I recently replaced the front control arm bushings on my wife's '95 960. I went with the complete arms from FCP Groton. They fit perfectly and the car drives like new. As far as degree of difficulty, this job is much easier than you may think. It took me about 35-40 minutes per side. I would suggest replacing the ball joints at the same time since they have to be separated from the old control arms anyway and they are a minimal extra cost from FCP Groton. If you replace the ball joints at the same time, you won't even need a ball joint separator since they are held to the strut by only two bolts. One pair of jack stands, a long breaker bar, a couple of appropriately sized sockets and a front end alignment when you're done are all you should need. Hope this helps, Jim

CWatson,


(A) I'm in the midwest and local indy with a good reputation quoted me to press the bushings I supply, and also quoted me to do the complete job.

I bring in control arms and replacement bushings, he presses the new bushings in: $70.00

Complete job:
Labor 210.00
Parts 144.86
Shop Supplies 7.50
No quote for alignment

The local Volvo dealer quoted me too.

Complete Job:
Labor 232.70
Parts 186.70
Shop Supplies 25.00
Alignment 39.95

(B) I can't answer from experience, but have been advised to buy OEM. The indy I quoted above warned me about staying away from 'questionnable' quality replacement parts but did not offer any name brands. FCPGroton sells the control arms with bushings pre-pressed for $95.00 each. Nick Bauer at FCPGroton told me that the bushings in the control arms feature metal sides, while the individual bushings he sells have plastic sides. I have been advised on the brickboard that the metal sided units are desirable.


(C) I would suggest a Volvo Indy or a Suspension Mechanic. You'll need your alignment checked too.

(D) Should take less than two hours, possibly more if you have rusty frozen bolts.

I know my control arm bushings are worn and can use replacement, but I have yet to commit to doing it, and when I do I think I am leaning towards the replacement control arms from FCPGroton. Removing and replacing the control arms is a fair amount of grunt work for a guy without a hoist and a high-powered pneumatic tools. But if you don't mind getting dirty, have a sturdy jack stand, and wield a long breaker bar, it is well within the the capabilities of the shade-tree mechanic.

Good luck whichever way you choose to go.
kkoch

If you want to be a DIYer for the satisfaction of leaning how to do something and the pride of a better job because you can afford to take as much time as necessary to get it perfect, go for it. The stands, one set will handle this project will be there for the next project so I never "count" the cost of tools. The way to ease into this is to get new arms with the new bushings already installed. Then you can rebuild the arms for the next rework in another 80 to 100K miles.

If you just want to get the project "done with" take it to an independent Volvo mechanic, assuming you have one you trust. The bushing set from Volvo is about $100 total as I remember and a good mechanic should be able to do the job in about 2 hours. $250 seems about right.
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'96 965, 16' wheels, Michelin Pilot Sports, rear 18mm bar + Koni, 204HP cams, 126K. Put 200K on '85 745 TD.