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mazda pinch bolt

17 years ago

2000 protege. ball joint pinch bolt. broke socket and rounded off hex corners. got new socket. bolt will not turn. is the knuckle threaded internally or is it just a slip fit? trying pounding out bolt but not moving. tried lifting under knuckle with small jack to relieve a little tension on ball joint and no better. i know pinch bolt is oem but how do you get a seized one out?

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Comments (6)

bill_h
17 years ago
hit it with the blue tipped wrench, til its nice and red, should back out then.
john_g
17 years ago
Bill, NO, you should not heat a steering component. You risk changing the temper of the steel, and make it more prone to cracking which could result in a sudden failure.

That bolt likely was not seized in the beginning, there are at least two different designs used. One has the bolt with splines machined into it so that it grabs the knuckle when the nut is tightened. That one simply gets driven out. The other design has the bolt threaded through the knuckle, and its not uncommon to find it additionally locked with a nut. That can really throw a tech for a curve when you don't expect a nutted bolt to also be threaded through the knuckle.

The splined bolts are easiest to remove by installing the nut back onto the threads just far enough to prevent damage to the end of the bolt (flush, to the bolt barely recessed in the nut) and then drive it out with a hammer adapter for the air chisel. The other style of course needs to be unscrewed, and the impact wrench is the tool of choice.
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bill_h
17 years ago
wow when i think of all the steering components we have heated over the yrs, and sold off on cars. hope i dont get sued hahaha
kalining
17 years ago
MOST all metals and i mean most, not all, when hit with the blue tipped wrench will maintain it's normal temper when allowed to cool normally and slowly on it's own.
DO NOT speed up the cooling with water.You could have a new piece of glass where the steering component used to be.
If you are good with a torch you can burn out a 1/2 bolt without damaging or over heating the surrounding metal and still leave the thread on the inside of the part.
joe_mn
Original Author
17 years ago
shop did it. put on our control arm for 70. i did sway bar links this week. noticed new bolt sure looks like standard bolt, not pinch bolt. i think they did not put in a pinch bolt. don't know if a standard bolt will chew up the smooth machined groove in the ball joint? hope it does not wear loose over time.
makey
16 years ago
You'll want to be careful about putting too much impact on the upright while installed on the vehicle - there are many ways to damage it. I'd suggest removing it entirely before attacking the pinch bolt further.

Here is a link that might be useful: lax car service

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