Control Arms and Track Bar bolt upgrades

tnvolfan69

New member
I am going to upgrade and replace all my control arm bolts and track bar bolts. My question is, can i do all of this with my jk on the ground or do i need to jack it up? Thanks in advance for your assistance
 

bl17z90

New member
It can be done on the groud. Don't remove more than one control arm at a time though.

If any of that is wrong feel free to chime in guys.
 

wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
Is there a reason for this? Seems like a waste of time and money to me :idontknow:

Regarding your question, yes, you can do it with your Jeep on the ground but, your axle will still move around a bit and a floor jack will come in handy to help get holes aligned. Also, your front passenger side upper control arm frame bolt will be a PITA to remove unless you cut it, drill out the mount hole and reverse the bolt.
 

wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
http://hcp4x4.com/i-12071181-jk-bolt-upgrade-for-lower-control-arms-and-track-bars.html

I am installing lift kit, tie rod ends and ball joints this weekend to upgrade to 35's. I came across the bolt kit above and figured why not, wasn't too expensive! Was going to have everything pulled a part any way.

Thanks for your input, Eddie! I always value your feedback.

Also, i have an 08 jku and approaching 100k so i figured it could't hurt.

Thanks again

$42 + shipping seems like a lot of money to me. Honestly, I would just stick with the factory bolts unless or until you install something requires you to replace them. But, if you insist on swapping them out, can I have your old factory bolts and nuts? I'll pay for the shipping :yup:
 

The Wandering Jeeper

Caught the Bug
$42 + shipping seems like a lot of money to me. Honestly, I would just stick with the factory bolts unless or until you install something requires you to replace them. But, if you insist on swapping them out, can I have your old factory bolts and nuts? I'll pay for the shipping :yup:

Hold on there a minute. I give you a buck and pay for shipping!!!
 

ghostjk

New member
I thought that the grade 8 bolt kit was used to replace stock bolts because the grade 8 bolts are slightly larger and leave less room for things like trac bar joints to wear as quickly.

Is this not true? I will be installing a new teraflex arms and trac bar next weekend and was considering ordering this as well.
Thanks!
 

Moochie

Active Member
I thought that the grade 8 bolt kit was used to replace stock bolts because the grade 8 bolts are slightly larger and leave less room for things like trac bar joints to wear as quickly.

Is this not true? I will be installing a new teraflex arms and trac bar next weekend and was considering ordering this as well.
Thanks!

I never replaced any of my bolts and haven't experienced any issues with my trac bar. 75,000 miles on my JK. They just need to be torqued down properly.
 

wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
I thought that the grade 8 bolt kit was used to replace stock bolts because the grade 8 bolts are slightly larger and leave less room for things like trac bar joints to wear as quickly.

Is this not true? I will be installing a new teraflex arms and trac bar next weekend and was considering ordering this as well.
Thanks!

Fear is a great tool for selling things. So you know, an SAE grade 8 bolt is actually not quite as strong as a metric 10.9.

I never replaced any of my bolts and haven't experienced any issues with my trac bar. 75,000 miles on my JK. They just need to be torqued down properly.

Exactly, maintain your Jeep and make sure your bolts tightened to torque spec and they will not wollow out your mounting holes.
 

Philip *AZ*

Banned
I did the grade 8 install as well. I figured since its already torn down I may as well, had the kit anyway. Not to steal Eddies thunder here, but Im no mechanic so I cant do much of this stuff you see on this site, but! I know damn good and well if you dont check your equipment periodically then how are you going to know about any potential issues. Death Wobble at 75mph with my family (just once) was enough to turn me into a maintanence Tech..lol.. I dont over do it, but every month or two I like to get under the Jeep and make sure everything is properly torqued n greased. Eddie is probably right that the Grade 8 bolts were unnecessary, but I had them so I just did it. On JK Forum there is a fantastic write-up by Planman on mantaining your vehicle and how to prevent/find signs of wearing equipment.


Paratroopers stay up longer!
 

bl17z90

New member
Actually the passenger side upper is easier than you make it if you have the right tool. Once i got that bolt backed off a good bit (to the point where it was touching the exhaust) i just stuck a lady slipper in the other side and gave it one good hit with a deadblow and it fell right out. :)
 

wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
I did the grade 8 install as well. I figured since its already torn down I may as well, had the kit anyway. Not to steal Eddies thunder here, but Im no mechanic so I cant do much of this stuff you see on this site, but! I know damn good and well if you dont check your equipment periodically then how are you going to know about any potential issues. Death Wobble at 75mph with my family (just once) was enough to turn me into a maintanence Tech..lol.. I dont over do it, but every month or two I like to get under the Jeep and make sure everything is properly torqued n greased. Eddie is probably right that the Grade 8 bolts were unnecessary, but I had them so I just did it. On JK Forum there is a fantastic write-up by Planman on mantaining your vehicle and how to prevent/find signs of wearing equipment.


Paratroopers stay up longer!

LOL!! Not stealing my thunder at all, just trying to save folks some money is all. Regardless of what bolts you run, regular inspection/maintenance is key to preventing things like death wobble. It should be noted that Planman received the bolt kit for free from Northridge4x4 so that he could do the write-up and help them to sell the kit. Not that there's anything wrong with trying to sell things using scare tactics but, that's all it really was. Again, metric 10.9 bolts are actually stronger than SAE grade 8 bolts and if you make sure your bolts are tightend to torque spec, they will last you the life of your Jeep. Also, if you or anyone else doesn't want your old factory bolts and nuts, I'd be more than happy to take them off your hands. :yup:
 

Markymark420

New member
True story
 

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OverlanderJK

Resident Smartass
On JK Forum there is a fantastic write-up by Planman on mantaining your vehicle and how to prevent/find signs of wearing equipment.


Paratroopers stay up longer!

:cheesy: That guy's write up is telling you to spend more money and replace your bolts for bigger ones because they weren't torqued down properly. He thinks chrysler would sell millions of Jeeps with the wrong size hardware.

I know I won't believe anything he says.
 

TheDuff

New member
If any of the holes in the brackets get wallowed out, is it Ok to weld on the metric equivalent sized washer to fix the issue?

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using WAYALIFE mobile app
 
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