket(there is at the rear)




It's a bolt, two sockets, two thrust bearings and some special nuts.