Any advice on replacing this bolt for my 88 G20

Any suggestions?

 

I would say plenty of PB Blaster and vise grips or a small pipe wrench with a small pipe as a persuader

 

Are you saying i can back those bolts out without removing the bracket? I’m wondering if i need to cut those rivet heads off at the bottom to release bracket?

 

Hard to say without seeing the back of it.

I think you can drop the entire crossmember out of these, will that get you to the back side without removing the rivets?

 

Possibly. I’ll crawl under and look. To do that i would need to get a spring compressor and disable more of the front end?

 

No, but you'd have to take the other side apart, drop the whole works down, and then you should be able to access the back side of it. You may need to get a body manual and see if that shows how this comes apart.

With the upper ball joint usually they're riveted and when you replace you grind them out and put bolts on. So you could probably replace these rivets with bolts too, but you're going to have to check if you can even access the back of them to install bolts.

 

Thank you so much. That was my next attack plan. I really want my van back on the road. I’ve been fixing up other cars and trucks just so i can borrow them to get around and haven’t had time to touch my van. I did try a cold chisel on the rivets and they definitely seem soft enough to grind out pretty easy. a little worried on the clearance underneath but thinking i can cut a square to put rounded carriage bolt and nut on top. Hoping i’m back at it this week at some point.

 

Finally got bracket and bolts out. Now to find new bolts. Any idea where?

 

That sure looks a lot like a wheel stud. Some time digging through what NAPA has for something close?

Edit: ARP makes some longer than normal studs.
https://arp-bolts.com/kits/product.php?PL=55

 

I just had the same thing happen! I was able to fix it but have all of these weird spacers. They sit on the stud/bolt that broke in between the pivot shaft and the bracket/plate that the bolt comes through. Are these spacers for some part of the alignment? It seems like the alignment is definitely off. Most of them had already fallen out when I was taking it apart thankfully they were still sitting in that bracket but I’m not sure how many to put on Either bolt.