Toyota Cam bolt Maintenance:
I see tons of Forum posts on front alignment hardware seizing, and its true, it happens. One of the things we do at the shop during a lift kit if the owner wants is to remove the adjustment hardware and put a good layer of Copper Based Lubricant to all of the parts that attach your lower control arm to the truck. This is a good preventative measure to keep these things from bonding to each other.
But, because the internet is consumed with bad information, here is some of the issues that we still see and a few myths debunked:
1: I only need to lube the bolts. (False)
The Front bolts that squeeze the cams to the truck are not what is corroding to each other. its the adjustment sleeve bonding to the steel bushing sleeve. In the back, the bolt acts as both, but in the front, you need to remove all of the hardware to properly lube it. See images below to see difference.
2: This only happens on rusty trucks. (false)
Because the metallurgy is different on these parts, most of this will happen just because, well science. This will happen regardless if the rest of your truck is rust free, or perfect. We have found that trucks from dry climates are less likely to have bonded hardware to bushings so moisture is for sure a catalyst to speed up this process, but its not fully conclusive yet.
Soo. how do we fix this?
So now that you know. What can you do about it?
If your having work done at a shop, and your going to get an alignment anyway, have the shop do the work. It takes about 45 to an hour and is well worth the $$ spent to pull and lube the parts before they bond together. literally $150 will save your $1000 in 4-5 years.
If your Alignment hardware is already bonded to your lower control arm bushings, your in for a repair, so take a deep breath and lets shell out the options to you!
There are 3 options to get it fixed:
1: bushing Replacement: We stock replacement bushings that we press into your current lower control arms and replace the hardware with new OEM toyota hardware and lube accordingly so it is a non issue moving forward. This is a good option if you have low miles and your ball joints are in good shape: The down side to this is that the labor to press and do the work, just about pays for what would be all new lower control arms. In the end, its a tad cheaper.
2: Full OEM Replacement: Replacing the lower front control arms with OEM Toyota gives you new, Alignment hardware, new lower control arms and new lower ball joints.
This is the most expensive option and runs almost $1000 in parts alone! (2021 pricing)
3: (our most common fix) Aftermarket Replacement: Replacing the lower front control arms with Non OEM toyota gives you new alignment hardware, bushings, lower control arms and ball joints, but about 40% less the cost of OEM new toyota with a product that has been proven reliable for years. This runs around $650 in parts (2021 pricing)
If your having work done at a shop, and your going to get an alignment anyway, have the shop do the work. It takes about 45 to an hour and is well worth the $$ spent to pull and lube the parts before they bond together. literally $150 will save your $1000 in 4-5 years.
If your Alignment hardware is already bonded to your lower control arm bushings, your in for a repair, so take a deep breath and lets shell out the options to you!
There are 3 options to get it fixed:
1: bushing Replacement: We stock replacement bushings that we press into your current lower control arms and replace the hardware with new OEM toyota hardware and lube accordingly so it is a non issue moving forward. This is a good option if you have low miles and your ball joints are in good shape: The down side to this is that the labor to press and do the work, just about pays for what would be all new lower control arms. In the end, its a tad cheaper.
2: Full OEM Replacement: Replacing the lower front control arms with OEM Toyota gives you new, Alignment hardware, new lower control arms and new lower ball joints.
This is the most expensive option and runs almost $1000 in parts alone! (2021 pricing)
3: (our most common fix) Aftermarket Replacement: Replacing the lower front control arms with Non OEM toyota gives you new alignment hardware, bushings, lower control arms and ball joints, but about 40% less the cost of OEM new toyota with a product that has been proven reliable for years. This runs around $650 in parts (2021 pricing)
Here are some helpful images
What the sleeves look like after you have cut them off the truck: The left one is the front sleeve where the bolt comes out, but the rest of the hardware does not. The one on the right is a rear mount and it shows the bolt bonded to the steel sleeve of the bushing.
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Here is what fresh new OEM Toyota Hardware looks like before its been chopped off. This is an example of the front portion of the front lower control arm.
