I want to swap out the upper control arm or at the very least take it to a shop to swap out the bushings. Has anyone pulled theirs off? On the driver's side the end closer to the front seems easy to get to the bolt, but the rear end seems blocked by the spring. Let's say I get to the bolt, can I unscrew it and that's it or do I need to keep the other end from turning?

 

The bolts/nuts aren't torqued down too bad. You should be able to reach them with the spring in. It took some finagling with a few different sized ratchet extensions and you will also have to keep the nut from spinning. Gear wrenches are very useful for this.

 

Use a flex head gear wrench. the other side of the bolt ( nut ) is held in place by a welded pocket that keeps it from turning with your turns.

FYI: dont over tighten or cross thread, if you use too much force, you can bend the pocket that holds the nut.

 

You'll probably have more issue with removing the UCA's ball joint from the knuckle. Purchase or rent a ball joint remover to help you out there OR with the castle nut removed, install another nut you'll not be afraid of damaging. Install it just enough so that it is flush with the ball joint stem, and then go to town on it with a hammer or sledge. Two wacks with my 5lb sledge and the ball joint gave up the knuckle.