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nobananas
Tuesday 26th April 2005, 20:45
If your 850 feels a little vague and floaty then the front Track Control Arm (TCA) inner bushes may have worn out. If you have someone watch the front wheels whilst you 'nudge' the car backwards and forwards using the clutch and footbrake and the wheel seems to kick back and forth attention is most likely required.
First jack up the front corner of the vehicle on the side wish to work on and support it with an axle stand beneath the subframe or under the chassis far enough away from the TCA so it doesn't get in the way.
Remove the road wheel to gain access to the TCA
http://images5.theimagehosting.com/volvofrontbush.jpg (http://www.theimagehosting.com)
This is the front most bush....
http://images5.theimagehosting.com/volvorearbush.jpg (http://www.theimagehosting.com)
...and this is the rear.

nobananas
Tuesday 26th April 2005, 20:53
Undo the balljoint pinch-bolt and remove, you may need to dose this in a release agent like WD-40 and punch it out . Then remove the two bolts that pass through each of the inner bushes, you will need 18mm and 15mm spanners and or sockets.
http://images5.theimagehosting.com/volvobushundone.jpg (http://www.theimagehosting.com)

Lever the arm down from the subframe until both bushes are clear and swing the TCA round, you can now tap gently on the arm close to the balljoint to release the balljoint from the hub carrier but only use a soft faced hammer or protect the arm with a block of wood to prevent cracking.

You should now have TCA lying on the floor !
http://images5.theimagehosting.com/volvotca.jpg (http://www.theimagehosting.com)

nobananas
Tuesday 26th April 2005, 21:12
Remove the plastic splash guard on the TCA to make access easier.

You will now need to fashion a pressing tool. This can be nothing more complicated then a length of thick threaded rod, a couple of nuts and thick washers and a couple of sockets.
http://images5.theimagehosting.com/bushpuller.jpg (http://www.theimagehosting.com)
The smaller socket needs to be just a little smaller than the outer casing of your new bush and the larger socket a little larger then the outer casing so the bush can be drawn into it.

Then pass the threaded rod through the old bush and arrange your puller with a socket each side and a washer and nut on the end of each socket.

nobananas
Tuesday 26th April 2005, 21:30
It should now just be a case of winding the nuts up and with a little luck and WD-40 the bush should begin to slide out of the arm.
(Puller has been undone here for clarity)
http://images5.theimagehosting.com/bushcomeout.jpg (http://www.theimagehosting.com)

If the larger socket isn't quite deep enough to take the whole bush, remove the threaded rod and tap the smaller socket sharply to pop out the bush.

Inspect the bush housing for burrs and dress with a file if needed.
http://images5.theimagehosting.com/bushgone.jpg (http://www.theimagehosting.com)

nobananas
Tuesday 26th April 2005, 21:42
Here is the old bush along side the new, Mine were only about Seven quid each from GSF
http://images5.theimagehosting.com/newandoldbush.jpg (http://www.theimagehosting.com)

Assemble your puller with your new bush as shown below.
http://images5.theimagehosting.com/newbushready.jpg (http://www.theimagehosting.com)

Spray with a little WD-40 and begin winding in the new bush. If the bush starts to tip at an angle release the puller, realign and try again.

As the new bush starts to reach a similar position as the old one release the puller and check against the 'rust-line' of the old bush and adjust the new bushes position until it is aligned. Ensure however that you use the correct end of the old bush as they are not equally spaced ! You could measure the protruding section of the old bush before starting with a vernier caliper or similar but I think this method is adequate.
http://images5.theimagehosting.com/judgingdistance.jpg (http://www.theimagehosting.com)

nobananas
Tuesday 26th April 2005, 22:02
Repeat the process with the remaining bush and your almost there.

Offer up the arm to the subframe and push the bushes between the support brackets, you may need to gently persuade the arm into alignment with the bolt holes with a soft-faced hammer or similar. If the arm is impossible to refit then you may have made a mistake aligning the bushes earlier if so adjust with your puller. Refit the two TCA bush bolts and nuts but do not tighten fully. Lift the arm up and push the balljoint pin into it's hole ensuring that the groove on the pin faces inwards towards the pinch bolt hole and refit and tighten the pinch bolt.

Whenever replacing or refiting components that use these 'matali-stik' type bushes it is important that their fixing bolts are only tightened when they are loaded to their normal operating angles. To do this place a block of wood and a jack beneath the balljoint and carefully jack up the suspension until the weight of the car is almost lifted from the axle-stand then tighten the TCA bush bolts fully.
http://images5.theimagehosting.com/loadingbushes.jpg (http://www.theimagehosting.com)

Refit the wheel and the jobs done ! As always it's better to do both sides of the vehicle and always have your steering alignment checked whenever you have disturbed suspension or steering components. Also it is usually advised that all nuts and bolts removed are replaced with new items but that is entirely up to you.

I hope this has been of some help but would only suggest that this type of work is carried out in a responsible and safe manner by someone who has understood fully the procedure and feels confident to attempt it. I am not responsible for any damage or injuries sustained during this operation.