Rear Subframe Will NOT Let Go

[jeffnhiscars]

Cool tool Luke and for sure would have come in handy. Fortunately, I am past the rubber stage and down to removing the inner core so I can begin the reinstall.

[jeffnhiscars]

Hallefrickinlujah !!!

I wish I had read what Im about to write before I started so for those of you who have not had the pleasure, this is what worked for me.

First step is to cut the rubber bushing so you can get the subframe out of your way. This was the single best piece of advice I got.

Then knock the bolts loose, keeping the nut in place so a) you do not damage the threads and b) so the bolt doesnt take off on you. Once its loose you can push it up but not out and start your tap


The car wasnt high enough for the slide hammer so I borrowed the weight from it and rigged this


I then did something counter intuitive and put a map torch to the aluminum core. ***Caution please do not blow yourself up. No melting rubber ie open flame, just gentle heat to the sleeve.***

Yes the core will expand but I felt it would do more to break the corrosive bond with the body which in fact it did. Half a dozen solid whacks and the cores came out.



There you have it. Time to change the inner brake lines, fuel filler hose and hopefully gets those washers off. Then put it all back together.

[bradnic]

Been dreading this on my E30s for some time.. Thanks for the write up Jeff!

Let me know what you come up with on the parking brake cables. I have one car with the outer sleeves stuck. No idea what I'm gonna do there...


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[jeffnhiscars]

Been dreading this on my E30s for some time.. Thanks for the write up Jeff!

Let me know what you come up with on the parking brake cables. I have one car with the outer sleeves stuck. No idea what I'm gonna do there...


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

The one set of cables I have removed was from an empty shell up on blocks
and the TAs were already off. The ferrule where the cable sets in to the back end of the metal tube (near the diff) is plastic. People say grab it with channel locks and wiggle but besides the risk of cracking the plastic, that just didn't work for me. In the end I drove it off with a blunt xscrew driver.

I don't think its possible to free mine from the wheel end without destroying it although now that the hubs and bearings are out I may try again.

[Roysneon]

Hallefrickinlujah !!!
Yes the core will expand but I felt it would do more to break the corrosive bond with the body which in fact it did. Half a dozen solid whacks and the cores came out.



There you have it.

You're lucky the part above the washers came out clean as well. I've had to chisel that part out before.

[lambo]

Edit: Just remembered that OP has a vert and this won't work for him. However if someone else finds this thread this can help them.

Here's another method that just worked for me today:

For the subframe:
take out back seat, remove Seam seam sealer that is on top of the OEM subframe mounts. Hammer subframe stud up into the cabin, remove subframe stud.

5/8 Lag bolt from lowes, thread it into the alluminum part of the bushing. Get some Shitty Extensions, Hammer down on the lag bolt you threaded in. and HAMMER on it, dont be fucking panzy.

Ive freed Three E30 subframes this way. My car having 253k on it All in New England. It works.

These are the supplies I used:

5/8 X 4 lag bolt and a piece of 1/2" steel rod that I cut up to hammer down on to the bolts with.



You can see the lag bolt in this pic

\m/

[jalopi]

Brute force: level 99, lol

[jeffnhiscars]

Next challenge is getting the subframe bolted back up. This is one of those geometry questions you may have missed in HS.

I have the new bushings installed, TA's and diff in place. The whole thing is balanced on a floor jack. The next order of business is to get the drive shaft in to the subframe opening so I can connect it to the diff. The knurled bolts are still on the shaft and seem to want to stay there. When I move the unit rearwards enough to get clearance for the driveshaft, the subframe bushings are to the rear of a sheet metal lip on the body so the unit will not move forward to engage the subframe mounting bolts. Catch 22.

Keep in mind this is a cabrio so I have to do all of this with the subframe bolts hanging down but since I am not the first person to do this Im sure there is a process.

Options that come to mind:

1. how to remove the knurled DS bolts without damaging the u joint
2. do I need to drop the CSB and/or loosen the slip joint to giver ther DS some forward movement
3 none of the above
TIA

[FredK]

I just did this three weeks ago. I've done this a few times before and I've basically forgotten the trick to getting it in each and every time haha.

This time, I dropped the CSB but did not loosen the slip joint of the driveshaft. My knurled bolts were uninstalled at the time. Because yours are still in place, it's more than likely that it will make things a little harder to install.

The natural tendency is to want to install the rear subframe while it's level, and to approach the rear of the car completely square with the subframe. However, those sheetmetal pieces don't allow this!

The subframe actually is best installed, in my opinion, by approaching at an angle, and see-sawing it into place. So one side of the subframe needs to be lower than the other. This is not easy, because with the diff and trailing arms in place, the assembly weighs a lot, and is precipitously perched on a floor jack.

A mix of cussing and sweat will get the subframe to where it needs to be. I admit, I briefly considered removing the driveshaft because it was in the way, but in the end, I left it alone.

[jeffnhiscars]

I just did this three weeks ago. I've done this a few times before and I've basically forgotten the trick to getting it in each and every time haha.

This time, I dropped the CSB but did not loosen the slip joint of the driveshaft. My knurled bolts were uninstalled at the time. Because yours are still in place, it's more than likely that it will make things a little harder to install.

The natural tendency is to want to install the rear subframe while it's level, and to approach the rear of the car completely square with the subframe. However, those sheetmetal pieces don't allow this!

The subframe actually is best installed, in my opinion, by approaching at an angle, and see-sawing it into place. So one side of the subframe needs to be lower than the other. This is not easy, because with the diff and trailing arms in place, the assembly weighs a lot, and is precipitously perched on a floor jack.

A mix of cussing and sweat will get the subframe to where it needs to be. I admit, I briefly considered removing the driveshaft because it was in the way, but in the end, I left it alone.

Thanks for the feedback Fred. Ive added a pic to assist visualizing this for those who havent had the pleasure.

I see where an approach angle makes sense and am well past the cussing and swearing stage on this project...lol

Did you have a replacement drive shaft or did you pull the bolts as that would be an obvious aid ?

Ill work on tilting it to see if I can feed the DS (bolts and all) into the pumpkins mouth and will worry about getting the sf bushings over the bolts afterwards. I actualy bought a new giubo and CSB and deliberately decided to not bother. May have to reconsider that

[FredK]

I only lowered the CSB, and left the knurled bolts alone on the driveshaft. I clocked the driveshaft so that the u-joint would move side-to-side, which I felt would enhance its ability to mate up with the diff.

[jeffnhiscars]

I used the wag theory and did get the driveshaft in the tunnel and have one SFB in line. Next is to get the other side past that sheet metal without dropping the whole thing on the DS and ripping out the cross over pipe.

I suspended the diff with a piece of chain hooked to the mount hole and ran the bolt through the diff bush to secure the other end of the chain. This stabilizes everything and lets me adjust the angle as I progress.

Im going to wedge the SF bolts up in the body so they are out of the way. Stay tuned