[noma289]

I have the front of my coupe apart to rebuild the suspension. I took off the engine crossmember to remove the LCA bolts on both sides and now I cannot get the engine crossmember bolts back in. On either side the bolt requires a huge amount of torque to put it in and the threads just end up flattened. I don't have a welder and the car is on jack stands right now. Is there anything I can do?

 

[rex1965]

Something is out of shape, you need to check to see if the shock towers are sagging in, the frame rails are bent, look for some damage. As for getting the crossmember back in, you may have to use a small hydraulic jack to spread the frame apart is that is what you need, that would be better than elongating the holes. Good Luck.

 

[Bryonl]

The cross members were installed to lower the amount of frame flex and enhance handling etc. With the car on jack stands the frame has flexed and now the bolt holes don't align. You may actually have to wait until the car is off the stands to get the bolt holes to re-align. Good luck!

 

[noma289]

Sorry, I wasn't really clear about the problem. The crossmember and the holes line up without a problem. It's the bolts themselves that won't go into the holes, regardless of whether I mount the crossmember or just try to screw the bolt in on its own. The threads keep stripping.

 

[RF Mustang]

It would be best if you went to your local auto parts store or hardware store and bought a 1/2"-13 tap and cleaned the threads in the front frame rails. If your bolts have bad threads, replace them. You can get them form most any mustang supply house. CJ's has them for about $11 for the pair.

Use some oil on the tap when you clean up the threads

As it is now, If you force it and strip the threads, the amount of cost and work will be so much greater than taking the steps to do it correctly and spending a few dollars now and not a whole lot of dollars later

Use a little oil or anti seize compound when you replace the bolts

 

[zigmont]

It would be best if you went to your local auto parts store or hardware store and bought a 1/2"-13 tap and cleaned the threads in the front frame rails. If your bolts have bad threads, replace them. You can get them form most any mustang supply house. CJ's has them for about $11 for the pair.

Use some oil on the tap when you clean up the threads

As it is now, If you force it and strip the threads, the amount of cost and work will be so much greater than taking the steps to do it correctly and spending a few dollars now and not a whole lot of dollars later

Use a little oil or anti seize compound when you replace the bolts

Ditto on the tap. If you continue to force these bolts, one of the captive nuts in the frame rail could break loose. If that happens, you are in for a lot of grief.

Note:
If you need to get back on the road right away and can't wait for the new bolts to br shipped, you can make a substitute by screwing a nut onto a 2 inch long 1/2-13 bolt until it bottoms out. Then use a grinder to taper the bottom of the nut till it looks like the original bolt. It may not look pretty, but it will get you by while you are waiting for the new bolts.