'93 Cav RS Strut / Knuckle Bolts

[Ed_in_Akron]

Hi,

I have a 1993 Cavalier RS with a 3.1, 5 speed manual, level III suspension. Original suspension I should say. Obviously it just doesn't handle like it used to during cornering, lots of body roll. Every little road blemish feels like the car just dropped and fell down three feet. Ouch!

I started to go through the suspension system, it has a 28mm diameter sway bar except where the two bushings mount to the supports, then it is 26mm at those two points. The bushings were shot, the links, well they just turned to iron dust when I put a wrench on them and turned it . Well, that made my life a little easier anyways.

Then came removal of the struts. I can easily remove the three upper nuts that hold the strut to the tower, I can easily remove the suspension support bolts, I can easily remove the brake disk, calipers, and wheel bearings. I can easily remove the two NUTS that fasten the bolts that pass through the strut and knuckle assemblies. I cannot budge those strut to knuckle bolts though. I started out using a light weight 12 ounce claw hammer to tap them out. Nothing happened, so I sprayed WD-40 around the head of the bolts, and every other accessible point where the oil could seep into where the bolts are. Waited an hour, came back out with a three pound sledge hammer. Tapped light a few times, nothing. Banged the heck out of them about thirty times with it. The bolts didn't even move 1/10 of a millimeter. I did manage to distort the nuts that were flush with the end of the bolts though (burrs and mushroomed flange). I ground the burrs off so my socket would fit back on. The threads of both bolts are fine, the bolts are not bent.

How in the heck do these things come off? Why are the bolt heads not a standard 6 sided head? These bolt heads are just rectangular in shape, and my Haynes manual shows them that way as well, the manual just states too make sure that I reinstall them with the flats being horizontal, right now they are a few degrees (+) and a few dgrees (-) from being horizontal. Do I need a special tool to remove these? The Haynes manual also states that these bolts are splined, just tap them out with a light brass hammer. What am I doing wrong?

Thanks!

[94VL]

The flat sided end of the bolt is splined so it digs into the knuckle when its tightened down,this wont turn and you wont need to hold it while removing the nut.The 6 sided nut end is where you impact wrench it off.Then,you need to take an impact (zip) gun with a straight shank "punch" bit to vibrate the threaded end back into the knuckle,pushing out the splined flat headed side.Eventually it will pop out and fly onto the ground.You shouldnt re use these bolts/nuts.They are available at your local GM dealer and worth replacing.When putting back in,orient them the same way they came out (the head sides)and hammer in the flat headed end so the splines catch.When you air gun the nut back in,it will draw the other end in and wont spin around.

[Ed_in_Akron]

Thank You 94VL,

I am going to do that tonight.

[Ed_in_Akron]

Thanks 94VL

Worked like a charm. I just put the bit on it, squeezed the trigger, the bolts wiggled right out of their holes. I used very little pressure too. I replaced the bolts and nuts as you suggested. It rides and handles so much better now. Its a keeper.

Later

[94VL]

Glad to hear its back together.