Drop the K member - let's think about that for a moment... I haven’t actually done this, so I will likely miss some details. But here’s the rough outline. Input from anyone who has actually changed a K member is welcome...
Disconnect the battery at the battery ground terminal, remove the fan and fan shroud.
Jack up car using floor jack under the K member
Remove the front wheels.
Remove the front brake calipers from their mounts.
Put jackstands under the A arm close to the ball joint.
Disconnect the roll bar links.
Chain the front springs so that they don't go flying out when you release pressure on them. Flying springs can kill you, so this is crucial.
Remove the top nut from each shock strut or remove the bottom shock strut mount bolts.
Put floor jack under the A arm, put pressure on the A arm so that you can remove the jackstand.
Move the jackstand to the K member to A arm pivot point. Place it so that it des not inhibit the A arm movement.
Slowly release the pressure on the jack while watching the spring. Once the tension is off the spring, remove the chain and the spring.
Repeat the process for the other side.
The flex coupling for the steering shaft needs to be disconnected before you can remove the K member. You should disassemble the coupling by undoing the 2 bolts that hold it together.
Both motor mounts will need to have the large nuts that secure them to the K member removed.
The trans mount will also have to be loosened and the bolts removed.
Use a chain host or engine lift to support the engine.
Put the floor jack back under the center of the K member and relocate the jackstands to support the car.
Remove the bolts on each side that secure the K member to the body.
Disconnect the hydraulic lines from the steering rack.
Lower the floor jack with the K member on it and remove it from under the car. You will need a helper on each spindle to keep the K member from falling off the floor jack. Your helpers may need to turn the K member so that it lays flat to have enough clearance to get it out from under the car.
Reverse the process to re-assemble. The springs will probably need a spring compressor to re-install them. Again, caution is the main thing, since a flying spring is very dangerous.
Some alternative possibilities are to leave the springs and struts alone and remove the bolts that mount the A arms to the K member. Again, I haven’t tried this, so I don’t know if it can be done successfully.
After looking at all the work, I think that I would rather pull the engine or do it with the engine jacked up to clear everything.
thehueyPilot’s comments:
That's pretty close......I did not remove the fan or shroud or the trans bolts. I used a cherry picker to hold the engine in place. The k member is held on by eight bolts (four on each side) I left the spindles in place still attached to the struts but removed the rotors to get better access to the lower ball joint.
