Subframe Bushing Removal

deepsky

Member
I’m going to describe my method that I came across to remove subframe bushings. I’m not saying that this is unique or even best way, but worked very well for me, with limited tools and experience. There are several threads about the difficulty of this problem, including using a press, drilling, and burning them out. Cue Beavis & Butt-head: Fire! Fire! Huh-huh. Alright, since I’m a night owl, I looked closely at the problem, and these bushings have a metal cylindrical two-part sleeve around them that snugly fits in the orifices.
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These sleeves have a lip that comes out part way following the curve of the opening in the subframe.
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This is visible as a lip on one side, the one that is where the bushing is pressed in. On a hunch, I tried driving a screwdriver in between the sleeve and the subframe. http://i.imgur.com/wathwlQ.jpg Using a hammer to drive it in, surprisingly it started to get in there, and with more pounding, the sleeve started to back out. http://i.imgur.com/gZXOfkS.jpg Once I drove the screwdriver around one half of the sleeve, it was even easier to complete this on the other half.
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When this is completed, turn over the subframe, and using the same screwdriver and hammer technique, pound on the other side of the sleeves inside the hole for the bushing.
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I found the fastest progress was to go back and forth pounding the sleeve on the edges of the sleeve where the split in the sleeve, refer to photos.
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Keep going switching between the 4 positions, the edges of each half sleeve.
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Finally, it will be driven out.
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One point here, make sure you pound on the metal part of the end of the sleeve, there is a thin rubber part covering the edge of the sleeve, push that out of the way so you are driving the screwdriver directly on the metal sleeves. Another point about this is to angle the screwdriver so it doesn’t slide off to the inside of the bushing, and perpendicular to the sleeve so it doesn’t also slide off to the outside of the sleeve as well.
 

GT4_DRED

New member
Nice! It may be even easier to spray it down with PB Blaster or WD40 and let it soak for a bit. Def another method of getting them out.
 

underscore

Well-known member
From memory that's how I did mine, but they weren't as rusty looking as that. Good to know it works on rougher ones as well.
 
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