Any of you folks replaced your control arm bushings? Ive got a friend with a 1500 that has bad bushings that need replacing and he was quoted a pretty high repair price due to the amount of labor involved.
Looks like the bushings themselves need to be driven out with a press (?)
I might be doing this soon too since mine are dry rotted around the edges.

 

I replaced mine on my 96'. I used stock rubber replacement from Napa. Polyurethane would've been cheaper. Some have said the polyurethane also have better control but squeek. Not sure if you can hear the squeek with a 2nd Gen. I wasn't able to pound out the bushing at home. I paid the Napa machinist to press out the old and install the new. I took in three control arms leaving one on the vehicle. I made a second trip for the fourth control arm. I was concerned with the axle shifting in place.

When reinstalling be sure to use the concentric bolts to your advantage. I originally tried using the winch on my Jeep to recenter the axle. Once I figured out how a concentric bolt works it only took a few minutes beyond that to retighten. Make sure to mark the original location of the concentric bolts. This will help in final installation. I had the alignment done at Sears afterward.

 

I put new energy suspension bushings on mine. I don't know the link but maybe you could google it. I put mine in a vise with a bucket of water under the bushings and used a torch to burn them out. Seemed like the easiest way to do it and it worked good. Just be sure that you have enough ventalation cause it burns like a tire. As far as putting them back in, I used the vise to get them started then used a hammer and block of wood to seat them. Use the grease that they supply and don't be afraid to use it liberaly.

 

A cheap c-clamp type ball joint press from harbor freight will do the job as well. You can catch them on sale for $30.00 They work great for the ball joints and U-joints as well. Good luck, let us know how it came out. KD

 

I tried to get the ones out of my truck. The bolts and adjusters were so tight I couldn't get anything to move. I had the impact on them with 180 PSI going through 3/4" pipes and hose. No budge. Sometimes I'm stronger than the impact. I threw the cheater bars on, gave it all I had, Still no budge. So, I guess they'll stay there until they become a genuine problem.

 

Penetrating oil (lots of it) about a day or two before you started the project? Sorry you didn't have much luck. KD