Trailblazer Lower Control Arms Support Brackets Replacement

mrrsm

Original poster
Lifetime VIP Donor
Supporting Donor
Member
Oct 22, 2015
7,639
Tampa Bay Area
There are a few contemporary Threads involving struggles with conducting Lower Suspension Repairs that this Video will compliment. Sometimes ... The Wisdom from Watching these things is that the VOPs (Video Original Posters) are HONEST enough to tell you when they make Major Mistakes ( ...or Sustain Serious Injuries) during dis-assembly that can create other, more complicated problems... or extend the time, the labor and the cost and difficulty of locating additional repair components. Those aspects may be the most valuable "Not-By-The-Book" Lessons to be had from such intimate,'Sine Qua Non' Repair Movies:


Safety Issue:

If you focus on the Video from about 09:40 and onwards... You'll notice that due to the deplorable outcome of having Replaceable Steel and Iron Components such as the Left and Right Front Struts left in place TOO LONG... A Time Bomb waits in hiding.

You can see that at some point during the VOP's Repair... The Compressed Spring suddenly let go after the Strut Spring Support Plate had
Rusted Through enough to Completely Fail... Probably while the VOP was Beating the Hell out of the Upper Pinch Bolt Cast Iron Bracket holding in the Lower end of the McPherson Strut inserted inside of it while trying to separate them. He finally gave up trying after this Spring Expansion occurred.

If this had happened while his hand was holding that lower Strut Tube... the chance for having his hand and fingers broken... or worse yet...winding up getting completely Trapped in between that Slipped Spring Plate and the Suspension Hardware is a very real and substantial Risk.

There are enough threads at GMTN covering how truly Dangerous the Power is once these Strut Springs get completely Compressed prior to the installation of McPherson Struts to convince most people to Beware the Damned Things. THIS situation should be added to that Cautionary Advisory for vehicles that exist under Rust Belt or Heavy Flooding Conditions when performing this LCAB (Lower Control Arm Bracket) Repair.

If you want More Information and confirmation of how serious this problem can get... Visit THIS Link:

 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: tyler and Eric04

TollKeeper

Supporting Donor
Member
Dec 3, 2011
8,045
Brighton, CO
Thanks for that.. Hopefully I dont have his rust problems!
 
  • Like
Reactions: mrrsm

mrrsm

Original poster
Lifetime VIP Donor
Supporting Donor
Member
Oct 22, 2015
7,639
Tampa Bay Area
What follows is directly complimentary to the Topic of Front Suspension Repairs on Trailblazers and Envoys. For anyone anticipating performing similar, MAJOR Front End Repairs… looking over this Dude’s shoulder while he wails away on this Project should let you know precisely what you’re getting yourself into:

This is a Multi-Part Video series of what he calls “Project Failblazer”… but the Vehicle actually deserves to be renamed as “The SS Rustoleum” based upon the dreadful conditions of so many failed suspensions and steering components due to the Accumulation of Road Grit, Road Salt and the lack of frequent Suspension Maintenance given the harsh topography of where most of the driving for this SUV has taken place. I doubt that there ever was a “Better Worse” Example of how truly broken down things can become down there when all of the enemies of SUV Suspensions conspire to make them fail.

The VOP (Video Original Poster) will take us through all of the twists and turns of replacing the Front Suspension on his Wife’s Trailblazer. As you can see… The VOP is NOT a GMT360 Hater! He has several Trailblazers after going to the trouble of purchasing one off of Craig’s List with a Blown Engine to serve as a Donor Vehicle for this Repair.

Consider that with his ample Parking Space available and with how expensive it would have been to purchase EVERYTHING required to do this job properly, it made perfect sense to do it this way.

After viewing Part #1… the remaining follow-on videos are available here:

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=#projectfailblazer

For those of you who are NOT Superstitious... Watch what happens at 09:50 into Video Part #4 ... when the VOP gets Conked in the Coconut and temporarily trapped inside of the Wheel Well with the Full Weight of the Entire Left Side Suspension sitting in his lap...just when a Black Cat walks past him as seen in its reflection in the Driver's Door.... Just Sayin'...

 
Last edited:

sunliner

Member
Mar 25, 2012
365
I haven't had a proper look at the area, but if I'm doing lower control arm bushings only, or even the whole lower bracket, does the wheel hub, strut and all that really need to come off, or could I support the lower arm with a jack and do the bushings or bracket safely?
 

TollKeeper

Supporting Donor
Member
Dec 3, 2011
8,045
Brighton, CO
For a easier job, disconnecting the lower ball joint, and stabilizer link, this would make it so that you could spin the control arm on the strut, and pull the bolts off the control arm mount.
 

mrrsm

Original poster
Lifetime VIP Donor
Supporting Donor
Member
Oct 22, 2015
7,639
Tampa Bay Area
It is a lot of work... But you are NOT going to want to be the Least Bit Lazy ...and wind up having anything heavy hanging directly above the Work Area and invading your need for Complete Access.

Besides that... you might also consider replacing those Struts while you have to go through all of the Physical PITA stuff of removing that Heavy Gear in the first place. I'm paraphrasing a bit here ...but as General George S. Patton once said:

"I NEVER Want Men Having to PAY TWICE for Battling over the Same Ground..."
 

Mooseman

Moderator
Dec 4, 2011
25,257
Ottawa, ON
I went through this with the Saab. I'm lazy and try to find shortcuts. I was able to replace the bracket by leaving the ball joint, strut and sway bar link attached. Took a while to figure it out but just pivoting the lower A arm does the trick.
 

Forum Statistics

Threads
23,271
Posts
637,476
Members
18,472
Latest member
MissCrutcher

Members Online