So i got out all the old crap off the subi and placed it on the floor beside my donor parts to check everything, power steering hoses were slightly different and my control arm mounts are different! which normally wouldnt be a problem id just swap the bushings, but one of mine, passenger front was broke in the accident. ive included 2 pics of them.
As you can see the original are higher centered on the control arm and have a slant side, while the donor car ones are split equally top and bottom of control arm bolt. they look to mount the same but obviously one holds the control arm further away from the body and is more rugged.also i am aware that the 2 pictured are from different sides of the car.
Can these still be used? will it mess anything up or even work at all? also theres 2 different part #'s from doorman to get the replacement mount one for drivers and one for pass. i guess im used to domestic cars with same parts on each side.
the outback has, in effect, a 'body lift' and uses the mount with more offset.
if you can get mounts from a junkyard, the old bushings can be drilled/sawed out and new OEM style ($$$$$) or urethane aftermarkets ($$) can be installed. If the inner bushing on those control arms are also bad, given the state they appear to be in, you might consider new LCAs - but you'd still have the issue of needing another mount and probably 2 bushings. The inner bushing can be replaced - but I think it must be pressed out - anyone?
search for posts about liquid filled bushing, transverse link bushing, lower control arm, etc.
Do you guys think that I could install the legacy ones 'as is' temporarily while I search for an out back mount. I imagine the front end will be sitting lower by an inch or 2 but i only need it like that for a week to find or order parts. Also I'm going to look into aftermarket poly bushings. I do have a 20 ton press to put new ones on....might be fun getting old ones off haha. And the donor control arms and cradle are mint. But yeah the old lca's were rusted.
Stance change on the front only. Align it afterword and you should be okay. If you don't have access to an alignment rack, use a tape measure.
Old School before computer alignments. Easy: with the tire mounted on the car, use a can of white spray paint and paint a line on the tire while spinning the wheel. Next, use a nail or something with a sharp edge to scribe a line in the paint all the way around, again spinning the wheel. Do both wheels at approximately the same tread line. Let the car rest on the ground, move it forward and backward a foot or two so the wheel assembly sets down. Measure the distance between the lines on the forward side, then measure the backside. The difference in the measurements will be your toe out or in. If the distance is less in the front, its in. Lock the steering wheel centered and make adjustments necessary to have the front and rear measurements the same and your toe will be set at 0.0
My dad made me do alignments with handheld gauges and toe sticks even after Bear/Hunter came out with computer alignment equipment just so I would know how. He didn't trust the computer/lights all the time anyway.
Using the legacy one will change the king pin inclination angle, which may cause to car to behave abnormally/dangerously when turning and or going over bumps as it will decrease the caster as the arm moves up. I haven't had any experience with this so I can't be any more specific.
Do you guys think that I could install the legacy ones 'as is' temporarily while I search for an out back mount. I imagine the front end will be sitting lower by an inch or 2 but i only need it like that for a week to find or order parts. Also I'm going to look into aftermarket poly bushings. I do have a 20 ton press to put new ones on....might be fun getting old ones off haha. And the donor control arms and cradle are mint. But yeah the old lca's were rusted.
Up date on this thread... Found out the front end i got was out of an impreza, the swap went great except the rack and pinion shaft were different size/spline counts and got it almost all together and had to rip it apart to swap them! i dont notice any difference in the height with the impreza mounts. But this thing can hadle at 120 km/hr what most cars can only dream of handling at 70 km/hr.
Side question, whats the largest size stock sway bar that i can use on this rig? is it the baja one? I know i used the impreza one on the front and the mounts were the same but if i got a larger diameter sway bar do i just need the corrresponding bushings or do i need the mounting brackets as well?
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