bent control arm

[vonjohn]

my name is john

ok this is my problem i have a 98 lumina LTZ. had a ball joint go a few weeks ago and had them replaced. when replaced I was told the struts needed to be replaced.so I had a friend replace the struts. when I got my car back I was told that the car had a bent control arm. My question is after i replaced the balljoints at canadian tire I wasn't told about a bent control arm and would i have felt the pulling and heard the tire squelling that i do now and is it safe to drive for a few weeks like that or not?

[jeffcoslacker]

If it pulls and you hear it peeling rubber your tire won't last a few weeks...

I've seen them wear a tire out in a day with a bent arm...depends how bad it's twisted...

Your friend put a jack under the arm and bend it while doing the struts?

[dwalmop]

Are you talking about front or rear control arms? The rears are wimpy pieces of crap and will bend very easily if you use it to jack the car up. I don't know how you'd bend a front control arm without getting into a car accident or something. They're fairly robust. Also, if you had your front struts replaced, he shouldn't have even had to jack the car up, unless he was replacing the bearing plate and/or spring as well. They come out through the top of the strut tower under the hood.

[jeffcoslacker]

Originally Posted by dwalmop

Are you talking about front or rear control arms? The rears are wimpy pieces of crap and will bend very easily if you use it to jack the car up. I don't know how you'd bend a front control arm without getting into a car accident or something. They're fairly robust. Also, if you had your front struts replaced, he shouldn't have even had to jack the car up, unless he was replacing the bearing plate and/or spring as well. They come out through the top of the strut tower under the hood.

That's why I was wondering....if you take it apart and jack the car with the top apart for some reason, it'll drop through and you have to jack the control arm while guiding it back through the hole...

There is a correct way and a wrong way to lift under a control arm on FWD cars, they aren't as strong as the old RWD ones. It is not a weight bearing structure, only serves to provide a pivot point for the lower ball joint and radius for the suspension...the jack has to be under the ball joint and centered or it can bend/twist/crimp the arm...

[inafogg]

You say that you did or didnt hear the noise after the ball joint was replaced?
it is possible that the control arm was bent when the bj was replaced. they are pressed in.
i dought your friend bent it replacing struts.

[jeffcoslacker]

Originally Posted by inafogg

You say that you did or didnt hear the noise after the ball joint was replaced?
it is possible that the control arm was bent when the bj was replaced. they are pressed in.
i dought your friend bent it replacing struts.

Riveted.

I gotta show you guys something about these control arms. But I need to find a pic of one first.

[inafogg]

ok the bj are bolted in not pressed?still cant see how you/friend
bent the control arm

[jeffcoslacker]

Hell I can find a pic of one...but if you guys will take a look at a hoist/towing reference guide or a factory service manual in the general section where they provide lifting reccomendations they always say that lifting under control arms on FWD vehicles is not reccomended due to the possibility of damage...

If you lift under the ball joint it puts all the weight and stress on the end of the arm, which it can tolerate. Put it under the middle and it will bend because all the weight is on the end, but the jack acts as a fulcrum point and the arm is not designed to be stressed laterally, as I said. It's not a load bearing structure because the weight of the car is normally borne by the top of the strut tower, the lower arm on a strut suspension merely provides radius and a place for the ball joint...there is no vehicle weight carried by it.

The weakness through the middle is why they fold so readily when curb checked hard...they aren't made to carry load in that direction...

[blazes9395]

Originally Posted by jeffcoslacker

Hell I can find a pic of one...but if you guys will take a look at a hoist/towing reference guide or a factory service manual in the general section where they provide lifting reccomendations they always say that lifting under control arms on FWD vehicles is not reccomended due to the possibility of damage...

If you lift under the ball joint it puts all the weight and stress on the end of the arm, which it can tolerate. Put it under the middle and it will bend because all the weight is on the end, but the jack acts as a fulcrum point and the arm is not designed to be stressed laterally, as I said. It's not a load bearing structure because the weight of the car is normally borne by the top of the strut tower, the lower arm on a strut suspension merely provides radius and a place for the ball joint...there is no vehicle weight carried by it.

The weakness through the middle is why they fold so readily when curb checked hard...they aren't made to carry load in that direction...

I have personally learned the hard way. I knew before hand, but was rushing and I didn't correct my hoist position on the car, put it up, and noticed I damaged them. They can be damaged for sure.