2006 Apex GT, loose upper A-arm bolts?

[RxThunder]

Was working on the sed today, while under the hood I decided to grab the nuts on the upper A arm where it goes through the bulkhead and give it a twist. To my surprise it turned about a quarter turn. The sled was on a sled lift so it had no weight on the suspension. Do these bolts not squeeze down tight to allow movement? It felt like the entire bolt was turning, not the nut alone. Just want to make sure before I ride it and have one come out..

 

[hibshman25]

The bolts have a shoulder on them so the nut tops out against the bolt. The bolt will float and rotate freely. The freely rotating bolts is what wears out the bulkhead bushings. Our saver kits prevent this from happening.

 

[biffdotorg]

Freaked me out too the first time I tried to tighten those down after noticing the a-arms seemed loose. The nuts were tight and the bushings gone.

Keep in mind, that doesn't necessarily mean your bushings are bad, but they were in my case.

That started my bushing replacement project like almost all other Apex owners on here.

Good luck!

 

[jaydaniels]

Couldn't you just grind down the shoulder or place a large washer that fits over the shoulder to allow the bolt to tighten againist the bulk head. Would that prevent the bolt from spinning? Must be a reason they spin freely?

 

[RxThunder]

Thanks for the info! I figured it had to be normal but I didn't want to worry about the bolts coming out and losing front end parts on the trail! My time is minimal this year to get the sleds ready, judging by pulling on the arms I think the bushings are still good, however I will be taking them out on my Rx1, I think they're worn.

 

[Redbeard]

The bulkhead saver kits are easy to install and high quality. It has a powder coat finish with flanged nyloc hardware for mounting!