I’ll be installing all new control arm components with coilovers soon. How accurate do I need to be with the suspension load level when I torque the control arm hardware?
Can I just use the stock ride height as the suspension load level before torquing the CA hardware? Or do I need to adjust the coilovers to the desired ride height and load the suspension to that level before torquing the CA hardware?
When we torque the arms on the racecar, we always set it to our desired ride height. I would do the same on your car as well
Thanks, I figured that would be the best way to do it. Unfortunately it adds significant PITA factor to doing it in my garage. I guess I’ll lower it onto ramps to get things tightened up and go off of hub center to fender instead or ground to fender.
I have blocks i set the car on that lifts it off the ground so when I scaled the car I dont have to jack it up at all. just enough room to squeeze under the car to tight things
In an ideal perfect world this is the way that it should be done.
However with the B7 and older cars it is really hard to reach the upper control arm inner rubber bushing bolts and nuts. So I tighten the front upper control arm inner rubber bushing bolts and nuts off the car. In the repair instructions (ELSAWEB or Bentley) it explains how to tighten the front upper control arms off the car to the top of the front strut/shock housing. Basically they say to put a straight edge across the top strut/shock housing, get the control arms slightly tight but still loose enough to be moved, get the front ball joint section of the control arm a set distance from the straight edge, and tight the bolt/nut for the bushing side. It is something like 75 mm/3 inches for the rearward curved upper control arm and 84 mm/a little less than 3-3/8 inches for the forward straighter upper control arm.
The most important control arm bushing hardware to be tightened under load is the lower strut/shock to the straight lower control arm. That rubber bushing really controls the ride height and sees a lot of stress. A bunch of RS4s got the DRC replaced under the recall and techs would mess that part up. Which would cause the RS4s to not sit correctly. A RS4 customer of mine had his DRC replaced at a different dealership because of it failing and it had to be towed. He said that when he got the car back that he could fit his whole hand between front tire and the front fender. When before he could only get two fingers between the same place. He also said that he had to divorce his wife for the same problem and that he would rather keep the car if possible. Simple fix after getting the car on the alignment rack. Too bad it wasn’t such an easy fix with his wife.
Holy shit! I can imagine a woman getting super pissed off about something like this. I’m lucky mine has been around car people and racing her whole life so she is understanding when my car is down.
Thanks for the explanation on the UCA tightening. The Bentley instructions are not as clear.
Easiest solution = spherical bearings 
LMAO i think he meant his wife was sleeping around with many men therefor he used to be able to fit two fingers in but after all of her getting around it was like tossing a hotdog down a hallway.
Hahaha I completely missed that.
Getting ready to change all my control arms and outer tie rods, and throw on a set of drop springs. Any advice? I’ll have a lift. Jimmy. …what was the magic solution? Acetone and transmission oil?
50/50 ATF and Acetone. I sprayed the first bit of it on the pinch bolts today. Things don’t look to corroded there so hopefully they won’t be too difficult.
That is it. The stuff works but like with any penetrating oil, it helps to let it sit and soak into whatever you need to come apart. I like to hose things down with that stuff for like a week or two if possible.
Ding ding ding. That guy had a weird sense of humor. Didn’t help that the service adviser that he dealt with was a women. She always felt uncomfortable.