Here’s two tools to help make swaybar bushing replacements faster:
Go to Harbor Freight, and buy:
1. Panel Clip pliers, #67399. If you have tired or weak hands, these things work awesome for opening up the sway bar bushings, then you can stick them around the handle end of a hammer for awhile to let them open up. Makes installation a lot easier. These pliers are also very handy when removing the plastic shield in the passenger wheel well when working on the serpentine belt / accessory area.
2. Seal puller #35556. This is great for removing the old bushings – just hook them and pull!
Other notes while I’m at it:
1. Skip the cheapo brand end links. The Advance Auto Driveworks bushings as of 2014 are junk – very wimpy ball joints. In addition, the lock nuts were actually regular nuts squished FROM THE TOP with two punches, not sideways like regular locknuts were. They were so distorted I couldn’t get a socket on the nut without grinding the outsides of the nuts where they had mushroomed, and then the nut was so deformed that it about killed the threads when I tried to install it.
2. Be aware that it looks like Moog is between suppliers on their K7258 end links. One I got had hex fittings on the stud and it was a good piece. The other had square fittings, and the grease fittings did not thread properly into the ball joint. ALWAYS grease the end links before you install. Period.
Go to Harbor Freight, and buy:
1. Panel Clip pliers, #67399. If you have tired or weak hands, these things work awesome for opening up the sway bar bushings, then you can stick them around the handle end of a hammer for awhile to let them open up. Makes installation a lot easier. These pliers are also very handy when removing the plastic shield in the passenger wheel well when working on the serpentine belt / accessory area.
2. Seal puller #35556. This is great for removing the old bushings – just hook them and pull!
Other notes while I’m at it:
1. Skip the cheapo brand end links. The Advance Auto Driveworks bushings as of 2014 are junk – very wimpy ball joints. In addition, the lock nuts were actually regular nuts squished FROM THE TOP with two punches, not sideways like regular locknuts were. They were so distorted I couldn’t get a socket on the nut without grinding the outsides of the nuts where they had mushroomed, and then the nut was so deformed that it about killed the threads when I tried to install it.
2. Be aware that it looks like Moog is between suppliers on their K7258 end links. One I got had hex fittings on the stud and it was a good piece. The other had square fittings, and the grease fittings did not thread properly into the ball joint. ALWAYS grease the end links before you install. Period.
