rust on upper control arm joint

[Martin2000GTV]

Hello from Germany,

I have barely posted here on this board but gained a lot of help in the past from you all.
Now I have a bigger rust problem on my '72 2000 GTV and would like to share the repair process with you.

Although there was a lot of sheetmetal work performed on my car around 15 years ago, somehow we forgot to inspect the control arm joints on the front crossmember thoroughly.

Already some years ago I recognized that I will get a bigger problem here. Now that there is a repair part available I decided to tackle with the problem.

After some examination with a screwdriver there was not much left of my left upper control arm joint.
Luckily the passenger side is much better, if not almost perfect. Heaven knows what happened on that spot on the driver's side.

See attached pictures of the current stage. If you're interested I will post more pictures while the repair progresses.
And of course you're welcome for any questions regarding this job.

While I do simple sheetmetal work myself, THIS is too critical for my skills, so I entrusted my car to an Alfa Romeo experienced and competent body shop doing such work since many decades.

Best Regards from Germany

Martin

[rafael]

Hallo Martin,

Yes pls share the pictures with us. I'd love to see the progress on this car.

[Seinista]

Wow!
THAT is a new one even for me! Pfff. Good luck. Needless to say they will have to measure very carefully!

[Martin2000GTV]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Seinista Wow! THAT is a new one even for me! Pfff. Good luck. Needless to say they will have to measure very carefully!

[Seinista]

martin, we share good taste. I have a black, carbed 308 Non dry sump, with red interior. And a 105 coupe...

[Alfajay]

Sienista had written: "Needless to say they will have to measure very carefully!"

If you are doing this sort of work, it is certainly important to accurately locate the hole for the through bolt. However, if you use adjustable upper arms, some amount of mis-alignment could be accommodated.

The key is strengthening the joint - having the upper arm link come loose due to rust or fatigue could be catastrophic! It is fortunate that Martin2000GTV recognized his problem before a failure occured.

I spoke with someone this summer who claimed to have had a serious accident when the male threaded part of an adjustable upper link fractured. Has anyone else experienced or heard of this problem?

[Martin2000GTV]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alfajay Sienista had written: "Needless to say they will have to measure very carefully!" If you are doing this sort of work, it is certainly important to accurately locate the hole for the through bolt. However, if you use adjustable upper arms, some amount of mis-alignment could be accommodated. The key is strengthening the joint - having the upper arm link come loose due to rust or fatigue could be catastrophic! It is fortunate that Martin2000GTV recognized his problem before a failure occured. I spoke with someone this summer who claimed to have had a serious accident when the male threaded part of an adjustable upper link fractured. Has anyone else experienced or heard of this problem?

[Martin2000GTV]

Hello from Germany,

after several weeks the project is now complete.
Because all was dismantled I decided to rebuild the front suspension completely and make the parts look neat. Before fitting all the bushings and joints I sandblasted the parts and painted them with two coats of primer and black chassis paint. I'm not a friend of powder-coating on automotive parts.
But the main task - the sheet metal work - regarding the upper control arm joint was performed perfectly.
After the final check of the suspension alignment the left front wheel camber is exactly the same like that on the passenger side.
I'm completely satisfied with my sheet metal artist's work.

Like promised; Here are some pictures of the different stages.

Best Regards from Germany

Martin

[Martin2000GTV]

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