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LCA not adjusting, tips to fix w/o replacing?

Discussion in '2nd Gen. Tacomas (2005-2015)' started by PeterT, Jun 17, 2018.

  1. Jun 17, 2018 at 6:23 AM
    #1
    PeterT

    PeterT [OP] Well-Known Member

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    Plymouth, NH
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    AP APEX aluminum bumper, AP APEX Sliders w/fill plates, Full AP skids, OME 886/ Nitros dakar leaf pack, 33" BFG muds, Relentless 50" curved Light bar, PIAA fog lights, Fog lights anytime, tailgate lock, LEDs inside, tech deck, URD Spec U exhaust
    I installed my OME lift and brought it to Sullivan tire for alignment. Tech said he couldn't get the drivers side LCA to adjust. bolt loosened was loosened but could not adjust. said I would need new LCA... any tricks or tips to getting this thing freed up or do I need to just replace it?
     
  2. Jun 17, 2018 at 6:31 AM
    #2
    Unchained 5150

    Unchained 5150 Rick

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    Coot83 and 12TRDTacoma like this.
  3. Jun 17, 2018 at 6:57 AM
    #3
    mbrogz3000

    mbrogz3000 Well-Known Member

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    Northern NJ
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    I have the same exact issue - not totally rusted, but can not adjust the cams since they spring back to where they were. The front bolts could actually come out, but that’s it. I barely got one of the coil overs in.. luckily the alignment, tire wear and road feel are still fine.

    My plan is to buy two new Mevotech Supreme LCAs, and use those with the new OEM alignment hardware I have sitting in a box. Then refresh the OEM LCAs with the Whiteline kit above, which I also have sitting in a box. New ball joints as well.

    The big lesson learned is.. when you buy your next new vehicle, within three months, remove the alignment hardware and lube it up, and lube it once a year.
     
    straycat241 likes this.
  4. Jun 17, 2018 at 7:16 AM
    #4
    JW87

    JW87 Well-Known Member

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    Richmond,VA
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    American Racing black bajas with Cooper RTXs 265/70/17. Black Depo tail lights. LED interior, license plate and reverse lights.Debadged. OME 885 coils and Dakar leaf packs. OME Nitros front and back.
    I just got my OME lift put on 2 months ago. They had to replace my lcas. Apparently the factory ones have a tendency to seize up. Cost me an extra $500 I wasn’t expecting to pay but there really wasn’t an alternative.
     
  5. Jun 17, 2018 at 7:21 AM
    #5
    Pigpen

    Pigpen My truck is never clean

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    Keep them greased. I need to redo mine. I heard the dreaded creak recently. I've already replaced them once.
     
    Biscuits likes this.
  6. Jun 17, 2018 at 7:51 AM
    #6
    PeterT

    PeterT [OP] Well-Known Member

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    The big lesson learned is.. when you buy your next new vehicle, within three months, remove the alignment hardware and lube it up, and lube it once a year.[/QUOTE

    Yea really. guess I will be adding it to the list of things to keep a better eye on.
     
  7. Jun 17, 2018 at 1:35 PM
    #7
    Sub_Par

    Sub_Par Well-Known Member

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    Try hitting it with a penetrating fluid for a few days straight then try to get the cams to move. Make sure you mark the alignment before you do in case it moves on you. If you can get the sleeves to move then take everything off and anti-seize the hell out of em. This may or may not work but could save you a lot of money. The alternative is what I just did, cut the old bolts/sleeves out and then installed new LCAs and hardware. Not a fun job and cost about 300 for everything, doing it myself.
     
  8. Jun 17, 2018 at 1:49 PM
    #8
    winkel

    winkel Well-Known Member

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    The guy that works at my alignment place said when he gets one that is seized, he uses a big air hammer on them to try and drive them out. He says it works sometimes, sometimes it doesn't.
    I know I have a couple seized. One of these days, I'm going to mark them and try and drive them out individually with a brass bar and a big hammer.

    If I can get them to move just at little, I'll soak them in PB Blaster for a little while and punch them the rest of the way out with a steel punch.

    If you start whacking the hell out of them with a hammer, you may mushroom the end of the bolt.
     
  9. Jun 17, 2018 at 2:41 PM
    #9
    PeterT

    PeterT [OP] Well-Known Member

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    cool, I will have to try some PB or numb nutz and see what happens. worst case I think I would just clean them up and install the new bushing listed above. haven't even had a chance to look how much LCA's cost, but $300 doesn't seem bad. I can do the removal/install myself.
     
  10. Jun 17, 2018 at 2:42 PM
    #10
    PeterT

    PeterT [OP] Well-Known Member

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    I see you also have a 2015 and did OME, did you have to grind at all or did your shock clear the mount ok?
     
  11. Jun 17, 2018 at 5:28 PM
    #11
    Sub_Par

    Sub_Par Well-Known Member

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    I did moog LCAs from rockauto for 200 shipped and then I bought used cam bolts and cleaned them up. You should be able to reuse some of your hardware and save some money. Just have all the new hardware on hand and return what you don’t use. My truck has 84k on it so new ball joints and bushings was a nice bonus to a shitty problem.
     
    Breadbox likes this.
  12. Jun 17, 2018 at 7:03 PM
    #12
    Breadbox

    Breadbox Well-Known Member

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    I did the RockAuto LCA too, perfect fit, I went with the moog greaseable hardware too, no problems since.
     
    Sub_Par[QUOTED] likes this.
  13. Jun 17, 2018 at 7:11 PM
    #13
    winkel

    winkel Well-Known Member

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    It's not a bad job, but getting those seized bolts out can be a booger. I did bushing replacements on my old T-100 a few years back and I cut my bolts with a Sawzall and a lot of WD-40. It smoked a bunch of blades and I spent hours bent over cutting two of them out.
    What's everyone's recommendation on how to get the old seized bolts out?
     
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  14. Jun 17, 2018 at 7:19 PM
    #14
    Sub_Par

    Sub_Par Well-Known Member

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    I used some blades from tractor supply, forget the name but said made in America. They turned out to be really nice, I went through 4 of them and 1 was still sharp but I snapped it off hitting the frame. I had both sleeves seized and had to cut both bolts on the front cams also. It was that bad cutting, with good blades it should cut relatively easy.
     
  15. Jun 17, 2018 at 7:19 PM
    #15
    Breadbox

    Breadbox Well-Known Member

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    4" lift; ION and Camburg, custom progressive rear springs no overload; ION Bumps; Roadmaster Active suspension, quick disconnect sways front and rear, Nitro 4.10s, Detroit TrueTrac, ECGS bushing, Aluminess Rear bumper w/swing outs and flood lights, 285/70/17 on ProComp Steelies, Kenwood NAV, URD Short Shifter, CB, front rally bar with LED flows and fogs, RockSliders, FWC.
    My home press could not push out the seized bolts or bushings. I had to replace too. Cut out is the easiest and fastest fix...
     
  16. Jun 17, 2018 at 9:00 PM
    #16
    Chuy

    Chuy Well-Known Member

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    My pass side front bolt seized. Used a Freud Diablo blade to cut through the bolt. Took 3-4 min and blade is still good. I went with Dorman LCAs from RockAuto and Febest hardware from Amazon. That was about 30k ago and new LCAs are holding up well. Going to refurbish the OEM LCAs and keep them as backups.
     
  17. Jun 17, 2018 at 11:57 PM
    #17
    Muddinfun

    Muddinfun Well-Known Member

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    Diablo sawzall blades are the best. Cheap sawzall blades are not a bargain.
     
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  18. Jun 18, 2018 at 9:17 AM
    #18
    JW87

    JW87 Well-Known Member

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    It cleared no problem. Other than the lcas everything went pretty smoothly.
     
  19. Jun 18, 2018 at 9:29 AM
    #19
    Coot83

    Coot83 DORKEL NATION

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    Bummer OP, when I went to go LT on my ride at 75k my passenger one was seized up. I was surprised cause my truck saw a lot of highway and very few dirt miles at the time. Part of the problem as others have stated is the bushings fail pretty quick. Since the factory LCAs don't have zerks its pretty hard to lube them to prevent this. This is partly why new LCAs with poly bushing are much more cause they correct this issue and provide longevity in the component. My LCA had to be cut out during my install, which a good indicator is if the bushing has an elongated appearance from the outside. Odds are if its been warped, then the bushing likely seized a while ago, but the LCA will still be susceptible to movement which will eventually toast the bushing and warp it which makes it significantly harder to save enough to remove without cutting. Hope you can achieve a relatively cheap alternative to your situation.
     
  20. Jun 20, 2018 at 7:30 AM
    #20
    JimIowa

    JimIowa Well-Known Member

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    I did not see the Dorman's on RockAuto. I need something basic and was going to just buy Moog until I saw your comment. Thanks.
     

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