Hi all. I decided to upgrade the dainty awd rear sway bar, found one on ebay from a 370z, which is a good bit chunkier, and at $80 shipped was much more budget friendly than the Hotchkis one. Which is all great, except I ran into some trouble... So, those of you who replaced yours by yourselves, I just have one small question - how on god's green earth did you manage to get your end link nuts loose? I don't know how much the following info will help and/or matter, but it's a 2013 x sedan, 70k miles, no bad rust, soaked in PB Blaster. Suspension is loaded (rear end on ramps). I have a relatively decent impact, it's supposed to be 600 lb-ft of breakaway torque (less the standard Milwaukee marketing BS), but the only way I can get at it is with a long extension with a U-joint, which probably accounts for half of that torque being lost - or so I thought. Until I tried a 25" breaker bar, and realized that the whole thing flexes under pressure. Not to mention that there is just not enough room to swing the breaker bar far enough before the handle hits the ground. At some point I caught myself just laying under my car, staring at an end link, dumbfounded, for 5 minutes straight. Clearly, there is something I'm not getting. Help? Thanks.

 

Well, whaddya know, I'm also not too great at searching, it seems. Fortunately, the related thread right under mine somewhat addresses the issue - however, it seems to suggest that the suspension should be unloaded for this - is that correct?

 

You could try loading/unloading to see if it makes a difference. I was able to zip mine off with a 1/2” Milwaukee m12 stubby without any fuss. I also had the car up on all four jack stands.

If all else fails and they are just completely seized, you can cut them off.

 

Yes, unload the suspension.
Use a propane torch plus some kind of penetrating oil
Make up some "kroil" if you have kerosene and used trans fluid laying around.
Six point wrench and a 3 pound sledge worked for me (hit the OPEN end of the wrench, duh)
But the cheap corded impacts are great to have, if you don't have a big compressor
good luck!

 

Sorry for the delayed response, @2.2Lude and @SkysG37 , thank you both for your suggestions. I had to walk away from that end of the car for a bit, had a small adventure while replacing my front coilovers. Nothing like a beautifully, perfectly rounded off bolt for the upper control arm. Well, at least now I am a proud owner of 2 different bolt extractor sets. Anyhow, this weekend I'll try sorting out the rear end. If I'm unloading the suspension, I may as well make things a little easier. Presumably, if I'm replacing the rear coilovers at the same time, I should have a lot more room to work while everything is off and out.

@2.2Lude , I don't have a working surface that I'd trust with all 4 jack stands. I have a small, allotted grass/soil flat patch in the backyard, lol. I've welded 12x12 flat steel plates to the bottoms of my jack stands, even then I only use them with 24x24 sheets of pressure treated plywood. Maybe it's overkill, but I dunno, these cars aren't exactly dainty, or petite.
@SkysG37 , I don't have any air tools, or corded ones. But my m18 1/2" has been pretty good with the stubborn stuff. As to the penetrants, no kerosene here, but acetone and ATF should do the trick. I also have some PB, I'll try that first, after I get it nice and hot.

Thanks again, I'll report the results.

 

Ok, an update, as promised:
I put the rear end on the jack stands, took the wheels off, and realized that it would be much easier to remove the sway bar together with the end links. Doused everything in PB, gave it 15 min, and everything zipped right off.
I didn't bother with the exhaust, just slid it back past the pumpkin and wiggled it out. Swapped the end links on to the new one and reinstalled.
"So? How does it drive", you ask?
- No idea. Car's not drivable at the moment
"What did you break this time?"
- Pretty much the remainder of the rear suspension...
I replaced my coilovers, while I was at it. The new set is the oem-style setup. Never had anything like that. I thought I set them tall enough, only to find out that off the jacks she's sitting on the tires, nice and firm. My wheel setup is not exactly what you'd call "tuckable". It's the exact opposite of that, so, she needs to get that **** up another inch or two. Unfortunately, I'm old, and tired. Yes, I gave up. Hopefully, I'll get her buttoned up by tomorrow. Thanks, everyone, for your help! I appreciate this place more than you know.