2011-2019 Toyota Sienna Driver's side lower control arm replacement 

2 ugga duggas with impact and u should be fine 😅

Probably so but torque specs are very important. Once you see the damage that's caused by a bolt coming loose because it wasn't torqued properly, you will understand why things are tightened usine a certain number of ft-lbs and not "ugga duggas". @@nme5238

Awesome! I'm going to try this tomorrow and your info arrived just in time!

The issue with taking to a shop is they are going to charge you the job rate. Technically Toyota recommends to remove the front subframe to do this job and the job rate for hours reflects that and that's what a shop is going to charge. From videos on RU-vid..there ways around that like what I did. Like you said, just need the right tools and some decent mechanical common sense and you can do this job. Glad you found this video and hope it helps.

You're welcome...happy the video helps you out. Good luck!

You're welcome ..glad this video helped you😎

Thank you for commenting. The impact gun is pretty good considering it's an older model from Ryobi. They have even stronger models that are brushless.

do you know the size/thread on that nut? assuming you still need to support the transmission?

You're welcome

😎👍

Thank you 👍

Thank you for the hack idea.... hopefully someone that watches the video and sees this helps them.

That really helped!

Thank you. I am glad this video is able to help you out to repair your Sienna.

I am glad the video helped you out. You can save a good amount of money.

Bro, I was just quoted by a Toyota dealership for $4 grand for both sides. Yes $4 grand. Yikes!

The bushings were also included with that quote.

I am happy the video helped you out😎👍. Great additional input, hopefully others see it.

Depending if you have the right tools and are mechanically inclined, you can knock out this job in 2 hours. Other factors like if the vehicle has rust or like the ball joints are stubborn to get loose, maybe a little longer. I did both sides removed and replaced in an hour 1/2. 13 hours is the going rate for this job by certified mechanics in the industry. Most will get this job done much sooner and the rest of the "labor hours" is easy money for them. Not saying all mechanics are crooks, I understand they need to put food on their plate, but you also too.

That’s because the factory manual says to R&R the eng/trans to do the job. A good mechanic can do it in less than an hour after getting the vehicle off the ground.

You have to remember mechanics don’t actually make good money. The shop takes in a lot of the profit. I don’t think most mechanics even make 100k a year. For the the schooling and tools they are getting ripped off

You're welcome...glad it helped you out.

Book time for it at Toyota Canada is 7.4. How tf is your book time higher when we have wayy more rust to deal with.

AllData (NoData lmao) told me 10.7 hours. No way in hell am I telling a customer the entire drivetrain has to be removed to replace a control arm 😂

You're welcome..glad it helped😎. The Sienna drove straight afterwards but I still did an alignment. Fortunately it was still within factory specs so I didn't get charged. It's recommended to get an alignment, there are multiple factors that can throw an individual vehicle's alignment off.

I would like to say yes...the only difference is the AWD Siennas have a transfer case but that doesn't affect how the suspension is mounted. Like I said in the video it will take some effort but you can lift enough to get that motor mount out. Thank you for watching and commenting and hope you're able to get it done. 👍

You tried to lift the transmission from it's casing as high as you can? You might be able to lift it a bit more by disconnecting the upper "dog bone" motor mount. It does take some effort to get it out but it should eventually come out.

Is the stud for the mount stripped or is it spinning along with the nut? If it's stripped you can either rethread it with a tap and die set with a new nut or replace the whole mount. If it's spinning along with the nut then the stud on the mount got loose or broke which I am pretty surprised it would. That I couldn't help you with and you will have to figure out a way to keep that stuff from moving.

TBH...the Toyota LCA failed around 100k which I would expect an aftermarket part to fail, and IMO that's pretty pathetic. I installed MOOG aftermarket LCAs and they are holding up just fine and alot cheaper than OEM.

@@itsaboutfam Yes, OEM parts are super expensive. I keep going back and forth (in my head) about oem or after market for these two pieces. The dealership stated on the paper that these two parts are critical to be replaced. And I have 183k miles on my van. I don't want to buy a new vehicle at this time so I keep wondering about the cost and the van's lifetime....

I am trying to understand what you meant you installed new lower control arms without ball joints?

yes, the old ball joints were still good

@@HectorDiaz-og5cj I am not sure why your wheels would be running after installing the new arms unless something wasn't installed right or the LCAs are wrong.

The hardest part is getting enough room to lift that transmission mount bracket from that mount stud. Like what I did in the video...slightly lifting the transmission gives you just enough room with help from a crowbar to lift it off the mount stud. The reason this job is expensive from Toyota is because Toyota FSM technique is to drop the whole front subframe to replace the lower control arms.

If you look in the comments...Someone provided the torque specs of various bolts when doing the job.

I used an older Ryobi 1/2 inch impact gun. I don't know how much force used to remove the bolts but it didn't have an issue removing them.

No because the mount on the driver's side is completely different.

@@itsaboutfam so the mount also has to be removed ?

Yes..I replaced the whole lower control arm. I used Moog Problem solver series as they are supposedly better quality. So far no issues and they fit like OEM. Inspect your mounts if they need to be replaced. Mine were fine as they showed no signs of failure or about to fail.

what do you mean it unscrews? You can unscrew the top bolt out of the mount with no issues?

@@davidperry6886 I'm about to do both front LCA's on my sienna and I googled the mounts for the sienna and the studs are indeed removable. You just need to double nut on to the stud and just back it out. It's just one really long piece. I confirmed it with some old forums posts for 3rd gen siennas.

@@stevepham8443 Well, I did both recently after watching a few videos. I can affirm that the passenger side doesn't require extreme jacking of the engine; just hold it in place as that mount is bolted to the side of the engine (I have a 2013). The driver side, I just bit the bullet and kept jacking the trans until I wasn't comfortable any more against the firewall. At that point it really did just take a small amount of effort with a crow to barely lift the trans off the mount. No issues, and the actual drivers LCA was a piece of cake. Getting the passenger side one out was a bear; it took me a full day to get the ball joint separated...

You could....I know that Siberian Bushings makes upgraded bushings for the Sienna. If you have the tools like a hydraulic press it will make the job to replace them easy. I was strapped for time to fix the van for a road trip so I just got replacement LCAs. I saved the OEM control arms and will probably install the Siberian bushings on those in the future.

You're welcome 😎👍

Well the fact that it's common that the OEM bushings fail at such low miles doesn't give me confidence they are worth their price. Moog QC has been 50/50 since now they have multiple distribution centers all over the world and their QC has suffered. I went ahead and gave them a shot and so far no issues. As far as the ball joints...IF you can go OEM though I would, but again it's a 50/50 chance the Moog will be quality.

@@itsaboutfam hmm. Man you making it tough on me on deciding the best LCA. Might go check RockAuto out for other brand.

@@DSPNWtoCali Dorman is a brand I would probably trust..their stuff is pretty decent. Rockauto sells them, I believe they are $20-30 more than Moog.

When you do the passenger side you will have to support the motor when you remove that engine mount. For the driver's side like in this video I supported the transmission on the body since the pan of the trans mount is smaller.

Have you checked maybe you got something loose? Maybe you accidentally knocked a connector plug off to something?

@@itsaboutfam air intake hose had become undone/came off of throttle body but i put it back together but the growling still remains when i accelerate,engine work just fine on idle but as soon i as press on gas pedal growling and vibrating on the steering wheel continues! Checked the sensor,hose everything looks good,just cant figure out what is going on,even took it to a auto mechanic they said everything looks ok!

Unfortunately I don't have those numbers. I should invest in a Sienna FSM in the future. I have been working on vehicles for awhile so I have developed an instinct of when it's "right enough" 😎.

@@itsaboutfam thanks a lot I appreciate the information

@@SuperNoelhernandez If you're using hand tool...usually once you tighten to where you can't tighten with normal force. A good 1/4 or 1/2 turn with more force will be tight enough. With power tools, same general concept but you will have to make sure not to overtighten or you can break the bolt.

@@itsaboutfam thanks so much

In the video I mentioned to lift the transmission on the case body of it, NOT the transmission pan. You can see where I placed the jack on the transmission.

In the video I mention each size for each bolt as I remove the driver's side LCA.

OEM Toyota ball joints are superior and in the video I mentioned I replaced them several months prior as they were still good.

@@itsaboutfam Yes, that's what I wanted to confirm. My Sienna has 225k miles, and the control arm bushings are shot. There are eBay control arm sets selling for under $70 shipped, but I doubt if the ball joints are any better than the ones already in my car.

What do you think about replacing the motor and tranny mounts with eBay parts at the same time?

@@RxRau-kg9ot with that mileage, it wouldn't hurt especially if they shows signs of wear.

@@itsaboutfam Thank you. I just got a set of eBay motor mounts and Rock Auto control arm: Delphi p/n TC6012 & TC5900 with lifetime warranty. I'm going to cross my fingers the ball joints and mounts are no worse than the ones on the car.

Depending on your mechanical ability and having the tools...it can be done I much less time. I did both sides in about an hour 1/2. Mind you I have experience with replacing suspension components and also I didn't have to deal with other factors like rust or previous poor quality work another person did.

It took me 10 hours just to change one side using basic hand tools. I need to remove a lot of screws. It's a big job.

If you can remove the LCA in less than 10 mins...more power to you.

I bought them from Rockauto.com

Thanks 😅

That seems to be around the ball park price unfortunately. I am not sure how many hours it calls for them to change the lower arm, but usually it's $120+ per hour labor. I believe when I was researching how to replace it, Toyota supposedly drops the whole front subframe down to replace the arms. It makes sense BUT not really necessary as I didn't have to do that.

Because you messed up

If you installed everything correctly you shouldn't have any issues. I would check if the bolts are tightened correctly.

You could have bent the dust cover on the back side of the disk brake

The parts prices are about right if it's original Toyota equipment. If they're aftermarket, that price is too high. For the labor rate it is high but it's not far-fetched It's near the ballpark range. I went shop around to get a better price. Now if you have some time and some mechanical knowledge and some tools you can do the job for me. It took me about an hour and a half to do both sides on my van.

It pays 10.4 hours to replace both control arms

The way the manual reads you take the engine out. Reason for crazy price and labor. But as we all see that’s not necessary. Just wanted to clarify why the quotes are so huge. Also if you unbolt the front mount you can get that extra lift ya need. 🤙🏼

You could but earlier in the video I mentioned that I reply the ball joints prior and they didn't have to be replaced. It was easier to just leave it on and undo the 3 bolts rather than remove the castle nut from the top. If you have to replace the lower ball joint, then yes you would have to remove the castle nut.

Fandangle meant I had to pry with the crow bar in different angles to get the bracket over the transmission mount stud.

$7200?!? I don't even know if they really expected a customer to pay for something like that for replacing control arms.