LCA is pretty easy as long as you have air tools and a press. IIRC that bolt in your photo has 100+ft/lb of torque on it..

 

How many miles are you all getting before you have had to replace these bushings?

 

If I remember correctly I got them replaced them at around 100k.

 

Mine has 155,000 but I am not certain replacement is required. I posted the photo of surface cracks asking if that indicates a need for replacement. I can't nail down the source of the noise.

 

These bushings are oil filled. When oil starts leaking out of them it's a last and full stage of degradation. $270 is not big money - I'd replace 'em.

 

I now have173,000 miles and couldnt stand the noise any more so I am going to replace these bushings this weekend.

 

I finally got around to replacing my LCA bushings as well as wheel hubs at the same time. Both bushings took 1.5 hours total due to some issues at the hydraulic press. It took a while to sort through the parts in order to find the proper diameter metal slug for the pusher. Note, I do have access to a full shop with lift on the closest military base, I'm retired military so this made things easy.
Photo 1: There was a bunch of rusty water in the large bolt holes on both sides so when I removed the larger bolts with the air wrench it sprayed all over me and the floor.
Photo 2: You can see that without the bushing the entire arm stays put so no need to remove anything else.
Photo 3: 1/2 way finished at the press.
I was hoping my snap, crackle, pop noises would be all gone but unfortunately I'd say these 2 bushings were the source of 80-90% of the noise. I have already replaced the sway bar pieces so I will continue to look for the remaining sources.

 

Nice, thanks for the pics and description.

 

Chunkyda, or anyone else?

What is the OD on the new bushing? Did the old bushing removal require a 3 inch arbor?

 

I didn't measure it but probably should have. The shop where I did the work just had a bunch of round objects (sockets, pipes, plates, etc) and adjustable bottoms (silver thing in the bottom picture) so it was a matter of finding a round pusher that was close enough to press the bushings in and out.
The bushings were pressed with a 55 ton hydraulic press which I did not measuer the size either but it was smaller in diameter than the bushing.

 

Thanks for the details and pictures. Looks pretty straight forward. I know you said you used air tools and a lift, but do you think this is doable via breaker bars and jack stands? Also, do you have to torque specs for those bots?

 

This would be pretty tough without a lift. I had to use a breaker bar and a long pipe with a lot of body weight to break some of those bolts loose. No way I could have done it on my back. Torque on the bushing nut is 111 I believe, not sure about the bracket bolts.

 

My bolts came off pretty easily. They are very clear of obstructions and nothing moves when the part is removed so I see no reason why a breaker bar won't get the job done. As long as you can get a hydraulic press you are OK.
The smaller inside bolt is 44 ft-lbs
The larger outside and middle of the rubber bolt are both 101 ft-lbs

 

Do you think a bench vise would be enough to both press the old bushing out and a new bushing in? Seems a common tool used in many a bushing swap jobs out there. Not sure if it's appropriate (strong enough) for this particular bushing though. Thoughts?

 

I don't know what kind of bench vise you are going to try but I can tell you that the 55 ton hydraulic press was struggling to push these things out. It is a big, heavy part that is pressed in pretty good. You also need to get real close on the diameters because the metal ring around the rubber on the LCA will bend out (widen out in diameter) if it is given the opportunity by an under-diameter plate.