I will be installing the CHE UCA non adjustable.
The directions state to remove the old arm with the mount attached.
Do you really need to remove the mount to change this part?
If I can do this without removing the mount I think it would be easier.
No messing with the backseat, and maybe not needing to drop the gas tank a few inches.

 

I have the BMR adjustable UCA, my installer and I removed the whole assy as per the insturctions for the UCA. It really isn't much to remove the bottom of the backseat for access to the front nut and only need to loosen the two strap nuts enough to drop the tank a couple of inches.

I have read in these forums about some who have done the install without removing the whole assy.... the problem is that only a few have been able to remove the bolt at the rear mount without it damaging the gas tank...

Probably, by the time you have to fight the rear bolt to get it out without damaging the tank you will have expended less time and effort to do it the way the instructions say... IMO

Bobby M

 

As MooStang05gt indicated, the problem might come down to accessing that front bolt in the UCA that attaches it to the chassis mount. When I did mine, I was also adding a BMR chassis mount as well so I removed the factory stuff as a unit. When it came to reinstalling everything, I installed the BMR chassis mount and torqued it specs. Then I needed to loosen the bolts again anyway in order to get the front bolt of the UCA into the chassis mount.

After I had everything reinstalled, it was still a real PITA to torque all of the fasteners. There is not a whole lot of room to work in the "tunnel". It would be a lot easier if the exhaust and driveshaft were not in the way.

Check your gas tank strap bolts. I think I read somewhere that some early S197 cars have a hex hed bolt. But Ford later switched to a bolt with a special Torx type head (not your standard Torx, however, I needed to order the right part from Snap-on). The tool part number is listed in the FORD repair manuals or I can look up the part number tonight.

A note on removing the tank strap bolts... Ford used a blue thread lock on them. Do yourself a favor and heat them up to loosen the thread lock. I used hair drier and used a scrap piece of a 2X6 to block the heat from the fuel filler tube on the driver's side. If you don't use heat, it feels like the bolt might snap and it makes an awful creaking sound during removal with hand tools. I'd also suggest completely removing the strap bolts (prop up the tank with a jack or a block of wood) to clean the old thread lock off the bolt before reinstalling them with a few drops of new thread lock. The other route is to throw away the tank strap bolts and use new ones from FORD as suggested by the Ford repair manual.

 

Tank strap bolt socket is SNAP-ON socket 50 IP (FTX50TPE)

 

You don't need to remove the bracket to get the bolt out I just did this 2 days ago just loosen the front mount bolt under the rear seat.. I mean really loosen it !! The front UCA bolt will come out and your not going to damage the gas tank ! Don't completely remove that bracket it will be a real pain to reinstall ! heres pics of the bracket with the third link out ! and a pic of the big silver bolt you need to loosen under the seat !....

 

How far does the gas tank have to come down? 4 or 5 inches?

For those of you who have done the UCA mount install, how did you support the tank? How long are the strap bolts.

Currently my car is sitting in the auto craft shop with everything installed except the UCA and the Rear sway bar installed. I have to wait until thursday until it is open again. It's like leaving your kid in the hospital.

 

I just did this on Friday.

Everyone else seems to have no problem getting 129 ft/lbs of tq on that damned bolt, but I found it to be IMPOSSIBLE, so I just said F#%$ it and pulled the entire mount out so I can really get the proper tq on that bolt.

Anyhooo... I used two small floor jacks on either side of the tank to lower it enough to wiggle that upper mount out. I needed maybe 1-2" MAX to get it out and back in again.

You just need a standard T-50 bit to get those bolts on the tank out. Getting it back in was as easy as jacking the tank up slowly (just enough to get the bolts started) on one side at a time.

At the end of the day, I had the proper tq on each and every bolt in the rear and ALL of my problems went away. I can spank the ehck out of my car now without hearing terrible clunking noises.

 

which bolt are you talking about? The one connecting the UCA to the chassis bracket or the one connecting the UCA to the bushing on the diff? I see alot of people complaining about the UCA bolt, but I am not clear which one they mean. I think the Steeda instructions say to assemble the UCA and the mount before putting it on the car.

As for the gas tank we were going to try the floor jack method too. Now I just have to wait until thursday. I honestly couldn't sleep last night. Probably how my parents felt when the sent me away to camp for the first time when I was a kid.

 

The bolt I'm referring to is the one that mounts the UCA to the mounting plate toward the chasis end (not the differential side). There's simply no way to get a 1/2" tq wrench up in that area to ensure 129ft/lbs of tq. This is one of the most CRUCIAL bolts for proper tq too...

Steeda sells a spacer kit for $9.95 that bridges the gab for the UCA mount. The bolt is 14mm, but the holes on the mounting plate (OEM) are 16mm. If you've gone to an aftermarket mount, then this info is not relative to your application though.

Yeah, you only need 1-2" on each side to get the mount out/in. Just get two floor jacks and put a piece of wood on top to distribute the weight evenly (composite tank). Remove the tank strap bolts and you'll be able to work the tank slowly down to get it out. Before putting the tank back into position, clean the threads and use fresh blue- loctite.