control arm 1998 740 iL

I am about to acquire a '98 740 iL , 88,000 that I had evaluated by a mechanic . His report was that the lower control arm bushings were shot . I would prefer to do the job myself with the help of a machine shop to press new fittings into place .

Can someone educate me as to whether the control arms can be removed w/o special precautions to heed regarding any possible compressed springs ? Is this simply -- jack up the vehicle and wrench out the control arms ? Is anyone who has done this able to pass on their wisdom / experience ? What are the pitfalls ?

I believe that replacement bushing kits are available for approx $35. Mechanic wants $420 for the job which includes 2 hours labor @ $80 per hr. Local machine shop said that they could install new bushings for $20 .

HERE"S the problem. with the suspension redesign of the E38 & E39, i haven't seen a ball joint separator tool yet [ the E32/E34 tool won't work ]. this means using a 'pickle-fork' to remove the joint from the steering knuckle which destroys the boot leading to early failure. your technician probably quoted you for new arms and his rate & price sounds reasonable BUT you could do this yourself with the correct tools......NOTE !...was the rear suspension CAREFUL checked ? the lower rear ball joints and upper arm joints DO WEAR early on both E38's and E39's.....................jb.

Is there a good resource site that will describe step by step ?

Until I acquire a set of factory manual CD's , I rely upon the wisdom of experienced folks .

I just learned that this is more than simply wrenching to do disassembly , as a special tool is required to remove the ball joint . Is that correct ?

What else is needed to do R &R of front lower control arm bushings ?

I plan to take the old control arms to a machine shop to have them replace bushings with a press and then do the reinstall myself . This will be a learn as you go project . Any additional comments / warnings are much appreciated . Thank you .

I'll try to be clearer. you won't 'remove' the ball joint but seperate it's stud from the steering knuckle. the only tool i've seen so far is a 'pickle-fork' driven between the ball joint and knuckle flange AND this ruins the ball joint's boot.
i haven't looked for a work description as i've done this work for too many years but have NOT FOUND a new styled tool for the later models.
I'll check on this also & be back on thur's.......jb.

The coaching is a help. From you describe , the sticky point will be removal of the ball joint from the steering knuckle . I am looking at several generic auto books - Chilton's , Haynes , Jeep shop manual - for guidance. The steps are not clearly detailed .
- jack car onto jackstands
- remove wheel
- wrench out bolts and separate ball joint from steering knuckle -- this step is unknown to me .
- remove old bushings from control arms -- brute force /burn rubber
- machine press new bushings into original control arms
- replace all

Anything need to be replaced along the way that is likely to be damaged ? The rubber boot that you describe must encase the ball joint , is that correct ? Expensive to purchase ? Generic replacement or strictly dealer item ?
Some autos seem to have steel control arms , others have aluminum -- any issues here ? Some folks expressed concern about reusing aluminum control arms , others are happily replacing bushings in aluminum .

i'll be back tonight if i can find a pic. for you.......jb.

I've done many susp repairs. Always used air hammer to losen ball joints. Use caution because it is posible to damage knuckle or rod end. Use hammer end on air hammer, place it on a steering knuckle where rod end goes throught the knuckle and apply seweral quick blows. In many cases it will fall on its own.
that is it....

'stillearning6'.....if you still want to 'tackle' this repair yourself, though i think you'll find other maintainence/repair items that will be easier, post a note and i'll be back.....been very busy,sorry......jb.

Recently I changed the driver'side front control arm('98 740 il). No special tool required.
Here are the steps to remove and install.
Turn the nut on top of the ball threaded stem so that it shows thread between the nut and wheel socket for approx. 1/4" to 3/16". This could require some loosening liquid prior to unthreading the nut.
Then use a heavy ball hammer to hit the wheel socket of the ball joint until the balljoint conical stem pops out of the socket. This can take a few good sharp hits. The nut will stop the control arm from flying when the stem pops out of the socket.
Of course, I was not worried about damage since I had a new BMW control arm with bushing, p/n 31 121 142 087 left front control arm. ($125 purchased at Vines Automotive in Alabama: Vines (Ron) 1-800-214-4839) but the boot was not damaged nor was anything else. The one problem that occured was the removing of the nut on top of the ball stem after it had popped out of its socket. There was no space to put an allen key in the top of the threaded portion of the ball stem to stop the whole ball/stem from turning when trying to remove the self-locking nut.
I had two choices: use some type of plyers that would minimize damage to the thread and allow me to rethread with the proper thread file, or simply cut the bolt below the nut with a grinder.
I had a new control arm, so I cut away.
The other side of the control arm is no problem whatsoever.
Before installing the new control arm, I filed two flat spots (to allow the use of an adjustable wrench) on top of the bolt portion of the ball/stem joint so that I could hold the bolt to stop the ball from turning when tightening the nut on the bolt. Remember that there is absolutelly no space for an allen key on top of that bolt and that the only choice you have if you want to use an allen key is to remove the strut/spring combination.
In any case, I was lucky that the new ball being new, was tight enough in its socket to allow full tightening of the ball/nut without any slippage.
Total time: 30 minutes, cost:$125.00. Not worth doing the bushing only.
I hope this is somewhat helpfull (this is a translation from french, so please excuse the mistakes).
Here is my disclaimer: It is easy to remove and install a control arm, but care is a must as there can be dangerous procedures involved: jacking the car, using dangerous tools etc... Be careful.
Regards
jacquesrober