The verticle bushings are easy, all you need to do is remove the old one, and then tap the new one in place with a hammer. The most difficult part is actually removing the steel ring that was part of the original bushing which will be stuck in the control arm. You have to be very carefull to not damage the arm, but the best way is to cut the sleeve with a hacksaw, or sawzall jusy short of all of the way through. Then you can break it and remove it.

Now the other bushing in the arm is a real PITA. If it's bad, replace the arm. It has no steel sleeve and that makes it very difficult to install without damaging it. In the shop setting a customers demands of perfection create a situation where they cannot do just the one bushing and make everyone happy. There will always be someone that will complain about something, and usually it would be "You changed the other bushing last year and now your telling me I have to replace the whole arm?" "Why didn't you just replace the whole thing last year?"

See the problem? While doing just the one bushing would make you happy, it won't work for everyone. The solution that provides consistency is to replace the arm, which gets the customer both bushings, and a new ball joint all in one step. This creates a level of quality, and consistency in the repairs, plus it much faster than having the tech rebuilding an old control arm.

John G - Firstly, MUCH THANKS to you for responding. I was hoping to hear back from someone knowledgeable!

I am a bit confused however. You say the "other bushing in the arm is a real PITA" - do you mean the front horizontal bushings that go thru the control arm shaft or something else?

The shaft bushings & ball joints are actually in good shape on both the driver's & passenger sides. Its just the rear, vertical bushings that are worn out.

I am taking your suggestion to heart about just replacing the whole arm assembly - at least the front end will be 100%. It would make it easier for me too, but of course I would like to save dad a few bucks if possible. I don't mind doing the work...

Thanks again John!
Marty

I thought I posted a follow up on this but failed to do so...

I replaced the front control arm's rear bushings only. The front bushings were actually in excellent shape. I followed John G's directions & it was an uneventful repair. I also replaced the front sway bar bushings while I had everything apart. The car now drives quietly & handles MUCH better with all new bushings! Again, THANK YOU MUCH John G!!

Now - dad reported that the CHECK ENGINE light comes on during a long trip (after about an hour drive). Around town, the light stays off. When the light does come on, dad pulls over & shuts off the engine, waits a minute, restarts it, it restarts promptly & the light goes out like normal. It runs fine when the check engine light is on. Car has 177K miles on it (original engine 3.1 liter V6) and has very little oil consumption (about a quart low after 4k miles). I will scan for the codes this weekend, but was wondering in advance if there is anything that is usually the culprit for this kind of intermittant problem, like a highly suspect & high percentage failure rate component. I also understand that if multiple codes are present, it could be a single culprit - or could also still be MULTIPLE culprits. I have only performed ECM diags a handful of times, so any guidance would be a big help & much appreciated.

Thanks!
Marty