Car is officially aligned!
The only flag they had was that the FL caliper is seized (which I already knew)
I am not sure I’d necessarily recommend this as a DIY project, but reading that would not have stopped me before. Instead, here is what I would recommend if you are going to do this.
- Buy all the bolts and nuts! I naively figured I would be able to reused mine, so had to panic order them on eBay halfway through.
- If you do not already own one, get a reciprocating saw (sawzal) and a CARBIDE blade. I used 7 “metal” cutting blades and didn’t even get through half a bolt. The carbide one ate right through everything without an issue. I got a wired saw from Wickes for £45, and it worked totally fine.
- If your shocks start expanding even with the lower control arm all the way down, remove the upper control arm and take the shocks out entirely.
- Give yourself way more time than you think you need. In total, this project took me 7 days, working an average of 4 hours a day after finishing my job.
- Having a ball joint popper, splitter, etc was extremely helpful for one of mine which just would not release itself.
- Put the car back on the ground (both sides) before tightening everything up.
Below is a mostly complete list of the tools and supplies I used.
- Breaker bar (duh)
- Sockets from 10mm - 19mm (assorted drive sizes)
- 3 different size ratchets
- An adjustable pipe wrench
- Wrenches from 10mm - 19mm
- WD40, Copper Ease, and Fast Release
- 2x Jackstands
- The jack that comes in the car (Wouldn’t recommend this as it takes forever to get it up and down)
- Assorted screwdrivers for prying
- Hex key set (I think sizes 4, 5, and 6?)
- Wheel chalks (I used 4x4 beams I had)
- Rubber mallet
- Reciprocating saw (AND CARBIDE BLADE, I CANT STRESS THE CARBIDE BIT ENOUGH)
- Wire brush
- Lots and lots of paper towels and latex gloves
And finally, here are the videos and guides I found helpful
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XSmahsTd5Js - Removing upper control arm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y-GxmcQ4nbA - Replacing Lower Control Arms (where he says get a saw, which I promptly ignored and regretted)