Okay i just got my coilover kit the other day i was all excited ran home and got the front on with no trouble. Then when i moved to the back i noticed that the guy that had the car before me must have broken a few bolts. I have a 93 Civic Si and where the lower control arm and the shock conects there is a spot weld on one side and the bolt with hanging out on the other end i really want to know before i take this to a shop and have them get it out for me is there any easy way that i can get this out or am i just screwed. Thanks

 

do you mean that the nut is spotwelded? If it looks factory, than that's the way it should be. The nuts there ARE welded in place

 

I never knew that bolts were welded.

 

no they are no where close to factory welds at all. I dont think that i might have been clear on what i said the part where the shock joins to the lower control arm there is a bot that holds it in place has been spot welded in there. I know that it is not factory for 2 reasons the first is that the other side has a bolt that goes there and the other reason is that if it is welded in there then you can not remove the shock.

 

You have to cut spot welds out, the best tool to use is prolly gonna be a cutting tool. It hooks up to compressor air and spins a small, thin disk very fast.

 

weird thing is, when i did my coilovers i found that exact same thing, you could try using an easy out, thats what i ended up doing

 

are there any other ideas that might work

 

New LCAs...that'll work for sure. Get a grinder and cut the weld bead....the bolt should unscrew or just snap if you got the muscles. (replace with all new hardware)

 

Hmmm...that is strange...make sure that everything is in good shape once you get it out...

 

Those nuts are welded to the LCA at the factory. If you can manage to get that bolt out (holding the strut) without snapping it, you'll be considered a lucky man


Honestly, the best thing you can do is PB Blast the crap out of those nuts/bolts, and let it sit for a little while. Then try an impact gun to get the bolts out. I can almost garauntee that they will snap, so don't be suprised. And if that does happen, then it's sawzall time. And if you have to cut the bolts out, chances are you will ruin the bushings, in turn leaving you with two options..

A- buy new LCAs
or
B- get new bushings/bolts from the dealership, then have them pressed in to the old LCA's


I wish you the best of luck, as I just wrapped up this project and I know that it isn't fun. Please PM me if you have any more questions, and be sure to include your e-mail address, so that I can e-mail you with a response. I dont usually log on here on weekends.

Best of luck to you!