I bought an 87 trans am lb9 5spd and after driving a few days I noticed that the idle arm mount on the frame is broken pretty bad, has anyone else had this problem, if so what is the best way to fix it?

 

Worn out? Very common. Broken? No, not common at all. Probably somebody tried to jack the car up using it. Can't imagine how else you would break one like that short of accident damage which you would think would be very obvious.

 

You may need to do some welding.

 

I would caution against welding that yourself unless you're a good welder. That is a critical steering alignment point and needs to be true and strong.

 

I would see if a shop that repairs suspension systems would take this on. Yes, it will be a critical welding job, but if lined up properly would be an easy weld.

 

I was looking at one in a junk yard, and it's bolted to the frame on the bottom with the sway bar and on top with idle arm, it looks like it can be replaced as a unit, I'm just not sure, and if I weld it, it will be much stronger than before lol.

 

Is the mount itself broken, or where the mount attaches to the frame?

 

Looks like just the mount, I thought that it was welded to the frame, but now I believe I can just replace the mount, one of you guys would to tell me for sure, either way it's getting taken apart. A replaceable mount would really be nice though!

 

I tried to order a new mount, but the body shop said without looking at it, that it was part of the frame. Has anyone ever removed one of them?

 

I would ask more than one shop. For clarification, is the mount still good, but separated from the "frame"?

 

No, frame looks good, but mount is trash! I figured this would have happend to someone else lol.

 

We seem to have a little confusion here. I assume we are talking about the bolted on idler arm and not the plate on the frame it is bolted to.
How about a picture?

 

No, it's the plate on the frame not the idle arm it's self. Can the plate be replaced or will I have to weld it up somehow?

 

It looks like it was pressed out of 8 gauge steel, or maybe thicker. By looking at my mount, it could be fabricated by forming one with a break press, or by welding the angle to the precise dimensions, and welding an edge to stiffen it. The thickness would be important positioning the idler arm correctly. This could be done with a caliper. I believe I could tackle this with a mig, or stick welder, and a cutting torch (I used to be a fabricator).