Dragons91RS

I have a hand full of parts that need replaced. firestone wants over $1000 to do the same job I can do for a little ove $100 in parts so Im gona tackle this job my self. problem is my Haynes manual only tells me how to replace one part(right outer tie-rod end) also Im going to do this job one or two parts at a time so I need to know what would be the best order to do change them in.

Parts needing replaced.
1. Front Left idler arm
2. centerlink
3. Right outer tie-rod end
4. sway bar link kit

ok so what is the best order to replace these parts. sadly I cant afford to replace them at one time.
also other than the tie-rod end I have no clu what to do. can any one give me some info on where this stuff is and how to replace it.

any help is greatly appreciated :hail:

ozzga

i just replaced my entire front steering assembly, best way to do it is all at once, then it's only like 6 bolts, but i can understand lack of funds. but it's not going to cost $100, i can tell you that for sure. just the idler arm from GM is close to $100. i got a whole kit for about $400, came with all the parts you listed (minus end links) plus ball joints and busings. the parts are federal-mogul.

easiest to do is the sway bar endlinks, so i would start with those to get a better idea of how the parts are put together.
after that i don't think it really matters, just be sure you put everything back exactly how it was on the car, then get an alignment.
can't really give you too much info on replacing the parts, since i kinda just figured it out as i went along. i used a puller to seperate the parts, not a pickle fork.

TomP

Dragon, which Haynes do you have? I'm pretty sure mine tells me how to replace everything. Like ozzga said, there's not much to it; just unbolt old, install new. Make sure you follow proper torque specs and use new cotter pins.

And I agree about the price... are you getting "real" brand-name suspension parts, or no-name brands? A Moog idler arm is around $60, center link around $80. Set of tie rod ends, inner or outer, is $40/set.

Woah, wait, they want $1000 to do that job? Are they going to lube it up before they ram it in?? That's outrageous. I got quoted $1100 for replacing both ball joints, new struts, new upper strut mounts (both), new idler arm, and new center link.

Also, there's no idler arm at the front left- that's the pitman arm. Did they mean pitman arm or idler arm? Idler arm is on the passenger side; it's like a "dummy" pitman arm, and keeps the right side of the linkage up, and swivels along with the pitman arm. It just kind of idles around.

Dragons91RS

I wnet to O'Reilly and all the parts total come to $104.96 w/tax.

Ive encluded a pic of the estimate sheet from Firestone. it also has the price of each part from O'reilly. by looking at it maybe you all can clear some info up for me, and correct where Firestone may have been wrong on part names.

TomP I have the Haynes Chev Camaro 1982-1992 all models book #24016

nikh23

those are some outrageous prices for those parts from firestone. And yes i'd have to agree with the others that doing it all at once will be your best bet, whatever you do stay away from the GM dealership they'll rip you off. Try www.rockauto.com they have very good prices for MOOG stuff. If you can try to replace all the steering linkage stuff so that you don't mix in old and new parts and notice a good difference in your old stock warn out stuff. Installation is real easy its just a matter of swapping it in, unbolt old and bolt in new. Nothing extremely hard at all

RB83L69

You'll need an idler arm; a center link; 2 inner tie rod ends; and 2 outer tie rod ends. Additionally, you might as well get new adjusting sleeves, because they're only about $5 apiece (you need 2) and it's a whole lot easier to take new ones out of the box and just put it together with them, than it is to take the old crap apart just to scab them.

Mark the exact position of the idler arm where it's bolted to the frame by scribing around it. Take off the 2 outer rod ends from the spindles, and the center link from the Pitman arm, and the 2 idler arm bolts. Lay that out straight on the ground. Assemble your new rod ends so that each one is exactly the same length from stud to stud as the old ones. Put the whole thing back on the car as a unit, making sure you get the idler arm back exactly where it was. Then get the car aligned.

The parts should cost around $125 or so, plus the alignment after you finish. You should be able to do it yourself laying on the ground in your driveway in less than an hour.

You could do the sway bar end links and bushings at the same time, that's just about a no-brainer (so I'm uniquely qualified to know about it).