Just got a replacement for the rear crossmember (or rear beam, or rear engine cradle, or whatever you want to call it. The thing the steering rack, rear tranny mount, and lower control arms mount to) I bent hitting the Armco at VIR, and was wondering if anyone has any tricks or tips for swapping them out. Looks pretty straightforward, but folks who have done it will always have a helpful hint or two.

 

It would be 100 times easier if you had the engine out.

Use jackstands.

 

I changed out my rear x-member last year and it really wasn't too difficult. Just make sure you have your steering wheel and rack lined up correctly when you tighten everything back down. Oh, and use jackstands

 

disconnect the steering column first, then the rear engine mount, then the LCAs then the four bolts that hold up the crossmember. this would be a good time to replace bushings! front LCA bushings maybe the rear engine mount's bushing? and while u have it out you mine as well scope out your steering rack.

 

Yeah i just went through this very thing on saturday, its a bitch, it took me about 9 hours, by myself.

Basically, inside cabin, pull the plastic cover off the column, there is a u-joint, disconnect it at the rack. save the bolt and lock washer/thingy.
Take the bolt out of the rear mount, (you might have to remove your intake ( I had to pull it off and my strut bar)

Loosen your lugnutz

Jack car up as high as you can possibly go, remove wheels, get a hammer and punch and knock out the bitch pin, pull the linkages off, on the shocks disconnect the fork (at the lower control arm). Remove castle nuts on the ball joint, and steering tie rod, separate the ball joint, and separate the tie rod, (you will need a ball joint separator. (you can rent one from AutoZone if you don't have one) remove the bolt for the lca where it mounts to the frame.

you need to remove the sway bar, (do the above for both sides,
You can either separate the radius arms, or you can pull the whole front cross member off (I elected to do this, though it might be unnecessary). Disconnect your header from the exhaust, I pulled my exhaust off the hangars to put it on the ground, you might not have to do that but it made it easier,
Then there are 4 bolts that you need to pull to get the rear sub frame off the car, pull those out, and lower the sub frame out of the car.

After you get the frame out of the car, loosen the lock nuts on the tie rods, then remove the outer tie rods on both sides, then turn the shaft on your steering rack till it gets as small as it can go, after that unbolt the steering rack from the sub frame, and you should be able to pull it out with ease.

Then put the rack in to the new sub frame, put your tie rods back on (tighten the lock nut, and bolt the rack back to the frame, but don't tighten it, keep it pretty loose.

Now get under the car with the sub frame and rack, you will need another person or a jack get it where you need it to be and then support it with jack, and bolt the 4 bolts back up, you might want to leave them a little loose, as you still have to wrestle with the rear mount to get that bolt back in, I had to lower my car down a little bit, at this point, I was unable to get it in, so I jacked it up and loosened the rear mount bracket a little bit, and then I was able to get it in. After that, jack it back up, tighten that bracket back down, and tighten the rear sub frame bolts back up.

After you get that bolted, get the sway bar bolted back in, put the lea's back in,
shock forks, tie rods, front cross member, shift linkage, exhaust (put the hangars back on) bolt everything up good and tight, put the wheels back on, all that ****. and let it her back on the ground, this is optional but I found it easier when the car was on the ground to do this, heres the some what tricky part, you need to put your u-joint back on the steering rack your rack should still be loose and not at its stock height, after you get the u-joint slipped back on the rack shaft, then you can tighten up the steering rack, and then after that go back inside the car and put that bolt back in. then you should be good.

 

can't u just remove the lcas fromt the crossmember and not deal with the balljoints? i think u can and just let them hang..??

 

you might be able to, i didnt try it that way though, i dont think that would work because they would still be in the way if you didnt disconnect them.